1 rich Libsyn https://www.libsyn.com 90 600 “Sam” Sarkis Chivitchian is the founder and CEO of Secured Capital Lending, a direct private lending firm specializing in private money and hard money loan products — including fix and flip, construction loans, DSCR, commercial bridge, land loans, and asset-based financing. With over 20 years of experience in real estate and finance and more than 1,200+ transactions closed, Sam has become a recognized voice in the private lending industry. He frequently shares his expertise as a guest speaker at national conferences, podcasts, and industry events. Beyond lending, Sam is a real estate broker, fund manager, and active developer. Outside of work, he enjoys spending time with his wife and three children and coaching professional MMA fighters. Surprisingly Sam is a former UFC fighter and National Judo Champion, he brings the same discipline and focus to helping investors succeed. &amp;nbsp; Bullet Points: [00:00:00] Introduction [00:01:05] Sam’s introduction and early lending background. [00:02:15] Discovering private lending through a short sale flip. [00:03:25] Working at LBC and founding Secured Capital Lending. [00:05:34] How the industry changed from hard money to institutional lending. [00:07:54] The growing divide between residential and commercial lending shops. [00:08:57] Sam’s one-stop-shop approach: hard money vs. private money. [00:10:45] Institutionalization's impact on loan structure and underwriting. [00:11:32] Early experience selling loans and market shifts in 2020. [00:13:15] Thriving during COVID through investor-based lending. [00:15:18] Value of asset-based lending during periods of market dislocation. [00:16:06] Addressing gaps in institutional credit boxes with common-sense loans. [00:17:30] Launching Secured Capital from scratch. [00:18:13] Lessons in leadership and scaling slowly. [00:20:47] Keeping the team small, focusing on efficiency and quality. [00:22:40] Balancing origination, funding, and development ventures. [00:23:45] Learning from the 2008 crash and growing organically. [00:25:56] Sam’s martial arts background and transition from UFC to lending. [00:28:57] Retiring from professional MMA and starting a real estate career. [00:30:45] How martial arts training shaped Sam’s business mindset. [00:32:43] Why discipline, resilience, and team dynamics matter in lending. [00:34:31] Business parallels between sports competition and lending. [00:36:32] Importance of networking, humility, and playing the long game. [00:38:57] Advice for new market entrants and why passion is essential. [00:40:55] The risk of 100% financing models and chasing yield. [00:42:33] Transitioning to balance sheet lending and fund management. [00:45:42] Choosing an LPGP fund structure to expand investor access. [00:48:27] Using capital variety to match each loan to the right strategy. [00:50:34] Thoughts on the current market: volatility, corrections, and inflation. [00:53:35] Why short-term market pain could be healthy for the industry. [00:54:38] Commercial real estate’s comeback and new opportunities. [00:56:17] Shifting to more commercial loans at Secured Capital Lending. [00:57:48] Concerns about oversaturation and new entrants in California. [01:00:16] Why quality execution will define success over the next five years. [01:03:11] Caution against extreme lending models and risky strategies. [01:04:22] Sam’s closing thoughts on building the right way and long-term vision. &amp;nbsp; Links: Learn more about Secured Capital Lending at https://securedcaplending.com/&amp;nbsp; Learn more about Geraci Law Firm at https://www.geracilawfirm.com Subscribe to the Lender Lounge newsletter for episode notifications and exclusive content at https://www.geracilawfirm.com/lender-lounge-podcast Subscribe to the Geraci Law Firm newsletter at https://www.geracilawfirm.com/sign-up Follow Lender Lounge with Kevin Kim on LinkedIn and YouTube Lender Lounge with Kevin Kim https://fortralaw.com/lender-lounge-podcast/ <iframe title="Libsyn Player" style="border: none" src="//html5-player.libsyn.com/embed/episode/id/38196905/height/90/theme/custom/thumbnail/yes/direction/forward/render-playlist/no/custom-color/88AA3C/" height="90" width="600" scrolling="no" allowfullscreen webkitallowfullscreen mozallowfullscreen oallowfullscreen msallowfullscreen></iframe> https://assets.libsyn.com/secure/content/192973225