“I've never had a lender provide me capital within five days of a loan submission. It was a lot on trust. Being an Academy grad, that played a role for sure. The team clearly knew what they were doing and they reviewed everything very quickly…I've been doing real estate for the last eight years and I've worked with many lenders. I've never had anybody trust me so much right out of the gate.”
- Max Sivohins, USCGA ‘13
The Academy Fund is a private real estate fund that lends money to military-veteran real estate operators and developers. We leverage relationships among Investors, Advisors, and Operators to facilitate the valuable “trust capital” and believe that intelligence, integrity and grit are competitive advantages and key inputs to building wealth. Today, we’re excited to share the story behind Coast Guard veteran Max Sivohins’s recent deal with the Academy Fund.
Meet Max Sivohins
Max Sivohins is a 2013 graduate of the United States Coast Guard Academy. He served on the USCGC Mellon out of Seattle, Washington where his work was primarily focused on drug interdiction. Later in his career, Max managed $2.1 billion in budget formulation and oversaw 20 Coast Guard acquisition programs. Throughout his time in the Coast Guard, he also served as a Russian linguist and a cultural expert. He supported U.S. delegations on visits to Russia and likewise when a Russian delegation came to the United States.
Max is the President of Twenty Bucks Real Estate Development & Investment, a real estate development and investment company based in Alexandria, Virginia. His portfolio currently is comprised of 58 units across 11 buildings, including mixed-use, multi-family, residential, and office properties. Max is primarily focused on value-add opportunities where he adds value through rehabilitating or repurposing the property. A recent example of this involved purchasing an old office building at an auction and transforming it into a 25-unit residential apartment complex.
This past April, Max had the opportunity to purchase a 10-unit mixed-use property that included eight apartments and two commercial tenants. Although he initially purchased the property with cash, the Academy Fund played a crucial role in Max’s investment strategy. Within five business days, the Academy Fund provided him with a hard money loan, allowing him to leverage his personal capital more effectively for other investment opportunities. Max purchased the property for $370,000 and is currently under contract to sell it for $1.3 million.
As many real estate investors are aware, a cash-out refinance is typically not feasible until the property undergoes a stabilization or seasoning period. The Academy Fund bridged this gap by offering a hard money loan for six months, after which Max could choose to sell the property or pursue a cash-out refinance.
We loved supporting Max in this deal and are thrilled to see him succeeding in his investments. Great job, Max!
We Finance Military Veteran Real Estate Operators
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