The 999 Podcast · Episode 11
Why Capital Keeps Buying the Wrong Buildings
with Jordan Reyes
March 4, 2025·64 min·Capital
Transcript-only for now — the audio is being mastered. Subscribe below to hear it first.
Summary
An institutional allocator and a developer argue, productively, about why so much real estate underwriting still treats narrative as a marketing line item.
Key takeaways
- 01Most underwriting models price the building and ignore the brand.
- 02The cap rate is a lagging indicator of meaning.
- 03There is no such thing as a defensive asset in an attention-driven economy.
Also on this narrative
Essay
Why Las Vegas Is Running Out of Narrative
The Strip didn't win because of slot machines. It won because of story. That story is now running on fumes.
Podcast
Ep. 10 — Building a Destination From Zero
A solo episode walking through the first principles of designing a destination that has a reason to exist before it has a ribbon to cut.
Series
Building a Billion-Dollar Destination
An eight-part field manual for designing a place that earns its scale — beginning with story, ending with concrete.