"What's the return?"
Wrong first question. Inside Portugal REI Club, we start with a different one:
"What can go wrong — and how is it contained?"
Returns are an outcome. Risk management is a decision.
If you don't understand:
→ How the deal is structured (because that decides who gets paid — and in what order)
→ Who controls what when things shift (because problems don't ask permission)
→ Where your capital actually sits (because your position determines if you recover or wait in line)
...the return number is meaningless.
Projections don't pay you. Structure does. This is how we teach investors to think before they commit capital.