Today we’d like to introduce you to Josh Catigano.
Hi Josh, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
The Real Estate industry has been kind to me over the years. I started over 20 years ago as a realtor here in Charleston and fell in love with the helping clients secure their dream homes or fulfilling their American Dream. It’s a pretty special occupation and I never took for granted the ability to be a part of that experience for buyers. To be completely honest, I absolutely loved that job and still miss being on that side of the home buying experience.
Then 2008 came around and everything got a little wild in the world of Real Estate. It was a tough market, and everything shifted to foreclosures and short sales etc. As a realtor, you understand that the job changes regularly. That was one of the characteristics that I loved so much about it. It was different every day. While the changes around 2008 were still manageable, it dawned on me that I needed a second source of income to continue the lifestyle I had become accustomed to. Nobody wants to feel like they are going backwards, and the income just wasn’t flowing like it used to.
One day, I was trying to do the right thing and call a cab because I had been out having a great time, as many of us do here in the fun-loving city of Charleston. I think back then the average wait was close to 2 hours for a taxi. Sometimes even longer than that. I made the choice to get home on my own and, let’s just say it didn’t work out so well. I had plenty of time that night to think about things and then it dawned on me. I am just one guy, trying to get a ride home and it was nearly impossible. What about all the bachelor and bachelorette parties that visit Charleston on a regular basis? They have 10 or 12 people that need to be picked up at one time. Long story short, I figured out what my second source of income was going to be. I took my next commission check and bought a god awful green colored, 16-person passenger van from a soccer family in Summerville. I threw some laser lights in there and a little disco ball and started a party van company. I knew right away, if people would get in this hideous looking van, they would pretty much get into anything. The need for transportation was just that great. The business pretty much exploded and grew into a fleet of several party buses and other vehicles.
It grew so much that it became my primary source of income and now Real estate was actually the job on the back burner. Not to mention… it was a ton of fun! I could write a book full of stories that came from experiences driving the buses. The business thrived for several years and was continuing to grow until one day, we had an accident. Thankfully, no passengers were in the van, but there is still a crooked telephone pole out on Folly Rd somewhere. My driver tried to avoid another vehicle and ran off the road eventually ending up in the marsh. This led to an insurance claim and eventually led to the discovery of insurance fraud. Fast forward a few months later and the state shut us down for operating without insurance. That lead to a lawsuit and a few years of time before the insurance provider finally settled with me.
Immediately after finding out about the fraud, we cancelled all of our upcoming reservations and stopped operating prior to the state shutdown. At the time, I was still in shock and to be honest, couldn’t believe I was a victim of insurance fraud. I also started to freak out because the income stream immediately stopped. By this point, Real Estate was really just a feather in my cap and more something I used for just friends and family. I didn’t know what to do and was pretty lost. Of course, my immediate thought was just to get back into the swing of things with Real Estate, but after 10 years of party busses, I really didn’t want to work weekends anymore.
I decided to look into the lending side of things and for the most part, people think of us as banks and relate us to normal banking hours. More like the 9-5, Mon through Friday schedule which is more along the lines of what I was looking for. Don’t get me wrong, you can always reach me after hours or on weekends, but as a Realtor, I was constantly taking calls late at night and my weekends were packed full of showings and open houses. I’m my mind, I was still in the industry and still able to help people achieve their American Dreams, but now I had more flexibility in my schedule and could spend more time with my family.
Its been almost 10 years now that I have been in the mortgage industry and I love it! I certainly miss showing properties and going through some of the amazing homes that are here in the Charleston area, but in the end, I’m actually able to help more clients have house keys put in their hands and that has by far been the most rewarding part of my journey.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
I think I just covered a lot struggle in my last answer, but in general, approving people for a loan is not always easy. Helping people or guiding them through credit repair and getting them into a position where they can qualify is not always easy either. Not everyone has an 800 credit score and money in the bank. I try to help every person that wants to buy a house, get qualified. Sometimes it’s a struggle to get there, but honestly, those are the loans that feel the best when they close!
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your business?
CMG is a top 10 lender in the United States. We have a bunch of different loan types and options. As far as being an employee with the company, the support and training is the best I have seen. There are so many different loan options, its tough to say you are a master of them all. From time to time, you need a refresher or maybe just have a unique borrower that wants a loan you have never done before. If that happens, the response time of our support team and training resources are incredible.
I handle a lot of different types of loans regularly. They range from the vanilla stuff like Conventional, FHA, VA, USDA to more of the out of the box options like DSCR, Bank Statement loans, or Down Payment Assistance options.
I love to work with first time home buyers and help guide them through their first experience. It feels a little better helping a first-time home buyer and to be honest, they are just a bit happier at the closing than someone who may be closing on a home for the 10th time. There aren’t too many jobs out there where you get to witness that amount of pure joy!
Can you talk to us a bit about happiness and what makes you happy?
Closing deals on time. Putting keys in hands. And getting someone a lower interest rate than my competitors.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.thefunfunder.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thefunfunder/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thefunfunder
- Twitter: https://x.com/thefunfunder
