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» VISIT US ONLINE @ DSNEWS.COM 65 THE POWER OF PEOPLE For Brian Mingham, CEO and Founder of National Real Estate Solutions and CFSI Loan Management, start-up success is all about the people. "Your success is only as good as the people you have," Mingham said. "I know that that's kind of cliché, but it really is true. You have to have good people that understand the different parts of your business." And that's what he says is the No. 1 piece of advice he'd give to fellow start-up founders: "You've got a have good people." With nearly two decades as a mortgage broker and another eight as the founder and president of his own company—well, four companies, actually—Mingham would know. In fact, it's people that actually got him where he is today. Bored and spinning his wheels after a lay-off, Mingham was inspired to start his property preservation firm Pacific Preservation Services at his kitchen table. With a little pavement pounding and a far-reaching professional network thanks to his previous jobs at Countrywide at Chase, that firm went national in just six months. A few years later? Mingham was the proud owner of four businesses—all successes that are still in operation, in some form, to this day. (Pacific Preservation, as well as Mingham's inspection and construction asset management businesses were later rolled up into National Real Estate Solutions, in part of a one-stop-shop approach.) "at's literally how I started," Mingham said, "sitting at my kitchen table calling and using connections to get it done. I lost my job. I was like everybody else in America. I could've sat around and collected unemployment and cried in my soup, but I made lemonade out of the lemons that I got served up." Going national wasn't initially in Mingham's plan, but thanks to the connections he made over the years, the opportunity just fell into his lap. "Six months later one of my friends called me from the mortgage business and she was with a company called More Equity, which is part of AIG," Mingham said. "She said, 'Can you do this for me?' I said, 'Sure.' She said, 'Can you do it nationally?' And again, I said, 'Sure.'" It was as simple as that. "Everybody knew me from the years in the mortgage business, and they'd say 'Here, call them, do this,' when people needed help," Mingham said. "In the end, it's all about the network. It's all about LinkedIn, using your network and your Rolodex to call people, and do it. To me it's that simple." BALANCING ACT One of the hardest facets of running a startup is the sheer time and devotion it requires to get the company off the ground. When you are working for yourself nights and weekends are no longer considered off hours. Despite the dedication required, Amy Sanchez, Co-CEO of Precedent Management, LLC has managed to strike a good work-life balance. As a mother of three girls and a devoted wife, Sanchez fills her free time with outdoor projects the whole family can enjoy. "Being able to build something the entire family can participate in drives my passion for DIY projects," Sanchez said. "In fact, we just finished building our patio deck—this is truly what I enjoy aside from my business." e business that Sanchez refers to is a nationwide platform specializing in real estate functions such as HOA, tax, utility, code violation, vacant property registration, and asset management services that she runs with Robert DeWald. Like many of the entrepreneurs we spoke to, Sanchez knows that even when striking out on your own, it's the team you surround yourself with that makes all the difference. "Precedent has an experienced executive leadership team that is focused on offering high-touch, difficult services such as lien curative, HOA and taxes that require a combination of unique technology solutions and highly trained team members to bring value to our customers and improve their bottom lines," she noted. Sanchez's entrepreneurial spirit was fostered at a young age. "I always knew that I wanted to build something that brought benefit to others. If I can help mortgage servicers reduce costs and be able to service loans better, at lower rates, that those improvements will ultimately improve borrower experiences and potentially their direct costs. is is what drives me and our business model today," said Sanchez. Of the experiences that have shaped her career insights, Sanchez credits working with the FDIC during the most recent crisis with giving her a unique perspective on real estate, lending, and servicing industries. "I was able to see the impact of the great recession go full circle with the receivership of failed institutions. Real estate issues such as liens, delinquent HOAs, code violations, title defects, etc. don't go away by kicking them down the road. Early detection and prevention are the best approaches to keeping costs low and improving local communities. ese experiences are not revolutionary, per se, but are so important to what my company does today and the value we strive to bring to our industry." One of her key takeaways has been to create a quality control program that can handle any obstacle. "Many small issues that could have been corrected early have a tendency to get much larger and more expensive to correct at a later date," Sanchez explained. It's also important to utilize the efficiencies of new technologies to streamline as much of your job as possible, and I think we are beginning to see technology enter into our space at a higher rate than previously." STARTUP TO FINISH Do startups constitute a double-edged sword? According to PwC's Global FinTech Report 2017, more than 80 percent of financial institutions believe business to be at risk to innovators. e term disruption gets used a lot, and that survey point certainly supports the idea of startups bringing pain with the considerable gain. Housing industry players are constantly challenged with adapting to a dynamic, sometimes dizzying marketplace and startups, led by their passionate problem- solvers, either force or help with that crucial process. 65 COVER STORY INDUSTRY INSIGHT INDUSTRY INSIGHT INDUSTRY INSIGHT

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