Sevetri Wilson Taylor and Sheena Allen sit down with Chris Ross, a New Orleans-based commercial real estate investor, developer, and agent whose career started behind a bar on Bourbon Street. Chris breaks down how he broke into commercial real estate without a traditional background, why he left residential sales behind, and how to recognize opportunity in distressed assets, empty elevators, and worn pool furniture.

He explains how to leverage equity to finance million-dollar deals without having millions, how he uses AI and ChatGPT daily in his real estate business, and why he believes now is still one of the most powerful moments to move into commercial real estate, especially for Black entrepreneurs who have historically been locked out of these deals.

What You'll Take Away

This episode is for anyone who has looked at commercial real estate and assumed it was a world that did not start at their level. Chris Ross started with an $800 commission on a $45,000 deal and built his way to $30 million transactions — not by having capital, but by understanding how to leverage equity, recognize distressed opportunity, and stay in the game long enough to earn the bigger deals. You will walk away understanding how commercial real estate valuation actually works, why office buildings and underperforming hospitality assets are creating a rare entry window right now, how to use AI tools to compete in a market that rewards information, and why culture and preservation are not obstacles to profit, they are the edge.

If you are a founder, investor, or entrepreneur who has been watching commercial real estate from the outside, this is the episode that explains exactly how to get in.