Welcome And Show Purpose

SPEAKER_00 0:13

Ready to get the inside to fund equity funding. Equity funding inside of it. Experienced professionals, including bankers, underwriters, loan officers, and industry experts. They share their unfiltered stories and valuable lessons on securing funds.

Jacquelyn Jackson 0:43

Okay, well, welcome to another show of the Giving Power to the Business Owner series. I am Jacqueline Jackson, your host. This series, GPBO, is all about equipping, elevating, and empowering business owners with the tools, strategies, and mindset needed to take control of their vision and be a sustainable assets and success. Here we focus on real conversations, practical insights, and the kind of knowledge that moves you from working in your business to truly owning it. GPBO, Giving Power to the Business Owner, stands for more than just a title. It represents giving business owners clarity and their direction, providing practical strategies for growth and scalability, opening access to expert knowledge and lived experiences, building confidence to lead, decide, and execute with purpose, creating a space where business owners feel seen, supported, and empowered. This is where business meets ownership and ownership meets power. Now let's get into our conversation today. I am excited to welcome to our guest is Dante Royce. Royce, right? I want to make sure I say it right. Uh Royster. Royster, thank you. All right, so Dante, I apologize. Dante Royster. Um, and he's coming to us as a veteran and the mortgage broker. He's a veteran mortgage broker, he's the founder of Epic Mortgage and the author of the Ultimate Mortgage Guide. If you would, real quick, where can they get that book? I want them to get that early.

SPEAKER_02 2:17

Uh Amazon.com.

Jacquelyn Jackson 2:19

Okay, so it's in Amazon. All right, so you are definitely want to look into that. Now, before he entered the mortgage world, Dante was uh a standout college basketball player. He's learning discipline, teamwork, and resilience on the court. Skills he now applies to helping clients make smarter decisions about their homes and finance. Today he specialized in owner-occupied mortgages, showing homeowners how to one, use the equity in their primary residence strategically, not fearfully. Tap the equity to acquire additional property and begin building real estate portfolio. Align their home financing with the long-term stability, retirement, and for the wealth goals. So, with that said, let's get into it and welcome you. Welcome Dante to our show today. Thank you for coming.

SPEAKER_02 3:07

Thank you for having me.

Jacquelyn Jackson 3:09

Okay, if you would tell, give a little bit of, I know I did some of your your your things of what you have

Meet Dante Royster And His Path

Jacquelyn Jackson 3:15

done, which you are doing very, very great on a lot of avenues with helping with people with home ownership, and we love that. Can you tell us a little bit about you so we can have a little feel of you?

SPEAKER_02 3:25

Well, you know, I'm a I'm a family man. I'm married, been uh just celebrating my 17th anniversary. Yeah, so that was very nice. And uh I have two kids, two beautiful kids. Uh one's 12 going to seventh grade, and one's uh 10 going into fifth grade.

Jacquelyn Jackson 3:40

So grown people, grown people.

SPEAKER_02 3:42

Man, the activities. I'm the unpaid Uber driver.

Jacquelyn Jackson 3:46

So right, right. Man, okay, so that's great to know. And when you say that Uber drive, we already know you are involved with the family, and that's what happens as business owners. And and that's why we wanted to have you here too, because not only do you relate from the family and knowing how it is to balance everything, but you're gonna bring to people some clear understanding about mortgages, and that's why we wanted to have you here. So with you going through being a college athlete from building a you went from college athletics to building a seven-figure mortgage business, okay? Yep. What are the top two or three habits from sports, discipline, resilience, routine that directly shaped how you run epic mortgage today?

SPEAKER_02 4:26

Well, I think the first thing is consistency, you know, that you talk about that that's super key because you have to have daily habits. You know, um, sometimes motivation can come and go, right? You know, uh everyone's been to a seminar and they get all hyped and juiced, and that will only last for about a week or two. But it it's the daily grind

Consistency And Resilience From Sports

SPEAKER_02 4:45

of getting up and doing the same stuff over and over again, moving forward is is what you have to do. So I think consistency is so important. Uh the ordinary days make them powerful and make them wins, you know. So from a sports uh, you know, background, you know, it's about winning the day, you know, carpet diem. You know, we got to win each every day that we uh that we enter. So uh consistency is important. Uh resiliency is very important. You know, resiliency um you know, you in in any type of business, you're not always gonna hear yes. You know, you're gonna hear a lot of no's.

Jacquelyn Jackson 5:20

Right.

SPEAKER_02 5:20

You know, a lot of no's. And if you take it to baseball, you gotta remember that you know, batting 300, you're probably a Hall of Famer. But what does that mean? That means you only hit the ball three out of ten times. You know, and and then in sales, that's the same way, right? I mean, we probably get seven no's before we get that yes. So you have to be resilient, you have to have, you know, a tough uh kind of uh a tough shell, so to speak. You know, you gotta, you know, it it's gonna be rough out there, and and you gotta make it happen. And um probably the third thing, you know, from a team aspect, you know, obviously I played uh college basketball, like you said, and so um, you know, we were a team. We have to work together as a team, and and I feel like real estate overall is a team, it's a team game. You know, you're gonna have a realtor per se, you know, you got you, you know, your loan officer, you, the you know, the consumer. We all have to be working together for the common good, understanding what the goal is, and we all have to make it happen. So you want to have good people around you, kind of like a board of directors. So you you know, use them as a sounding board so you know everyone has your back.

Jacquelyn Jackson 6:24

Okay, which I think is really great. I think we don't realize when we go to purchase a home. And you know, you and I have had these conversations, but when you go to purchase a home, uh, we don't look at it as a team. It's like I'm gonna get this one person, you're gonna help me do everything, which they can, don't get me wrong, but you need to have the right people in place to help you. And I think that's why we want to hear a lot of people don't aware are not aware of that's something extra. I guess due diligence that you need to do as well, you know, to go along with it. So I think that is really good what you're saying, and hopefully we can relate. And on the win-win, like you said, when you've been in what you're doing in business, we have a tendency, Dante, not to look at us trying to win something as much as it is trying to get stuff done, and we don't think of it like that. Hey, you got to win no matter what, because in sports is how we talk. But in the in the business world, we don't talk that way because sometimes a lot of times we're by ourselves, you know what I'm saying? Which I know you know from building your seven figure, we had that conversation. So let's talk about this. So, most of our listeners, and you probably you know, is uh is business owners and entrepreneurs from your perspective as being an owner-occupied

Tax Returns Link Business And Personal

Jacquelyn Jackson 7:25

mortgage expert, because that's what you do with residential mortgages, okay? Um what do you most often see for as misunderstanding on how their personal home finance is affects their ability to buy to be a wealth and stability?

SPEAKER_02 7:42

I feel like they they think that their business finances and personal finances are separate, but it really all kind of goes in line.

Jacquelyn Jackson 7:50

Okay, explain that because we've been taught to keep them separate in the business world. So explain that.

SPEAKER_02 7:55

Well, you do want to keep them separate, but I I do believe that personal finances, you know, your business finances let's say flow through your personal tax returns. Okay. So, you know, the income that you make, the cash flow that you make, you know, it's gonna flow through your personal. So you have to be mindful of that they kind of go together, they're congruent, you know, they're gonna be attached. So you kind of be mindful of, you know, obviously business and then personal, but you know, I I feel like people misunderstand the concept that this will flow. So you got to be mindful of how much you're claiming on your tax returns. So if you're you know writing off everything, right, because you don't want to pay the IRS, that could affect your situation because now you don't qualify for a mortgage. So you have to be aware of what you're trying to do, you know, if you're trying to go traditional paths. We also offer alternative paths, but I think a lot of people, you know, especially if you're looking for down payment assistance and you're looking for some of those grant programs, you know, they're looking at tax returns in order to qualify. And so we have to be mindful of how you know they're they're really not separate in that nature. Um, how much money you show on your tax return from a business perspective is gonna flow into your personal tax return.

Jacquelyn Jackson 9:06

Turn. And let's talk on that a little bit because what you're saying is really key. And I want to make sure everybody kind of understand where he's coming from. We we're taught in the business world of personal business being separate, but they both affect each other, correct? You know, and that's what you're saying. So y'all understand. So he's saying if you got a business that's not making money and you're gonna use that business as a way to show you have income, that business just affected you personally, you can't get a house, you won't qualify. Correct. So that's why he wants to we want to want you all to learn how to actually balance that and how that can be used, and pay attention to that as being something you need to notice. So basically, that's what you're kind of saying is they need to understand they affect each other.

SPEAKER_02 9:43

Yeah, you know, you know, and we go back to team, right? So everyone has a job description, right? Everyone has a job to do. But one thing I want everyone that's listening is to know that you should know everyone's job. Just because your accountant is, you know, that's what they're gonna do, they're gonna file your taxes, you still should know what the tax, uh, the CPA, the accountant is actually doing. What is he filing? You got to be able to look at those things and be able to check because that's when you hear the stories about, oh, uh, they took my money, I didn't even know. Well, how did you not know? Because you never checked the books, you never looked at it, and you didn't know what you were looking at. So I'm not saying for you to be the accountant, don't wear all the hats because that's overwhelming, but you do need to be able to look over there and understand what a tax return, how it actually works. You know, whether you're a 1099, you know, a schedule, uh, what would that be? A schedule, schedule C, schedule C, or if you have a corporation, schedule E, or if you have real estate, you know, schedule E. So these are things that you should know, and then you should be able to look at it and then understand what the accountant is doing because a lot of times they come to me and they'll say, Oh, um, well, I made uh $100,000. Yeah, but you see right here, he wrote off $99,000. I know, right? You're only claiming the thousand dollars. Oh, but you didn't say anything because you got the refund, so you were happy, but you don't know how that affected you. Now you're trying to do something, right? You know, and it doesn't go hand in hand. So that's where I'm like, you know, business and personal. I I know from a from a procedures, yes, we should keep them separate.

Jacquelyn Jackson 11:18

Corporate way is is separate, but yeah, accounting-wise, but yeah, they do affect. That's why I said I think the word that we could use, because you made a great point, they affect each other, you know. So let's talk about because I know you do mortgage residential, but you also do non-owner occupied too. Those will be like what vacation homes somebody want a vacation home, yeah.

SPEAKER_02 11:37

Second home, yeah, second home. You could put 10% down, right?

Jacquelyn Jackson 11:40

So you do those as well. Let me let's say this. So, what I've noticed with people getting mortgages, a lot of time people don't read, like you're talking about the taxes, they just don't read the taxes, they see numbers and shut down. So, you should be able to know what each number is saying about you, and if you don't, you need to ask that because that's what people do. Do you know how many business people I've worked with in my life that told me, Oh, I'm not a numbers person. I let my CPA do that. So, what does that look like, Dante?

Build A Mortgage Strategy With Equity

Jacquelyn Jackson 12:10

I already know you know what that is.

SPEAKER_02 12:11

That's not good. That's what that looks like, and that's not good. That's a problem.

Jacquelyn Jackson 12:16

That's a problem, and people have to understand it's so much education out here you can get you can get with people that can help guide you. I know you're really good at breaking down what they have in a contract with you on the hood. You are really good at making sure they understand, and that's what I like about you a lot. You want to make sure people understand what they're doing, what they're signing up for. A lot of people don't do that, Dante. They don't, and that's why Epic Mortgage is where it is today. So, definitely want to thank you for being a person you are. Let's go to the next question. You talked a lot about being a strategist, being a strategist rather than just a loan officer. What does a mortgage strategy look like for a family in their primary home? And how is that different from the way investors should be thinking about leverage?

SPEAKER_02 12:59

I mean, strategy will bring about different questions, right? And different questions would be like, you know, how much equity do you have in your house? You know, one thing is equity doesn't matter if you're not going to use it. And you need to know how much is there. You know, so we we really have to be cognizant of how much do you owe? What's the value of your home? Because that fluctuates. And that'll fluctuate, you know, every four months, really, every, you know, almost every quarter, it'll fluctuate. And so we have to just be cognizant in case of an emergency we may have to tap in, in case of maybe wanting to start a business, you know, buy properties. You know, we can use that equity to affect us. You know, actually, I always talk about epic mortgage. We wouldn't be here if Dante didn't have a house with equity.

unknown 13:40

Right.

SPEAKER_02 13:40

And I was able to take that money out. You know, because you know, think about it. When you when you hey, you know, for all your listeners out there, they want to you want to start a business. You want to be a bakery or you want to have an event center, whatever you want out there. And you say, you go down to the bank, you say, Hey, I got an idea. I want to start something, I want to start a business. Most banks are gonna be like, Well, do you have uh three years of history showing me that you have success? And you're gonna say, No, I just had this idea. I think I can do it. They don't want to say, I think I can do it. That's not acceptable for them. Right, right. And so, and so sometimes if you have those ideas and you want to really make it happen, it's the equity that's gonna get it going because there's no strings attached to that equity. Once you're able to get that money out, then you can actually start your dreams and make your dreams happen.

Jacquelyn Jackson 14:28

Okay, so let me ask you this when it comes to equity, how do we go about finding out what equity we have at our home and how often should we do that?

SPEAKER_02 14:35

I think at least uh I would say minimum once a year. Uh, you could talk to your local uh realtor in the area. They can do what is called, you know, like a uh BPO, a broker price opinion. They can kind of look around and see what uh homes that are similar, like yours within a one mile radius has sold. So you can have an idea of what the potential value of the property is versus how much you owe. So, you know, I know a lot of times uh, you know, back in the day we used to get the mortgage statements in the mail. Now everyone, you know, but now everything it's on your phone, so people don't look at it, but you you got to look at those apps. Right, right. And it and it will, it will, and even some of the apps will show, you know, hey, we estimate your value of the home is this, and you know, hey, this is how much you owe. The difference in between, that's your equity, and you might be able to tap into it.

Jacquelyn Jackson 15:20

Okay, which is a good idea. That's right. So we want to be on top of it again, doing what you're saying, staying on top of things and doing a due diligence, and that would be one. Once you get the house, there's still certain stuff you need to keep going on with it. It's not just always about getting it. I love that. All right, you often emphasize proactive planning and home equity, okay? For an owner-occupied borrower, a resident owner who's also running a business, how should they think about tapping or protecting equity so they prepare for life and business surprises? How they do that.

SPEAKER_02 15:52

I I want to I want to use an analogy

Use Equity Before The Storm

SPEAKER_02 15:55

and I and I want you to help me on it. Uh, a generator. When do you buy a generator for your home? Do you buy it when the lights go out or do you buy it before the storm?

Jacquelyn Jackson 16:05

We buy it when the lights go out. That's when we're looking for it. We could buy it before then. So I I get it. You're right.

SPEAKER_02 16:11

There you there you go. So so your home equity is like your emergency generator for business owners. And you want to tap in before that storm comes. Because when when things get tough, and this is something that I've just noticed, and you and you, I know you know this. Uh, when things get tough, no one wants to help you. When you're all up in the sky, everything's going great, you're making money. Correct. You get you won't get the loan. You don't need the money.

Jacquelyn Jackson 16:39

It's when you need it, you you're not getting the money.

SPEAKER_02 16:41

Correct. 100%. When you need it, no one wants to touch you. You smell. But but but man, when you're successful and then everything's good, man, they they're offering you left, right. So you have to take advantage of things when the opportunity is there. Grab it when you don't need it versus when you do.

Jacquelyn Jackson 16:59

Okay, which is a good idea. All right. So relationship-driven growth is a big part of how you built the epic mortgage, okay? What have you learned about building strong relationships with realtors, past clients, referral partners that are a small business owner in any industry can apply?

SPEAKER_02 17:17

I say this. People really don't refer you because you're good. People refer you because they trust that you're gonna make them look good.

Jacquelyn Jackson 17:28

Oh, okay.

SPEAKER_02 17:30

It's a situation where at the end of the day, if I'm gonna stick out my neck, open my mouth, and tell them to call you, I don't want that to come back on me. Man, why'd you give me this guy? Why'd you give me this girl? She's horrible, she didn't call me. Now that's stress and stuff they don't want to deal with. People only are going to refer your name if they trust that you're gonna make them look good. Girl, you gave me this guy, man, he was great.

Referrals Run On Trust

unknown 17:55

Right.

SPEAKER_02 17:56

Then they feel better. See, I told you he helped me, he helped you. So, so that was the thing that I had to learn over the years that relationships are so important and treating people right, doing the right things. You know, these are all basic concepts, but you know, I just I can't encourage enough for all business owners, you know, having deeper relationships with people where they trust you and and they understand, even sometimes, you know, it's not always gonna be pretty. Sometimes it gets a little messy. But as long as they understand what's going on, where we're at, and how he helped or she helped get it done, I think that's the key.

Jacquelyn Jackson 18:31

Okay, okay, I can see that. And so that makes a lot of sense with us trusting, you know, building the relationships. And I know it I hate to say this, and I haven't had it with you, but I've talked to some other people that have been on our show, we had a conversation. It's a shame that the one that has integrity is what they're looking for more than anything. If you have integrity, you're gonna stand out because a lot of people is about the money, and you can tell us about the money. Look at the custom service. So we see what's going on, we go to the grocery stores, when we go to the malls. I mean, a lot of that has changed, but I have found out when people feel that they can trust you, like you're saying, you're not gonna let me down when I refer somebody to you. That's what I'm more comfortable with than anything, because they're gonna take care of you. So you're right about that. And now, in the economy we're in now, that is really more important than people realize. I know we're having a bad time with everything going on, but we have to realize relationships and being integrity and being right is more important than whatever's going on out here in order for us to be successful in whatever we do. So I definitely agree with you and thank you for mentioning that. So, as an author, which I'm so proud of you, you're an author of ultimate mortgage guide. Now, if a first-time home excuse me, home buyer, an entrepreneur could only remember three core principles from the book to avoid costly mistakes, what would they be?

SPEAKER_02 19:52

The first one is and and I just had this conversation today. When when if you go to a bank, you know, if you go to a big box bank, generally speaking, they're going to get your documentation or you input it on their website and they're going to spit out, hey, you're pre-approved for $400,000. Just because you're pre-approved for that number doesn't mean that's the house you should be buying. Because that's not necessarily the life you want to be tied to. Because with that comes a payment that you have to make every month. And when that closing's done, no one's going to be around to help you but you. So, you know, so you know, really one of the things I do when it comes to pre-approvals is I really focus on, you know, what is the payment you feel comfortable with, you know, and I rather work towards that payment than actually what you may qualify for. So, yes, you may qualify for four, five hundred

Three Rules For Smarter Homebuying

SPEAKER_02 20:45

thousand, that's great. But if you don't like that payment, maybe we should dial it back and go to 280.

SPEAKER_03 20:50

Right.

SPEAKER_02 20:50

We might have to do that. So that's the first concept that I really wanted to kind of relay to people in in the book. That the second thing about the book, you know, and and one of the, you know, kind of the subtitle is it's not about the interest rate. You know, um, yes, interest rate is important, but it's not the be all end all. It really is the overall strategy. You know, the the cheapest loan becomes the most expensive decision. If that's not, you know, so sometimes, you know, we we get these things in our life, you know, and sometimes a house can be one of those things. It's milestones, like, oh, I'm supposed to do all this stuff. But is that the right strategy? Is that going to get you to the, you know, I think freedom is the ultimate goal that we're all trying to obtain. And so it's like, let's not forget about the end goal. Is this the right strategy? Is this the right time? And so, you know, don't get so caught up in, and we just talked about relationships are so important that you know, don't who cares? Oh, this guy's got the lowest rate, but if it's a better relationship over here, I'd rather work with that guy over there all day, every day. Um, the the third thing that I I kind of reference in the book, I think to myself is I really want people to understand this concept that the closing day is really day one.

Jacquelyn Jackson 22:06

Right.

SPEAKER_02 22:07

You know, now you're the homeowner, you know, as you should be. But now that's day one. You know, closing day kind of is like, oh, it's over. I did it. No, that's when homeownership really begins. You know, and and and it takes, you know, and and things worth anything take time. You know, and so you're not going to get equity on day one. You know, it may not be until you know the 10th year, the seventh year, where you really start seeing the power. I just um we just did a refinance for a client of mine, and uh, I helped him buy his house in 2016, and the property that he bought was for 200,000. And so now we did a refinance 10 years later, and his house is now worth 400,000.

Jacquelyn Jackson 22:50

Wow.

SPEAKER_02 22:50

It's doubled in 10 years. That's the power of having home ownership. That's the power of having this equity and appreciation that will occur just naturally. Um, but you don't see that maybe on day one, but closing day is day one, and I wanted people to understand that.

Jacquelyn Jackson 23:06

Okay, gotcha, which makes some sense as well. So you are actually a host of the Epic Spotlight podcast, correct?

SPEAKER_03 23:13

All right.

Jacquelyn Jackson 23:14

Which focuses on helping people build a healthier, wealthier, and more fulfillment life. What patterns have you noticed among your guests about how they think about differently about money and business and risks?

SPEAKER_02 23:26

You know, um, I would say income versus assets. They have that conversation. You know, they really, you know, they're really into assets, they're not necessarily into income per se. I think uh successful people overall are more about probabilities over guarantees. You know, they they really are hedging their bets, they're they're looking at it, you know, and they're constantly thinking of ways and to obtain more assets. I really I really have noticed that um they don't necessarily avoid risk. A lot of people, you know, uh the majority of folks will want to think of a concept of avoiding risk. I don't want to, I don't want to take a risk, but I think successful people understand, you know, to get a big gain, you have to take a risk. You have to take that leap of faith. So I think a lot of people that are successful are very faith-based. They have a faith and they have a belief, you know, to whatever God that they're believing in.

Jacquelyn Jackson 24:24

Right.

SPEAKER_02 24:25

But they they have a faith base that, hey, I'm gonna take this risk because I know it's worth it, versus stay in status quo. So I really, you know, those are kind of a couple things I've noticed.

Jacquelyn Jackson 24:34

Yes, in them. Okay, and I agree with that too on that, how they're kind of looking through that. Now, the next question I have is many business owners are torn between, and I've had this with my real estate friends, and I've had it with some of my business friends. So I'm loving to ask you to see what you're gonna say as the mortgage person. Many business owners are feeling torn between reinvesting everything into the business versus prioritizing a home ownership. How do you guide clients to decide when it's time to buy a home, upgrade, or stay put while they grow their companies? And should they do their company first and then get a house or do a house and then any company? I threw that one in there. I threw that in there, Daddy.

SPEAKER_02 25:19

Okay, um, I you know, I I'm a believer of uh company first, then get the house. I I think overall that makes a lot of sense. You do understand that you know, starting a business from a mortgage perspective, you're gonna have to have a two-year history. Um, so so you have to keep that in mind. So, you know, you're gonna have to sit on the sidelines. Um it's a minute.

Jacquelyn Jackson 25:39

When you say two-year history, you mean like I have to have two years of revenue?

SPEAKER_02 25:43

Of business, yes. A bit of business.

Jacquelyn Jackson 25:46

Okay, okay, now because you don't have the WTs got to have two years you've got to been doing it. Okay, I got you.

SPEAKER_02 25:49

Correct. Yeah, they want to, you know, because let's say you start a business today and you make a hundred thousand dollars your first year. They don't know if that's the average, is that the norm? So they at least say, hey, give me two years so I can get a better feel for this business, you know, of how much you

Assets Over Income And Smart Risk

SPEAKER_02 26:05

make. So I I I lean on, you know, what will what option gives you more options five years from now?

SPEAKER_03 26:14

Hmm.

SPEAKER_02 26:15

That that's a question that I would ask somebody. I'd say, you know, what option either reinvesting in the business or buying a home gives you more options five years from now? I I think we do have to get comfortable in talking to our future selves. Yeah you know, five years from now, what what would what would Jackie say in five years? What would she say in 10 years from now? What would she say in 20 years if I make this move today? I think we have to talk to our future self and let our future self give us answers. You know, I know sometimes, especially on these podcasts, you know, people are listening and they want to kind of rely on my answer, but the true answer is your answer. You're your own best financial advisor. You know what keeps you up at night, you know what's going to make you bite your nails and get you stressed. So you have to kind of make these decisions, but ask yourself that. Talk to your future self, and then you'll know what the right answer is.

Jacquelyn Jackson 27:10

Right, right. I think that's good if you look at where, and I do that sometimes, like where do I see myself in five years? Because if I see myself at this place running this company or doing whatever, then I'll start working today toward that. And I guess that's what you were saying when it comes to home ownership. You're in a business. If the home ownership is in three years, then you're gonna start doing your business in a way where you can show and document everything so you can show that, so you can get a house. So I think that's great. We'll start from the future where we want to be and start today being that. I think that'll help us on be on a better pattern, a better path. Okay, great. All right, next one. Many business owners feel um, no, not that one. Can you share a story without names, okay, of an owner-occupied client who made a smart strategic mortgage decision that changed their family's trajectory, and what lessons a business owner listens today should take from that?

SPEAKER_02 28:08

You know, I I think about uh a client I had um and we had a strategy call. We had a strategy call, and um this woman uh agreed with me and took the leap of faith. She was nervous, buying her nails, you know, is this the right move? And just wanted it was about repositioning herself to open up doors. And in this case, you know, we talked uh we talked about you know the the value of getting a line of credit out. And so she got the line of credit out of her home that she's been in for about 20 years, and then she took that and then she uh bought a property and and and fixed it up herself and did her own thing, and then uh she sold it. And when she sold it, she called me. And you know, she made over $175,000.

Jacquelyn Jackson 28:58

Oh, wow, that's great.

SPEAKER_02 28:59

And she cried, she was crying, and it it just showed me, you know, I had not to say I pushed her or forced her, but I had a nudger that this was the right decision. This is something that she believed in. And I said, well, if you believe it, then now is the time to take advantage, you know, and and here's the opportunity. You have the equity,

Business First Or Home First

SPEAKER_02 29:20

here's a line of credit that we can offer you. Let's go get this money, you know, because like I said earlier, equity is nothing if you don't use it. You know, it's just money inside your walls. And and right now, you know, thanks to the pandemic, right, the silver lining of the pandemic, is that we all have this uh abundance of appreciation that's all in our walls. And we have to we have to take it out because if you don't take it out, you you know, we got to use it. We got to use it for our own uh betterment, you know. So whatever dream, whatever goal, and now she's able to start a business. Now she's able to do things that she never imagined doing or thought she was gonna have to do 10 years, 20 years down the road, she can do it now. And so that you know, that story just always reminds me of my purpose and why I'm here to help people and let them know what's available to them.

Jacquelyn Jackson 30:09

Okay, and Phil. Now, Epic Mortgage, can you tell everybody where you locate it? Because I want them to know that.

SPEAKER_02 30:14

I'm in Brookfield, Illinois. Uh Brookfield is about 20 minutes west of uh downtown Chicago.

SPEAKER_03 30:21

Okay.

SPEAKER_02 30:21

Um, and uh, but we are a regional mortgage broker, so we are licensed in the state of Texas and Georgia, Florida. Um, we're in about um nine states right now, currently, um, so Michigan, Indiana, and such. So, you know, we're we're helping as many folks as we can. We're showing, you know, we're telling them these stories, we're showing them different strategies to consider, and we're trying to help people get into home ownership.

Jacquelyn Jackson 30:44

That's exactly right. So let me ask you this. So, what could you actually say to our listener? What is something, and this is on you as a free fall, for you to kind of put out there, because you have a podcast too, and that's why I don't mind doing this with you. What's something you want to talk to them about to tell them so they can be aware of? I want to give you that room.

SPEAKER_02 31:02

Your home is your foundation, it's the start, it's not the end, it's the beginning of something special. And you have to have the mindset of obtaining freedom, really, ultimately. You you and and figuring out ways to do that. You know, for everyone, it's going to be a little bit different, uh, whether it's starting a business, being a real estate investor, what have you, uh, you know, stocks. But you have to find your path and and move forward. You have to take action. We have to lean on podcasts like yours, like Epic Spotlight, you know, all these different podcasts that are positive and giving you information and strategies that can help you grow and be and be successful. And uh, and I think that's what it is. You know, we're not here talking about you know who slept with who or anything goofy like that.

Jacquelyn Jackson 31:47

You know, we're talking about nothing like that.

SPEAKER_02 31:50

No, no. Okay, who's in jail, who got arrested, you know, you know, that you know, that's not gonna get you moving forward. You know, we we we gotta figure it out, you know, and and we need to have conversations like this more, you know, strategy calls and figuring out, hey, what can I do? Uh, because a lot of people just don't know. I mean, that's a part of the reason why I wrote the book. You know, I was getting the same questions in 2002, I was still getting in 2023. Like, you know, it's like, wait, we're we're not getting this information, you know, in the school systems. And so that's why it's important to have these conversations with people that are professionals and they know what they're doing.

Jacquelyn Jackson 32:28

Exactly. And we basically, like ours is TDJ equity funding insiders, we have people on to give them some type of inside information to what they're dealing with, and that's what you're giving. I mean, because people don't realize, like you said, purchasing a home, how can I use that? Because all we think about is just living there. But like you said, no, you have equity in that home. If you're looking at doing a business, because it's sometimes Dante. I told you this that I

HELOC Story That Changed Everything

Jacquelyn Jackson 32:50

can't help everybody get a loan, you know, a business loan, a startup loan. We just can't, but it doesn't mean that their credit was bad, it's just that we they didn't qualify for it. But when you say, I guess it's a HELOC is what it turns into. Yes, okay, so a home mortgage loan can turn into a HELOC, a lot of credit, which means they were able to go get that and do their business. But like I said, people they didn't know they could do that. That's why they don't do that, they don't even know it's a possibility to actually do that type of thing. So that is great. But when it comes to people buying houses, I do want them to understand you can handle people that's here in Texas and Atlanta.

SPEAKER_02 33:24

That is correct. That is great.

Jacquelyn Jackson 33:26

Awesome, awesome. So let's do this. Uh the last thing I had to ask you is if you could leave our audience of entrepreneurs with one mindset shift about using their personal finance and home as a foundation for long-term wealth, what would it be?

SPEAKER_02 33:43

I think the whole theme that we talked about today is options. You know, relationships give you options, equity gives you options, um you know, a good mortgage can give you options. And I think at the end of the day, if you're an entrepreneur, you're living for options. So I so I I think that's the theme. If you're looking for options, then then home ownership is is a step in the right direction.

Jacquelyn Jackson 34:10

I want to know how to go. And if people have questions and you you helping with this, they should not be afraid to ask their mortgage broker, which I know you are someone that they can definitely call, and we definitely want to put down there how do they contact you. Uh so if they want to reach out to you, you can help them with the buying process of buying a home. We definitely want to do that. So we do want to I'll have you on our referral page, but if you would tell people how they can contact you.

SPEAKER_02 34:33

Sure. Uh my cell is uh 630-776-2016. Or you can you can find me uh, you know, all these uh social media platforms. I'm on uh Facebook, IG, uh LinkedIn, YouTube is uh Epic Spotlight or Epic Mortgage.

Jacquelyn Jackson 34:51

Right?

SPEAKER_02 34:52

Yep, Dante Royster, you'll you'll find me.

Jacquelyn Jackson 34:54

Okay, good. You all can get him there, and we're also gonna have you on our referral page. You're on there now, where you all can go to the referral page at TDJquity uh lc.net, where he's actually one of our guests' referral partners, that you all can click and you can actually go to his website

Contact Info And Final Takeaways

Jacquelyn Jackson 35:10

and you can see the guy as well too. You can get with him. So we do have you all connected with Dante because, like I said, it is a resource that you can see. He's oh all over the United States. He has great wisdom, great knowledge. And the good thing about him, he has a great heart that we can actually you can call and kind of reach out to him and and see what he can do to help you make those life decisions because that's what they are. So whether they're buying a house or if they already have a house and looking at doing a business, they need to call and talk to you about that and look at what their options are. So definitely, that's what you say. Well, is it anything else you would like to tell everybody or uh as we go forward and we're gonna close everything out?

SPEAKER_02 35:48

Hey, I appreciate you having me on, and I appreciate the opportunity to spread the good word about home ownership. And like I said, if anyone has any questions, definitely reach out and uh we'll take it from there.

Jacquelyn Jackson 35:58

All right, well, y'all have heard it from Dante Royster with Epic Mortgage, and you also have Epic, what's the podcast? We want to say that too.

SPEAKER_02 36:06

Uh Epic Spotlight, Epic Spotlight on YouTube. Yep.

Jacquelyn Jackson 36:09

On YouTube. So you all have both of those, and we have those in our reference for you as well, too. So again, I want to thank you so much, Dante, for being here. And I want to thank all our listeners for joining us today and to on giving power to the business owner series. If you would like to be a guest on the show, please book a pre-interview call at www.tdjequitylc.net. We would love to connect with you. Be sure to follow TDJ Equity Funding on LinkedIn and also all major social media platforms to stay updated on our new episodes, our insight, and opportunities that we have coming through. You can also listen to this podcast on all major podcast platforms, including Epic Spotlight. You're on all the major platforms as well. And you can watch the full episode on ours on a YouTube channel, okay, which is TDJ Equity Funding Insiders. Until next time, I want you to continue building, continue growing, and most importantly, continue talking ownership of your power.

SPEAKER_00 37:09

You all take care.net forward slash podcast or email us at podcast at DDJ Equity Funding Insiders.net. Until next time, take care.