Carson Jones

Author, Podcast Host, Business Broker, Commercial Real Estate Advisor. Passive Investments - eXp Commercial

[Carson Jones @CarsonLJ79]

How the Best CRE Advisors Are Using AI

The best commercial real estate advisors aren't working harder — they're working with better tools.

AI is now doing the heavy lifting on prospecting, market research, lease abstraction, and due diligence — turning hours into minutes. But the deal still comes down to judgment, relationships, and negotiation.

Here's exactly how top brokers and investors use it in 2026 (and the tools they rely on):
https://t.co/ESPS8qrPTh

[Carson Jones @CarsonLJ79]

Commercial Loan Workout & Asset Recovery Guide

“Foreclose or wait” is the most expensive way to think about a bad loan. Forbearance, modification, deed-in-lieu, note sale, receivership, foreclosure-to-REO — each nets a very different recovery.

This guide lays out the full workout toolkit, how to sequence it for maximum net recovery, and why bringing in a broker before foreclosure usually pays for itself.

Read it here: https://t.co/3KMJyFREPv

[Carson Jones @CarsonLJ79]

Coming soon: She landed in America from France in 2012 with no real estate experience — just hustle and a door-to-door sales job.

Fast forward: Linda Holtz house-hacked a triplex in Chicago during the pandemic, borrowed against her own life insurance policy to fund her first passive deal ("becoming her own bank"), and now syndicates value-add multifamily across Texas with her husband through Married 2 Real Estate.

In this episode of Carson's Corner, Linda breaks down:
→ How house hacking became her on-ramp to commercial real estate
→ The creative financing move most investors never consider
→ What it really takes to build a real estate business as a couple
→ Why she's fighting to open more doors for women in CRE

If you've ever told yourself you don't have the money, the background, or the network to start — this one's for you.

[Carson Jones @CarsonLJ79]

🚨 One Sponsor Spot Left for The Vault — The Door Is Still Open! 🚪

If you are looking to connect with Entrepreneurs, Investors, Family Offices, Business & Property Owners, in a private setting — this is your event.

📍 The Vault – Knoxville, TN
📅 Thursday, September 10 | 5:00–9:00 PM

[Carson Jones @CarsonLJ79]

Distressed Commercial Real Estate in Tennessee

Most of today's distress isn't about bad buildings — it's about capital structure. Rates rose, loans matured, rate caps expired, and “extend and pretend” ran out of road.

In Tennessee that often means good real estate with strained finances, which is exactly the setup distressed buyers want. Here's what's driving it, where the opportunity sits by market and sector, and how to transact.

Read it here: https://t.co/30AVABdqNb

[Carson Jones @CarsonLJ79]

Credit Union REO Sales

Credit unions hit the same wall banks do when a member business loan defaults — they just have a different regulator and, often, less internal bandwidth to run a commercial disposition.
My guide covers how credit unions clear foreclosed commercial property, what to do with owner-occupied collateral, and how marketing to owner-operators and SBA-eligible buyers lifts recovery.

Read it here: https://t.co/6UzvCStd8N

[Carson Jones @CarsonLJ79]

Most people dream about leaving their W-2.

Paul Shannon actually did it.

After walking away from corporate America in 2019, Paul built a portfolio of more than 200 residential units by executing deep value-add multifamily deals. Then he made an unexpected pivot—shifting from active operator to full-time passive investor across multifamily, industrial, and other alternative investments.

As the founder of InvestWise Collective and former co-host of the PassivePockets podcast, Paul has spent years helping investors think differently about building long-term wealth.

In this episode, we discuss:
• Why he stepped away from active operations
• The transition to becoming a full-time passive investor
• What he looks for before investing in a deal
• Lessons from scaling a 200+ unit portfolio
• How to build wealth without managing every property yourself

If you're interested in real estate investing—whether active or passive—you won't want to miss this conversation.

[Carson Jones @CarsonLJ79]

Special Assets & OREO Disposition

The OREO clock starts ticking the moment a bank takes title — holding-period limits, examiner attention, and write-down risk all pulling in the same direction: sell, and sell smart.
Written for special-asset managers and CFOs: what OREO really is, the accounting and timing pressures behind it, and how a disposition broker shortens the path while keeping the file examiner-ready.

Read it here: https://t.co/ikrKnLIiJ8

[Carson Jones @CarsonLJ79]

SBA Liquidation Properties

When an SBA loan goes down, the collateral has to be liquidated by the book — promptly, prudently, and with a paper trail that protects the guaranty. The real estate still has to sell, and most of it is special-use Main Street property.

Here's how 7(a) and 504 liquidation works, where a broker lifts recovery, and how buyers (often with a brand-new SBA loan) can pick these assets up.

Read it here: https://t.co/MOfELC6ZP7

[Carson Jones @CarsonLJ79]

Distressed Hotel Sales

The number that makes or breaks a distressed hotel sale usually isn't the price — it's the PIP. The brand's required renovation can swing value by millions, and buyers price the worst case unless you quantify it for them.

I walk through how foreclosed and bank-owned hotels reach the market, why receivership keeps them saleable, and the conversion plays (apartments, senior, student housing) that unlock the highest recovery.

Read it here: https://t.co/CXpL8Xdyz4

[Carson Jones @CarsonLJ79]

"You can't diligence your way to zero risk." That's refreshing to hear, because it's something you rarely hear in real estate.

Jed Morris said it plainly: there's always going to be risk. The job during diligence isn't to eliminate it — it's to mitigate as much of it as you possibly can.
And here's the part people miss. A quality of earnings is only as good as the person running it, and only as good as the data they're handed. Same goes for legal. Same for operational. Same for technical diligence. Every workstream has a ceiling.

So even with the best team, the most capital, and all the research in the world, you'll never strip out every risk. The owner will always know things you don't. Information asymmetry doesn't disappear — at some point you still have to take the leap.

The danger isn't the leap itself.

It's leaping without doing the work first. Skipping the steps, ignoring the gaps, and jumping anyway. That's where people blow themselves up.

Mitigate everything you can. Then accept the risk you can't. That's the deal.

[Carson Jones @CarsonLJ79]

Hospitality REO Broker

Sell a hotel like an office building and you'll torch the value. These are operating businesses first — revenue, flags, licenses, equipment, reputation — and real estate second.

Here's why distressed hotels, restaurants, bars, and distilleries demand a specialized, national buyer pool, and how the right positioning turns a fire-sale number into full recovery.

Read it here: https://t.co/wDH8S9JqV6

[Carson Jones @CarsonLJ79]

Bank-Owned Commercial Real Estate in Tennessee
“Bank-owned” scares off a lot of buyers and excites the smart ones. The truth sits in the middle: clean(ish) title, an as-is sale, a motivated seller, and a discount that reflects condition more than charity.
My guide explains how Tennessee lenders move REO off the books, where investors actually find it, and how to finance and diligence it without getting burned by what foreclosure didn't wipe out.
Read it here: https://t.co/kLuko3gaVh

[Carson Jones @CarsonLJ79]

Commercial Loan Workout & Asset Recovery Guide

When a commercial loan goes bad, the lender has far more options than “foreclose or wait.”
Forbearance, modification, deed-in-lieu, note sales, receivership, and foreclosure-to-REO — each fits a different situation. My guide lays out the full toolkit and how to sequence it to maximize net recovery, and why bringing in a broker earlier than you think pays off.

Read it here: https://t.co/I7pfsfld1c

[Carson Jones @CarsonLJ79]

Foreclosed Commercial Property Guide

Foreclosed commercial property can mean great basis — or a costly trap for the unprepared.

I wrote a complete guide to the full path from default to deed: how commercial foreclosure works, Tennessee trustee sales, buying at auction versus buying bank-owned (REO), financing, and the diligence that protects your capital. Know what survives a foreclosure before you bid.

Read it here: https://t.co/A1si1O3Fso

[Carson Jones @CarsonLJ79]

A special thank you to Eaton Construction Services for sponsoring our event.

Eaton delivers retail, office, and multifamily projects through a partnership-driven approach focused on communication, efficiency, and quality. Their design-build process helps owners reduce risk, stay on budget, and bring projects to life with confidence.

Built With Purpose. Looking forward to having the Brandon Eaton team with us in Knoxville on September 10th.

[Carson Jones @CarsonLJ79]

Distressed Hotel Sales

A distressed hotel is one of the most complex assets in commercial real estate: a franchise flag, a stack of licenses, a PIP, a receivership question, and a huge physical plant — all at once.

My guide walks through how foreclosed and bank-owned hotels reach the market, why the PIP is often the biggest factor in price, and the conversion plays (multifamily, senior, student housing) that can unlock the highest recovery.

Read it here: https://t.co/mKrXmyISVh

[Carson Jones @CarsonLJ79]

Distressed Commercial Real Estate in Tennessee

Higher rates, a wall of loan maturities, and the end of “extend and pretend” are creating real distressed CRE opportunity — and in Tennessee, the distress is more about capital structure than market collapse.

Good real estate, temporary financial strain. My guide breaks down what’s driving the cycle, where the opportunity is by sector and market, and how investors and lenders are transacting on it.

Read it here: https://t.co/w3JOw5p45n

[Carson Jones @CarsonLJ79]

Retail Real Estate: 2026 Owner's Guide

Grocery-anchored, STNL, medtail, NNN — retail real estate quietly became one of the most resilient corners of CRE.

Everything an owner needs on valuation, leases, financing, and the tax strategy behind it:
https://t.co/Jigl8Iax9u

[Carson Jones @CarsonLJ79]

Credit Union REO Sales
Credit unions face the same distressed-collateral challenge as banks — but with their own regulator, their own loan types, and their own limits.
My guide covers how credit unions dispose of foreclosed commercial property, what happens when a member business loan goes bad, and how to maximize recovery on owner-occupied collateral that a smaller shop may not have the bandwidth to sell.
Read it here: https://t.co/bqu3rv4bnk