Mohammed T. Islam is the co-founder and chief executive officer of Midland Capital Management, LLC, a lending Institution that provides a wide portfolio of real estate financing and small business loans. At 24 years old, he possesses a sense of purpose and a drive that belie his age and that have led him from door-to-door salesman to founder of a flourishing company with $1B in total sales in just six short years. But for Mohammed and his managing partner, George Jouvin, the reward lies not in wealth, but in helping people. “We never did this to make a lot of money. Our main motivation is helping business owners or people, such as an investor to get financing that no bank would give him,” he shares. “Every time we close a deal, the feeling we get is like a high—every time. That is why we are in this business. It’s very rewarding.”
Launched in New York in 2017 as one of only a handful of lenders in the country that provides up to 100-percent financing on all non-conventional real estate financing, Midland Capital specialize in a wide portfolio of real estate financing, such as hard money for fix-&-flips, construction, hard-money for acquisitions, bridge loans, cash-out refinances, and several other real estate financing solutions, and they also specialize in quick working capital and lines of credit for small businesses. What began three years ago as two-person loan agency operating from a basement has grown into a thriving firm with over $400M in total assets, and that is on the cusp of purchasing four hotels in New York City.
The success of the firm reflects not only the Mohammed’s commitment to his clients, but the self-fulfilled destiny of an overachiever with a head for business, a heart for community, and the belief that with hard work anything is possible. While its competitors were not lending any money during the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic and losing tens of millions of dollars, Midland Capital continues to serve it clients’ needs with $400M to lend. As of this month, the company has broken an industry record for having the fastest closing times for hard money lending deals. “The process normally takes 5 – 10 business days, but due to the circumstances of the pandemic, we’ve been closing in two days—giving all brokers a better opportunity to make more money,” Mohammed explains.
Mohammed graduated high school at just 16, and immediately set out to find a job. At 17, he began working 14 hours a day as a door-to-door salesman for Time Warner Cable. A year later, he landed a customer service position for an Allstate Agency in Whitestone, and within a month, his boss, Anthony Bellomo, sent him to school to obtain his insurance licenses. At the same time, Mohammed began pursuing his degree in computational mathematics at St. Johns University. “I worked all day, then school from 7 to 10 p.m. I did that for four years every day.”
Shortly thereafter, Mohammed opened his own insurance general agency, where for two years he led a team of 70 insurance agents—all older than he—before launching Midland Capital a year later. “There was a guy who applied for a job in my insurance agency. His name was George. He grew up on Wall Street, did everything, and was experienced in loans, so I went up to him and asked if he wanted to open a loan agency, and that is where it kicked off,” he shares. “The first year, it was just me and George, and we did around $200M in total sales. For two years, we operated out of my basement and his condo. Between lenders, experience, customers, hard work, dedication, we grew rapidly.”
As the firm continues its meteoric rise, Mohammed’s mission remains the same—to serve otherwise unserved clients, with an intimate appreciation for their unique obstacles. “I created a hard money solution where there is no interest at all; it is pre-structured.” In his unwavering commitment to community, he aspires to run for public office so that he can contribute more broadly to the betterment of people’s lives.
Mohammed T. Islam
CEO — Midland Capital Management, LLC
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mohammed-tanvir-islam-35686097/
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