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Meet Nick Blatin of Private Money Solutions

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Today we’d like to introduce you to Nick Blatin.

Nick, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
I was born and raised here in Los Angeles. I grew up being a very competitive athlete primarily training in Mixed Martial Arts including jiu-jitsu, judo, muy-thai, and other martial arts. When I got to high school, I quickly realized that I cared more about socializing and playing sports than I did about school. This leads me down a spiral of bad behavior, ultimately culminating in me getting expelled from high school. I felt awful like I had let everyone down. I started seeing many of my friends go off to all of these great local colleges like USC, and UCLA, while I was stuck not doing anything, living at my parent’s house. Something snapped inside me that I needed to treat life the same way about sports. I wanted to win. Not only did I want to win, but also I wanted to prove to my family and friends that I wasn’t a complete failure. I think this really drove me and was a turning point in my life. I realized it was all mental, and if I wanted to change, I first had to make the decision to change. I ended up getting a job selling make-up on the streets.

This was a very odd, direct-sales job, especially for me, a man who knew nothing about make-up. They taught me how to approach strangers on the streets, and sell these strangers little $22 bags of makeup. It took me about two weeks to really pick it up, but once I got good, there was no turning back. I started doing the math and thought to myself, “Wow, the people who make the most money aren’t necessarily the best salespeople, but the people who simply approach the most people!” It was all a numbers game. The person who worked the hardest won. I knew that becoming good at sales was going to be my cheat code to becoming successful. Then one day, I went to my aunt and uncle’s house, their names are Alex and Elaine. I have always looked up to them for many reasons. I loved how they started from nothing and became successful, I loved how they had been together since middle school, I loved how their kids were all amazing, I loved how they were always the ones to host family get-togethers, and overall I loved their lifestyle and wanted to be like them. This is an important part of the story because I truly believe everyone who wants to be successful needs to find a mentor, and for me these were the mentors I chose. When I went to their house that one day, they asked me how I was doing. I told them everything was going great, and I was making nearly $200 per day selling make-up to strangers, which for an 18 year old felt great!

Then they asked me a question that changed the course of my life… “Nick, if you are good at sales, why don’t you sell something more expensive?” I thought about it for a second, and the concept confused me… Could it really be that simple? They explained further, “Nick, you are already working 60+ hours per week. It isn’t always about hard work at this point. The main difference between you and a rich salesperson is that you sell a $22 bag of makeup and make $8 commission. You can spend that same amount of effort and time, except you can sell a boat, or a plane, or a company, or some tech… And for that same effort, you can make an $80,000 commission!” I was immediately interested. We pondered for about an hour, what would be the best thing for me to sell. What is something that will always be there, and is always going to have value in Los Angeles? Real estate! I knew what I had to do. I was introduced to two big real estate agents in Los Angeles, named Alphonso Lascano & Bjorn Farrugia. They allowed me to work for them for free, just shadowing them and learning about what they do.

Eventually, we came to an agreement where they would allow me to generate leads for them in exchange for a percentage of their sale commissions from any lead I brought that turned into a sold house. This resulted in being one of the most difficult and transformative years of my life. I had essentially completely cut out parties, friends, and everything to temporarily focus on getting my new “business” off the ground. I knew if I didn’t go out and hustle, I wouldn’t get paid. I probably spent 80 hours a week either cold-calling or door-knocking wealthy homeowners in Los Angeles, trying to convince them to meet with us to let them sell their house. By my 11th month, I had finally closed my first deal and ended up making about $47,000 that month. That $47,000 although wasn’t great for a whole year’s work, it was enough to give me the confidence I needed. Fast-forward and a few years later, I ended up becoming the number 1 real estate agent in Los Angeles under 25 years old with over $47 Million in sales under my belt.

After about five years working as a successful real estate agent, I got a call from my uncle Alex. He asked me how’s it going, and I said its insanely hard but everything is going great. I think he felt that this lifestyle was draining me. He asked me if I was interested in starting to learn about what he does and work on the lending side of real estate. I have personally always been a numbers guy and was never interested in architecture or interior design. While most realtors loved the house, the kitchen, the materials, etc., all I cared about was the sales price, the zip codes, and the number of leads I had. I knew that switching over to the numbers-based side of real estate was the way to go, not to mention I’ve always wanted to work with Alex and Elaine. That was a little over a year ago now. I’ve sense fully partnered with my aunt and uncle. We help make real estate loans (mortgages) to people who don’t qualify for conventional bank mortgages. The industry is called “private money” or “hard money lending” and our company is called Private Money Solutions.

In only one year, I have been helping contribute nearly an additional $3 million per month in business, along with raising millions of additional dollars in funding to help fund all of these loans. The whole journey has been a relentless pursuit for growth. I’ve watched/read countless books/videos about success, networking, negotiating, persistence, becoming efficient, etc. I have lived the life of a student. I am always learning, I always feel like I have room to grow, and I’ve dedicated my entire life to getting better than I was the day before. I believe this is what it takes to make it and become successful. I can go on and on about what it takes, but the easiest way that I always recommend people is to find a mentor. I could list everything in this interview, but you’d probably forget it by tomorrow. If you find a mentor who can constantly be there with you, reminding you of what it takes, you will win.

When you find these people, do whatever you can to help them. They will return the favor. Offer to work for free if you have to like I did. Many people would be surprised to find out that most wealthy people don’t have many secrets. They are often more than happy to share what they did and to help others become successful as well. I personally feel the same way; I love nothing more than giving advice and helping as many people as I can make their lives better. I’ll end this with one of my favorite quotes, “success is not something you achieve, success is something you attract by the person you become.”

Has it been a smooth road?
It has absolutely been the opposite of a smooth road. I have wanted to quit a million times. When I first started, I went 11 months without any income. Watching my friends all surpass me in life was awful. I always felt like I was playing catch-up. The main obstacle was learning to overcome objection. I have probably been hung-up on, cursed at, or had a door slammed in my face over 20,000 times in my life. It’s always about moving forward and keeping the main thing the main thing. Always keep your eye on the prize, and don’t let anyone or anything distract you from your goals. Don’t take anything personally, and always do whatever it takes to win… of course as long as it is legal and morally correct. Someone I follow on Instagram named Grant Cardone said something very interesting that stuck with me one time. I don’t remember the exact word-for-word quote, but it was something along the lines of this: “If you have the opportunity to become wealthy, do it no matter what it takes because being broke is selfish. People who are broke can only afford to help themselves. The people who make the biggest difference in people’s lives, the people who get everyone the best holiday presents, the people who donate the most to charities, the people who tip waiters the best, the people who get their friends new jobs and connections… all had to first become rich. If you really cared about helping people, don’t be selfish, become rich.”

So, as you know, we’re impressed with Private Money Solutions – tell our readers more, for example what you’re most proud of and what sets you apart from others.
Our company is called Private Money Solutions. We help fund mortgage loans to clients who can’t qualify for a bank loan. Typically our clients are wealthy people who own lots of real estates, but they aren’t liquid with much money and so they need a temporary bridge loan. I love my business because I get to kill two birds with one stone in terms of helping people. I get to help the borrower get funds when they are in need, and I also get to help my investors put their money in a very safe place, to a wealthy individual, collateralized by real estate, and making a high rate of interest that pays them every month. 90% of my investors are senior citizens, who rely on us to make these loans so they can get paid monthly, and have their retirement money in a safe place.

Let’s touch on your thoughts about our city – what do you like the most and least?
I love everything about Los Angeles. I have done quite a bit of traveling over the course of my life. The problem is every time I leave, I can’t wait to come back to Los Angeles! Where else can you go snowboarding and surfing in the same day? Where else can you have snowy mountains and hot beaches a few hours apart? I love the people here, I love the hustle mentality, I love the ambition. LA is a giant melting pot of all different races and backgrounds. Everyday I see new people and am always grateful to be able to meet such new interesting people. It is a place where there is endless opportunity. You can be any race, any color, any gender, and if you dream big enough and work hard enough, you can truly do anything. There are no limits here. You want to be famous? You can do it. You want to start a business and have 10 million potential clients all within LA county? You can do it! It is the ultimate city that represents the attitude of “work hard, play hard.”

Pricing:

  • If you invest with us at Private Money Solutions, here are the rates you can expect:
  • 1st Mortgage: 7-10% Annual Returns
  • 2nd Mortgage: 10-13% Annual Returns
  • $100,000 minimum.

Contact Info:


Image Credit:
@nickblatin

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