Most real estate investors know how to build in a bull market. Very few know what to do when that market turns against them. In this episode of The M.O.R.E. Show, Justin Colby sits back down with Brandon Rockstar Rooks a capital raiser who spent a decade building a $100 million land entitlement business in the southeast, working with some of the biggest national builders in the country and who hit major headwinds when the market shifted in late 2024. Brandon shares exactly what happened, why he is not embarrassed to say he is on his third reinvention, how he is pivoting into private lending, note buying, and distressed debt, and why the most dangerous thing an investor can do right now is stay loyal to a business model that has stopped working.

KEY TOPICS COVERED:

• How Brandon built a $100 million land entitlement business working with the biggest national builders

• Why national builders don't want land on their balance sheets and how that creates opportunity

• What went wrong in Q4 2024 and why the land entitlement market shifted dramatically

• How Brandon is pivoting into private lending, note buying, and distressed debt

• Why it is okay to start over at 40 and why staying loyal to a broken business model is not

• The mindset of reinvention how to know when to pivot and how to do it without losing everything

️ Key Moments

00:01 — Introduction: Brandon Rockstar Rooks returns to The M.O.R.E. Show

00:32 — The Boardroom Mastermind what it is and how to get access

01:11 — Lending is getting weird what Justin is seeing in the market right now

01:31 — A decade of land entitlement capital raising how it started

02:13 — Why 15% annualized returns became the minimum standard

02:49 — How the land entitlement model works ground, permits, sell to builders

03:16 — Why national builders don't want land on their balance sheets

04:01 — First deal: $3M parcel in Charlotte NC 99 townhomes

07:00 — How the $100M raise was built and what drove it

15:00 — What changed in Q4 2024, when the market shifted

20:00 — Pivoting into private lending, note buying, and distressed debt

28:00 — How to know when your business model has stopped working

33:00 — The Dan Martell post, it is okay to start over at 40

37:00 — Round number three, reinventing again and why that is okay

39:00 — Relationships, markets, and staying ready to pivot

40:00 — How to connect with Brandon Rockstar Rooks

Connect with Brandon Rockstar Rooks:

Website - www.rockstarcapitalfund.com

About The M.O.R.E. Show:

The M.O.R.E. Show is hosted by Justin Colby and is dedicated to helping real estate professionals, investors, and entrepreneurs maximize opportunity in any market. New episodes every week.

Learn more: www.timeformore.com

Invest with Elevest Capital: www.elevestcapital.com

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Most real estate investors have had a deal fall apart at the title company not because the deal was bad, but because the title company did not know how to handle it. In this episode of The M.O.R.E. Show, Justin Colby sits down with Ash Selle, founder of Phoenix Closing and a 25-year title and escrow veteran who has handled tens of thousands of transactions across 7 states. Ash Selle breaks down exactly how investor-friendly title works, how to close hairy and complicated deals that other title companies won't touch, what really happens inside a title company when your deal goes sideways, and why subject-to deals, double closings, probate, and foreclosure transactions require a specialist not a generalist.

KEY TOPICS COVERED:

• What an investor-friendly title company actually does differently from a traditional one

• How to close subject-to deals, double closings, probate, and foreclosure transactions correctly

• Why buyers are backing out last minute right now — and what title companies are seeing on the front lines

• The biggest mistakes real estate investors make when working with title and escrow

• How to find and work with a title company that will fight to get your deal across the finish line

• What sellers in distress foreclosure, divorce, death, prison, need from a title team

️ Key Moments

00:01 — Introduction: Ash Selle founder of Phoenix Closing

00:23 — 25 years in title and escrow tens of thousands of transactions

00:45 — Phoenix Closing explained investor-friendly title in 7 states

01:00 — How to reach Ash Selle: phoenixclosing.co and (612) 248-6108

01:45 — What is happening in the real estate market right now from the title side

02:08 — Why buyers are backing out last minute and getting cold feet

03:47 — Distressed sellers: foreclosure, divorce, prison, probate, and death

04:09 — Interest rates why nobody on the front lines is complaining about them

07:00 — Subject-to deals explained and how to close them correctly

12:00 — Double closings what they are and how investor-friendly title handles them

18:00 — Probate and estate sales what makes these transactions complicated

22:00 — What title companies see that investors never know about

26:00 — How to be a better investor when working with your title team

29:07 — Ash Selle's advice: be kind title coordinators have multiple files

29:40 — Where to find Ash Selle and Phoenix Closing

Connect with Ash Selle:

Website: phoenixclosing.co

Phone: (612) 248-6108

Facebook: Phoenix Closing

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