Ep. 12 - Beyond the Numbers, What Lenders Really Look For with Shaya Sonnenschein

In this episode of the CRE Connection Podcast, Samy sits down with Shaya Sonnenschein, President at AANDAR Capital Advisory, for a deep conversation on commercial real estate finance, capital advisory, relationships, technology, and the future of the industry.Shaya shares his unexpected path into real estate, starting from a creative background in design, marketing, and publishing before being pulled into the world of underwriting and capital markets. He explains why great capital advisory is not just about finding a lender, but about understanding the full story behind every sponsor, property, and investment strategy.The conversation covers what separates sophisticated borrowers from average ones, why lenders care about consistency and details, how AI and automation are changing commercial real estate, and why relationships and transparency remain the foundation of long-term success.Shaya also shares his involvement in the Refinance Summit and ReDeal event, his perspective on failure, and the career advice he would give to anyone entering commercial real estate finance today.Key Topics Covered Shaya’s background in marketing, design, and publishing  How he transitioned into commercial real estate finance  Why capital advisory requires creativity, not just math  The difference between true advisory and basic debt brokerage  What sophisticated borrowers do differently  Why lenders care about details, consistency, and presentation  The role of AI, automation, and custom workflows in CRE  Why real estate has been slow to adopt technology  How relationships influence financing outcomes  Why transparency builds long-term trust  The importance of asking questions without ego  The Refinance Summit and ReDeal event  Why fear of failure separates long-term players from short-term operators▶️ If you're interested in learning more about Jason, check out the following links:▶ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ssonnenschein/▶ Website: https://www.aandar.com/about ▶ ReDeal Summit: https://redealsummit.com/If you like the video, please SUBSCRIBE and don't forget to press the bell 🔔, 👍like, comment and share.-----------------------------------▶️ Check out my Website: https://creconnection.transistor.fm/----------------------------------▶️ For business inquiries: [email protected]▶️ Follow me on:• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/samy_souss/• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/samy-soussan/