Jesse Futia

Fin Ghost

Helping Real Estate Professionals build $1M brands on LinkedIn.

Co-Founder and Ghostwriter

Executive Equity Investing 

Helping busy professionals build generational wealth and retire comfortably through passively investing in real estate.

Chief Executive Officer

Wealth Science Podcast 

Interviewing the top real estate and financial experts in the World.

Host

Writer and Co-Founder @ CRE Digital | Copywriting & social media management for the world's most innovative real estate companies

Creating content on social media is digital leverage for real estate professionals. 

𝗪𝗶𝘁𝗵𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗶𝘁, 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘄𝗼𝗻’𝘁 𝘀𝘂𝗿𝘃𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗻𝗲𝘅𝘁 𝗱𝗲𝗰𝗮𝗱𝗲. 

You now have two choices:

1. Create content

2. Be passed by those that do 

My story 👇

Broke college kid turned 7-figure real estate investor and writer. 

I help 7-figure real estate professionals grow their brands and drive qualified leads on LinkedIn. 

--

Hit the 🔔 and follow along each day for free tips.

Ready to grow your brand on LinkedIn to drive more qualified leads?

𝗛𝗶𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗸 𝗶𝗻 𝗺𝘆 𝗳𝗲𝗮𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲𝗱 𝘀𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝘁𝗼 𝗮𝗽𝗽𝗹𝘆 𝘁𝗼 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗺𝗲.

My last day in uniform was December 2025.

And I still don’t know how to put 9 years into a single post.

I joined the Army because of 9/11.

I’m born and raised in upstate New York, and I was a kid watching the world change in real time. 

I didn’t fully understand everything that day…

But I understood enough to know I wanted to serve.

Fast forward:
-> 50+ countries.
-> 9 years in uniform.
-> More early mornings than I can count.
-> More lessons than any classroom could ever teach.

I learned a lot in that time. A lot.

One of the biggest lessons:

Murphy’s Law is real.

Things will break. 
Plans will change. 
The unexpected shows up right on time.

And there are thousands of things in this world we can’t control.

But our preparation and our attitude are not two of them.

The reps. 
The discipline. 
The standard.

The ability to stay steady when everything gets chaotic.

People will ask what I’m doing next.
And yes—I’m excited about what’s ahead.

But I want to say this first:

The biggest blessing of my career isn’t a rank, a title, a deployment, or a bullet point on a résumé.

It’s getting to walk away with the respect and honor of the men and women I served with.

That’s the only “retirement package” that actually matters.

To every leader who bet on me.
To every soldier who carried the weight with me.
To every teammate who showed up when it was hard, and exhausting…

Thank you.

I’m proud of what we did.

And I’m even more proud of who I got to do it with.

I'll look for you on the next objective. 

---

I'm Jesse Futia - I help CRE professionals build digital brands online to drive more leads and revenue. Send me a DM to connect.

Co-Founder, CRE Digital | Capital Raising Engine for Commercial Real Estate Investors | $50M Raised with Digital Systems | DM me to learn more

Matthew McConaughey made $18,000,000 in a single year…

…and still chose the harder path.

Not because he needed more money.

Because he wanted more meaning.

At the peak of his rom-com run, Hollywood kept offering him the same role with a different script.

Same character.
Same story.
Same safe paycheck.

He could’ve stayed in that lane forever and nobody would’ve blamed him.
Instead, he said “no” — over and over — until the industry stopped calling.

He intentionally walked into a dry season.
Not because he was lost.

Because he was refusing to be used up.

And then the pivot happened.

The roles shifted.
The respect shifted.
The legacy shifted.

Here’s the part people miss:

That wasn’t luck.
That was identity.

He wasn’t chasing attention.
He was building alignment.

And I think that’s the real lesson for the rest of us:

If you keep saying yes to the version of you that pays well…

you eventually lose the version of you that’s meant to lead.

Sometimes the most profitable decision is the one that looks like a setback from the outside:
→ saying no to the “safe” path
→ taking the uncomfortable turn
→ betting on the work that actually feels like you

Because comfort doesn’t build legends.

Commitment does.

If you’re in a season where you’re being pulled to level up, but it’s scary…
Good.

That usually means you’re close.

What’s one “safe yes” you need to turn into a “hard no” this year?

The median American has just $8,000 in the bank.

Not $80,000.

Eight.

And this is why “the economy is fine” and “people are struggling” can both be true at the same time.

Because the average balance is way higher (it’s pulled up by high earners)… but the median is the reality for most households.

Now zoom out:

→ A meaningful chunk of Americans have zero emergency savings
→ Less than half can cover 3 months of expenses with savings
→ One surprise expense turns into credit cards missed payments

Here’s why I care about this as someone watching Commercial Real Estate:

When households are thin, rent collections become fragile.

Spending shifts fast. Tenants trade down. Delinquencies creep. Turnover rises.

So the CRE winners in 2026 won’t be the “sexiest” deals.

They’ll be the deals tied to durable demand:

→ workforce / attainable housing
→ necessity-based retail
→ medical / essential services
→ anything that people keep paying for even when life gets tight

If you’re underwriting deals right now, this is a reminder:

Don’t just underwrite the property.

Underwrite the consumer.

Curious what you’re seeing: are tenants getting tighter… or holding steady in your market?

$1,000,000,000,000 is sitting on the sidelines… 

watching Commercial Real Estate.

And most people are missing what that means.

The CRE narrative has been:

“Office is dead.”
“Rates killed deals.”
“Nothing pencils.”

Reality is more nuanced.

Here’s what I’m seeing heading into 2026:

1) CRE is splitting into winners and losers faster than ever
Not “CRE” vs “no CRE.”

It’s good deals vs bad sponsors + bad basis.

2) Capital is still available… but it’s pickier

The bar is higher:
→ cleaner rent rolls
→ real demand drivers
→ stronger operators
→ realistic exit assumptions

3) Distress isn’t everywhere — it’s concentrated

Some owners need liquidity.
Some need time.
Some need a partner.

That creates opportunity… if you can move fast and underwrite clean.

4) The “boring” stuff is winning

Every cycle rewards durability:
→ essential services
→ sticky tenants
→ functional layouts
→ demand you can actually explain in one sentence

The next 12–24 months will create more wealth in CRE than the last 3 years…

…but only for the people who stop chasing headlines and start tracking fundamentals.

If you’re in the trenches right now — what are you seeing?

Where do you think the best opportunities show up first in 2026?

You can work 70 hours a week…

And still fall behind someone who owns cash-flowing assets.

For years, I believed hustle was the answer:

→ Wake up earlier
→ Grind harder
→ Outwork everyone

But here’s the truth no one tells you:

Time-based income has a ceiling.
Asset-based income doesn’t.

I’ve shifted my entire focus from active hustle → to passive systems:

✅ Land that pays me every month through long-term leases
✅ Real estate that compounds in value while tenants pay down debt
✅ AI-driven outreach that brings in opportunities while I sleep

The goal isn’t to work harder.

It’s to build leverage.

Because if your income depends on you showing up every day…

You don’t own a business — you own a job.

Want real freedom?

Start buying back your time.

99% of entrepreneurs never make it past year 3.

Not because they aren’t smart.
But because they can’t take the silence.

→ The silence when no one clicks your offer. 
→ The silence when your big launch flops. 
→ The silence when you're building something great — and no one notices.

That silence? It kills more dreams than failure ever will.

Here’s the truth no one tells you: 

Your first 1,000 days are supposed to suck.

→ No revenue. 
→ No recognition. 
→ No validation.

Just relentless iteration. 
Just stubborn belief. Just proof of work stacking in silence.

Because real entrepreneurs don’t wait for signs they’re winning. 

They keep going until it’s undeniable.

The ones who break through? They all share this:

→ Proof of work. 
→ Clarity through consistency. 
→ A message that scales without them.

They build. They share. They outlast.

That’s how you go from overlooked to unavoidable.

Keep going.

Your breakthrough is waiting.

In 2026, AI will replace 80% of what most capital raisers do all day…

Not the relationship part.
The busywork part that kills momentum.

Most capital raising still looks like this:

-> A thousand tabs open.
-> A half-written follow-up email.
-> A spreadsheet nobody trusts.
-> A CRM that’s “mostly up to date.”

And a founder wondering why “warm” leads keep going cold.

That’s not a capital raising problem.
That’s a systems problem.

Here’s the shift happening right now:

The best operators are building AI-powered capital raising systems that run whether they’re “feeling motivated” or not.

Meaning:

AI becomes the machine.

You become the signal.

Here’s what that actually looks like in 2026:

→ Every inbound lead is instantly tagged, scored, and routed
→ Follow-ups go out based on behavior (opens, clicks, replies, site visits)
→ Investors automatically receive the right info at the right time (case studies, decks, webinars, FAQs)

→ Meetings are booked without you chasing anyone
→ Your pipeline stays clean without you touching it every day
→ Your updates get drafted for you, with your voice, from your deal data

And the biggest one:

You stop “raising capital.”
You start running an investor acquisition engine.

Because capital raising is not a personality contest.

It’s a throughput game.

The winners in 2026 won’t be the loudest on LinkedIn.

They’ll be the ones with:
→ the cleanest data
→ the fastest follow-up
→ the clearest narrative
→ and the strongest trust flywheel

AI doesn’t make you authentic.
It makes you consistent.

And consistency is what builds belief.

If you’re still doing capital raising manually in 2026…

you’re not behind on “tools.”

You’re behind on leverage.

What part of your capital raising process do you still do manually that you know should be automated?

$10M in CRE capital commitments came from just 16% of our investor database.

Most sponsors think more contacts = more capital.

Wrong.

The sponsors closing 8-figure raises aren't the ones with the biggest lists. 

They're the ones with the tightest systems.

After analyzing what actually moved investors from "interested" to "wired funds," here's what the data showed:

1. The drip campaign architecture

Your investors don't wake up ready to wire $100K. They need 7-12 touch points before they trust you with their money.

2. The CRM you actually use

I've seen sponsors with 500+ "investor relationships" in a spreadsheet they haven't opened in 6 months.

If you can't tell me which 20 investors to call for your next deal in under 60 seconds, your system is broken.

3. The content flywheel

-> One market update email becomes:
-> A LinkedIn post
-> A video for your investor portal
-> Content for 3 drip emails
-> Material for investor calls

Create once. Deploy everywhere.

The reality nobody talks about:

That 16% of their database? 

They received 3x more touchpoints than everyone else.

Not because we spammed them. Because we had a system that identified who was ready and kept them warm.

Trust compounds.
Systems compound. 
Relationships compound. 

Most sponsors are out here hunting. The best ones built farms.

What's your capital-raising system look like?

P.S. - If you're still manually tracking investor follow-ups in your notes app, we need to talk.

A kid starting college this month will spend $100,000+…

…training for a job that might not exist by the time they graduate.

That sounds dramatic.

But it’s already happening.

AI isn’t “coming.”
It’s here.

And it’s eating the middle of the workforce first:
→ entry-level analysts
→ basic marketing execution
→ customer support reps
→ paralegal/admin-heavy legal work
→ junior accountants/bookkeeping
→ simple coding / QA
→ recruiters doing manual sourcing

Not because those people aren’t smart.

Because those jobs are built on repeatable tasks.

And repeatable tasks get automated.

Here’s the uncomfortable truth:

College isn’t the problem.

Blindly picking a major without a leverage plan is.

If you’re 18 right now, the goal isn’t “get a degree.”
The goal is: build a stack that makes you hard to replace.

My simple rule for 2026:

Don’t become the person who does the task.
Become the person who owns the outcome.

That means:
→ learn how to use AI tools like a power user
→ build real-world proof (projects, offers, results)
→ practice communication + persuasion
→ learn basic business economics (how money moves)
→ get close to revenue (sales, partnerships, deal flow)
→ specialize in a domain AI can’t “understand” without you (industry context, relationships, judgment)

AI will replace skills.

It won’t replace agency.

It won’t replace a person who can:

see the problem → make a plan → execute → communicate → lead.

That’s the new degree.

What’s one job you think is getting automated faster than people realize?

23% of people quit their New Year’s goal this week.

And by the end of January, it’s closer to 48%.

So if you’re still in the fight right now…

You’re already ahead of most people.

Week 1 is where motivation dies.

Not because the goal was wrong.
Because the process wasn’t built.

Most people rely on a feeling.
Winners rely on a system.

A system looks like:

-> same time, same place, same trigger
-> smaller daily targets (so you can actually win)
-> a scoreboard (so progress is visible)
-> a reset plan for the days you fall off

Because falling off isn’t the problem.

Staying off is.

So yeah—congrats if you’re still here.

Now tighten the screws and stack another week.

Drop a comment with what you’re still committed to in 2026. I’ll reply to every one.

After driving over 100,000,000 impressions on LinkedIn 

Here's what every client wants to know:

Who you are.

Stop talking about returns.

I've watched 100s of sponsor pitches get ignored.

The ones that landed? 

They answered the questions LPs are actually asking:

"Can I trust you with my money for the next 5-7 years?"

Your 18% projected returns don't answer that.

Here's what does:

→ How you handled your worst deal 
→ Whether you return calls when things go sideways 
→ If you've ever taken less so your investors could take more 
→ What your previous investors say when you're not in the room

The best sponsors I know don't lead with their track record.

They lead with their values.

Because here's the truth most won't tell you:

LPs can find deals anywhere. 

They can find returns anywhere.

The sponsors crushing it right now are sharing:

-Stories about deals they walked away from 
-The mentor who shaped their investment philosophy 
-How they built their team and why culture matters 
-What they learned from their failures 

This isn't about being vulnerable for likes.
It's about being known.

What's the most important thing an LP should know about you that has nothing to do with your returns?

Rise Capital Investments

Private equity fund manager helping busy professionals invest in commercial real estate to achieve financial independence

Founder and Chief Investment Officer

Highrise Group

Commercial real estate and tech startup pitch deck design for founders and sponsors. Experienced multifamily real state private debt and equity fund manager who understands the need for great marketing in your business to attract capital.

Investment Marketing Designer

Utah Warriors Rugby

As a huge rugby fan and player in the first high school girls team in the US, I couldn’t wait to invest in the Warriors when we relocated to Utah.

I'm excited to be a part of this ownership group and grow the sport in our backyard so we can enjoy high level live matches while providing jobs and income in the sports industry. See you at the pitch!

Ownership Shareholder

Quansight

PyData SLC nonprofit chapter organizer to promote open source Python development, as well as a Quansight investor, we grow the open source data science machine learning Python community's impact on enterprise through our unique Sustainable Open Source Subscription

Marketing Manager

Powell Wedding Photography

Specializing in wedding portraiture, event photography, venue architectural photography, and capturing designer details such as decor, floral arranging, and catering.

Photographer, Owner

Austin Gilgronis

Sports marketing content creator and manager, providing technical PR writing and graphic design for a founding team in Major League Rugby

Supervised photography, social media manager, and event coordination

Marketing Communications Manager

SHUTTERBUG STUDIOS

Real Estate Photographer

Challenger Sports

South Texas and Louisiana account management for children's soccer and rugby camps. Marketing, logistics, customer service.

Account Manager

Anaconda, Inc.

Design and conference logistics intern for PyData nonprofit organization supporting the open source Python data science and machine learning community

Business Admin Support, Graphic Design

Digital Scrapbook Place

Online classes for Photoshop, Photoshop Elements, and Paint Shop Pro for photography and graphic design

Graphic Design Instructor

I was a stay at homeschool mom of six, now I’m a multimillionaire who retired my husband before age 50 through commercial real estate investing. 

Now we can help you retire more than 10 years early from your J-O-B, not life. Even if you want to work until 65, you don't want to have to!

We are making money matter after executing a 5-10 year plan that replaced our income with passive investing.

Now discovering ourselves version 2.0 through volunteering, spending more quality time with loved ones,
and starting a passion business helping other families create financial freedom.

High achievers can earn double-digit returns backed by real estate and build wealth to give back to your communities.

We walk our own talk and share the same investments we use to retire early in our private investor portal.

If that's worth having a conversation about, reach out to sign up for our portal at investwithemma.com

Emma Powell

You bought during a bubble when everyone was talking about multifamily real estate.

Deal with it.

It's called "dollar cost averaging." It's what I did, it's how I lost money in it, and it's how I made more than I lost. I bought before the bubble, during, after, and still.

I also diversify into other things like private money lending, index funds, and private equity.

That's how we deal with it.

BUSINESS: Paying you 10-12% APR, 13-15% 5-yr IRR for loans backed by real estate: let’s invest together! PERSONAL: Retired Early Full-time Travel Homeschool Mom of 6

What's one thing you can ask a capital raiser or GP that will change the entire conversation about investing with them? And it’s not how much money they have in the deal themselves.

"What's your main source of income? What are your other sources of income?"

If you don't know the revenue model of WHY we are raising capital, then you don't know where the motivations and potential conflicts of interest are.

I raise capital for Retoro Capital Investments, but it's not my main source of income.

This means:

* I am not desperate to raise money to close deals
* I am not reliant on doing just any deal to allocate capital raised
* I am here to help you evaluate, not "sell" investments
* I practice what I preach to you: multiple streams of income, active and passive

If you decide to invest with us, which I think you should as an income portion of your portfolio, I can help.

If not, we'll have learned something together.



Business relationships are important, so make sure just like a personal relationship that you know what to expect. Revenue streams are a major portion of that so you understand the business and the sellers.

If raising capital or GPing is their only or main source of income, that's fine IF:

* The business is large enough to pay them well to remove desperation
* They have multiple sources of income through the business (yes, this is where management and performance fees actually help you as an investor)
* They have at least some passive income streams and understand your as an investor because they are one.

If you want to talk about investing with us, check my calendar link in my profile at Emma Powell

--PS
This can be a tricky, stone-throwing topic. What did I miss? Feel free to expand and share your point of view in the comments.

What did I learn from going full cycle on the first deal I every bought?

My partner Frank Patalano might be the most excited of any of us about this apartment flip we finally finished! It was our first one, bought in 2020, stabilized in 2021 before rates went crazy, sold before our 5-year loan term expired.

1. 2026/27 are going to be crazy bad years for owners with stabilized, fixed-rate loans who avoided the ARM race as rates exploded. They won't be able to refinance and still be in the black, and so a lot of them will be on the market, pushing cap rates up.

Bridge debt made the first commercial RE meltdown, and watch as aging 5-year terms are going to create the second one.

2. I've seen tremendous improvements in the securities/investor space from investor portals to low-cost fund setup. This was a 506c for $1M, crazy small raise, and we paid $25k for legal. We could do the same thing now with a portal like Tribevest for about $5k.

3. I hate, I mean HATE asset management! I thought I would like it, I like organizing things, but I learned I love to help others FOUND businesses, and once day-to-day hits, I'm out. My skill is identification, networking, setup considerations, education, not admin and ops. But operations are KEY to making a buy-right property actually perform.

4. Deal metrics have changed. The same tactics we used to buy this in 2019/2020 do not work today. There are still great deals out there, but floating bridge debt with predictable 5-year refi rate predictions, 2-3% rent increases, 3% expense ratio  increases, or less than 50% expense ratios overall, things we saw a lot of 5 years ago, are just not true today. Declining to 2% tops in rent increases, 6%+ expenses rate increases, much higher insurance, and in this city much higher property taxes.

5. I'm now a full-cycle Freddie Mac loan guarantor! I don't know what I can do with that, my net worth isn't high enough to sign on the interesting projects I'd really love to do, but I'm sure if I put it out there along with my passion in item #3 above, something will come out of it!

6. We delivered our projected returns of 18% IRR and 2x+ to our investors. That stands alone.

7. We took this run down crime-ridden place and fixed it up to the tune of over $1M on 50 units (we turned it into 51) creating a safer, affordable place to live with dignity, all while keeping rents in line with other properties nearby in worse condition. We rarely had below 94% occupancy. That is what I'm most proud of on this project.

8. It was so hard, so so so hard, and my partners did nearly all the work after the first year. Do NOT start a multifamily business if you are looking for scalable, passive income. It is NOT passive income. For me, it was totally worth it, but it's not for many people.

Let's talk soon about investing together, from someone who's been through the trenches.

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The Battle

Jesse Futia

Emma Powell

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Engagements

Likes

Performance Score.css-goub6s{font-size:var(--chakra-fontSizes-md);font-weight:500;color:var(--chakra-colors-gray-600);display:block;margin-top:var(--chakra-space-1);}Jesse Futia's LinkedIn Performance

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