RANCHO SANTA FE — The headlines these days are all about the “Stimulus Package.” Will it work? Will it fail? When will the credit crunch affecting banks loosen up and allow individuals and small business owners to borrow money again?
One solution is to turn to private lenders. Ranch resident Sacha Ferrandi has partnered with Carl Maggio and Patrick Hook and has formed Source Capital Funding, Inc., specializing in the underwriting and funding of short-term commercial and residential real estate loans.
Despite the tough economic environment, Ferrandi said, “Our business is thriving.” The partners came together in 2006 and set up offices in La Jolla on Prospect Street. “We’ve been successful because we’re thinking outside the box,” Ferrandi said. The partners focus on commercial property, primarily individuals and small business owners looking to renovate income-producing property. Source Capital funds the loans for a short term, usually 18 months, using trust deeds as collateral. Interest rates are 8.99 percent or higher. “People are willing to pay the higher rates to get what they want,” Ferrandi said. “They want to get in and get out.” According to Ferrandi, 95 percent of Source’s business has been brought to them by mortgage brokers frustrated by the lending freeze at the banks. “We’re the alternative to banks,” Ferrandi said.
Source Capital not only works with individuals and small businesses seeking funds, but with investors as well. Investors realize, on average, a return of 10 to 14 percent on their monies, a far cry from the low interest rates currently offered by the major banks and lending institutions. “Our investors either get it or they don’t,” Ferrandi said. “They’re either comfortable knowing they have trust deeds as collateral security, or they don’t.” According to Ferrandi, only one time since opening their doors has Source put a property into foreclosure. The partners go to great lengths to make sure the investments are sound before funding. “I have to sleep well at night,” Ferrandi said. “So I want to make sure our investors are taken care of. We’re very hands on. We stay local. We walk the property. We stay on top of the situation.”
Ferrandi, who was born in Barcelona, Spain, moved to the United States with his family when he was 2 years old. He grew up in La Jolla before attending Arizona State University as did his business partners Maggio and Hook. Ferrandi became interested in real estate and funding by watching the success of his brother, Justin, 15 years older, who is in the same business. Justin served as a mentor to his younger brother and his brother’s partners when they opened their own business. Ferrandi met his wife, Jamie, at the Del Mar Racetrack. They were married in 2007, and the couple have a daughter, Olivia, now 3 months old.
So what does the future hold for Ferrandi and his partners? “We’re sticking to our roots,” Ferrandi said. “We want to stay local. There is plenty of business here. We’ll perhaps get into bigger commercial projects, but we want to stick with what we know. When you’re dealing with private money, you’re dealing with individuals. That’s very important to us.”
So despite the economic uncertainty that looms large over the country, Ferrandi remains upbeat and optimistic. “We’re a solution. A short-term solution. We’re an alternative source.”
For more information about Source Capital, visit www.source-capital.com.
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