I am very picky when it comes to which conferences I attend these days, but I always make it a priority to go to AAPL’s conference every year.  I also thoroughly enjoy receiving the Private Lender magazine publication.

I became a member within the first 3 months of my private money lending career in 2014.  It was actually the first membership I joined within this space.

There have been many, but I think the best memory I have of the AAPL conference was winning the “Rising Star” award in 2022.  Being acknowledged by AAPL for my work in the private lending space was extremely humbling and a very proud moment for me.

I go back to a conversation that I had with my dad shortly after graduating college.  He told me if I wanted to get into real estate, the one component that touches all other facets of the industry, is real estate finance.  He said, if you’re interested in getting into asset management, brokerage, leasing, appraisal services, investments, or even property management, the best place to start your career is in mortgage. That was 13 years ago, and I haven’t looked back since.

I am most proud of our accomplishment of standing up a new lending company (CV3) so quickly and so effectively.  Within 4 months of Pac West Bank halting all new loan originations we funded our first loan at CV3.  This required us to fast track the creation of brand-new guidelines, forge new capital markets relationships, build new pricing matrices, and hire and train 150 people within a 4 month period. Our second month in business we funded over $50M as a mix of bridge, fix and flip, and rental loans. To my knowledge, that is the fastest any company has hit $50M in fundings in this space.

“Red Notice” by Bill Browder.  This non-fiction book details Bill’s experiences as the first capitalist conducting business in the former communist Soviet Union. It’s a thrilling read that sheds light on the beginnings of the frictions between Russia and the US.