Curriculum — Land Development Training, 17 Modules
Groundbreaker Academy Groundbreaker
Academy
Curriculum

Seventeen modules. Two tracks. One real deal of your own.

Twelve core modules take a parcel from raw land to a sellable, financeable deal. Five advanced modules take an operator into commercial, capital, and scale.

The capital recycling loop — harvest, debt payoff, distributions, reserves, retained equity, next acquisition
From Module 1 — the capital recycling loop.
12
core modules, including the capstone
5
advanced Mastery modules
~56 hrs
core learning time
100+
term glossary and fill-in workbook
The Value Creation Method

Six steps, taught end to end on deals that were actually built.

01
Find & Control
Source the parcel and tie it up
02
Analyze & Validate
Underwrite it before you own it
03
Entitle & Approve
Move it through the gates
04
Engineer & Improve
Design, grade, and install
05
Build the Vertical
Deliver the product
06
Sell & Harvest
Exit, refinance, or hold
Core Program · Beginner to Intermediate

Twelve modules, in order.

Modules 2 through 7 walk the six steps. Modules 8 to 10 add capital, structure, and scale. Module 11 deepens market analysis, and Module 12 is the capstone.

01
The Developer's Game & the Value Creation Method
Foundation
3 hrs
02
Find & Control the Deal
Step 1
4 hrs
03
Analyze the Numbers — Make a Deal Pencil
Step 2
6 hrs
04
Entitle & Approve — The Value Jump
Step 3
5 hrs
05
Engineer & Improve the Land
Step 4
4 hrs
06
Build the Vertical
Step 5
5 hrs
07
Market, Sell & Harvest
Step 6
4 hrs
08
Fund the Vision: Capital, Debt & Equity
Cross-cutting
5 hrs
09
Structure, Team, Entities & Risk
Cross-cutting
4 hrs
10
Scale: Phasing, Portfolios & New Asset Classes
Mastery
5 hrs
11
Read the Market: Demand, Supply, Price & Affordability
Step 2 deepener
5 hrs
12
Capstone: Underwrite & Pitch Your Own Deal
Integration
6 hrs
Total estimated learning time is about 56 hours. One module per week runs 12 to 13 weeks — the cohort rhythm. Self-paced learners typically take one module every one to two weeks.
Modules 5 and 6
Engineer and Improve, then Build the Vertical — taught on drawings and budgets from real jobs.
Inside the modules

The frameworks you will actually use — straight out of the course.

Choosing your path — land and lots, fix and flip, build-to-sell, build-to-rent, and multifamily compared on capital, timeline, and complexity
Module 1
Choosing Your Path
The deal funnel, from raw leads to one controlled deal
Module 2
The Deal Funnel
How a deal pencils — underwriting back to residual land value
Module 3
How a Deal Pencils — Residual Land Value
The entitlement approval gates
Module 4
The Approval Gates
Choosing the exit — sell, hold, or lease
Module 7
Choosing the Exit
Equity
Your capital and your investors. Last paid, highest return.
20–30%
Mezzanine
Fills the gap between the loan and the equity you have.
0–15%
Senior debt
The construction loan. First position, first paid.
60–75%
Module 8
The Capital Stack
The capstone project package
Module 12
The Capstone Project
Mastery Track · Modules 13–17

Advanced development: commercial, capital, timing, and scale.

For developers moving into commercial and mixed-use, raising institutional capital, mastering tax strategy, timing the cycle, and building a development company. Taught on real, anonymized deals with professional models — including a 118-unit redevelopment with roughly $47M of exit value.

13
Commercial & Mixed-Use

Income property, NOI, and cap rates — where commercial value actually comes from.

14
Advanced Capital & Tax

Waterfalls, syndication, Opportunity Zones, 1031 exchanges, and cost segregation.

15
Multifamily & Build-to-Rent

Agency debt, stabilization, and the institutional exit.

16
Building the Development Firm

Pipeline, team, KPIs, and raising institutional capital.

17
Macro & Capital-Markets Timing

Rates, cap rates, and timing the cycle — reading demand and supply.

The mixed-use stack — retail, office and residential layered in one project
Module 13 — the mixed-use stack.
The development firm KPI dashboard
Module 16 — the firm KPI dashboard.
What's included

Core Program

Master curriculum plus 12 full lesson guides
Letter of Intent template and the contract suite
12 slide decks with speaker notes
A 100-plus term glossary and fill-in workbook
The Developer Toolkit in Excel — calculator, pro forma, schedules, Market Scan
Real-world resources and further reading
What's included

Mastery Track

Five advanced lesson guides, full modules
Template and contract library for advanced deals
Five slide decks with speaker notes
Real anonymized deal case studies, with the numbers
Advanced Developer Toolkit — commercial and multifamily underwriting, waterfall, DSCR, value-add, cost-seg, Macro Dashboard
Lifetime updates and private-community access

Both tracks, all 17 modules — the Complete Program.

Enroll in both levels and receive a percentage discount on the second. Installment plans on every tier.

See pricing Start free