Investing During The Pandemic: Sachin Jhangiani of Elevate Money On What We Should Do With Our Money Considering All of the Volatility and Uncertainty Today
An Interview With Jason Hartman
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It is a great time to be an entrepreneur. The market is rewarding innovation and creativity. The world is changing fast, and those that can help disrupt the old system, provide efficiencies and opportunities that help advance our world are in a great position. As for volatility and uncertainty, I think we always have to beware of that. Things seem to turn when no one is looking, and I wouldn’t go all in chasing any specific opportunity.
As a part of my series about “Investing During The Pandemic”, I had the pleasure of interviewing Sachin Jhangiani.
With more than two decades of finance experience on Wall Street at institutions such as Credit Suisse and Bank of America, Sachin Jhangiani co-founded Elevate.Money, a private real estate investment trust. With investment buy in as low as $100, the platform is working to become the Blackstone for millennials. As CMO, he is focused on removing barriers so real estate investing is more accessible and educating on why investing in stable sectors such as real estate is the long game.
Thank you for doing this with us! Before we dig in, our readers would like to learn a bit more about you. Can you tell us the “backstory” about what brought you to the finance industry?
I started my career in finance shortly before graduating from NYU during an internship at Credit Suisse. I was immediately drawn to the buzz, the excitement, the chaos and the noise. From that day forward, I spent the next 17 years working on Wall Street for some of the largest banks in the world. However, towards the end of my career, I started to feel stagnant and confined.
You have to play your part for the machine to work, and I wanted to do more than that. I needed to be creative. I wanted to use my knowledge and skills to help real people understand our financial systems.
I had suddenly chosen to walk away from an identity that I had spent my entire life building. There was an adjustment period where I needed my friends, my family and myself. I ended up relocating to Arizona. This move provided the spiritual and creative setting that I needed, and it sparked my entrepreneurial spirit.
Can you share with our readers the most interesting or amusing story that occurred to you in your career so far? Can you share the lesson or takeaway you took out of that story?
When I was interning at Credit Suisse, I decided I would become a trader on Wall Street. I sent out my resume to all the available programs that hired from NYU. I saw an application for Credit Suisse, and I thought I would definitely get an interview given I was already working there. Well, that was not the case.
The HR department apparently didn’t think I was qualified enough to warrant an interview. I decided to take matters into my own hands and started to talk to anyone and everyone I knew. One of the traders saw my passion and willingness to do whatever it took and helped me secure an interview.
Days leading up to this make-or-break moment in my life, I had done everything I could to prepare. There was no way I would know the answer to every finance question they could ask, but I was ready, and I was confident. I think Mike Tyson once said, “everyone has a plan until they get punched in the face!”
Well, I didn’t physically get hit, but it sure felt like that is what happened. The interviewer invited me to the trading floor instead of a quiet conference room which was an unexpected surprise. When I got there, I met Matt. He was tall, big, loud, had long hair, was somehow eating, listening on one phone, screaming on another, and his eyes were rapidly glancing between four screens. I stood there quietly for about a minute or two, and I’m sure he noticed me, but he didn’t acknowledge my presence. As soon as I saw an opportunity to engage, I stuck my hand out and said hello.
He paused, asked me to pull up a chair and sit next to him. He said to me, “I don’t have much time, so I only have one question for you.” He then pointed to a stack of resumes. He said, “every resume I have here is from kids who went to IVY league schools, have better grades, and better internships than you do. So, I just need to know, why should I hire you?”
I shook off the nervous energy and looked him in the eye, and said, “Sir, I am the exact opposite of every kid in those resumes. I had to pay my way through college. I did not have the luxury of those unpaid fancy internships. I’ve been working and going to school since my freshman year, and yes, I would have liked to have more time to study and get better grades, but in the end, I think my real-world experience gives me an edge. In fact, I have been working at this firm for two years now. I know the systems and the way things work here better than anyone. I’d probably be a year ahead of anyone else you could hire. But more than all that, I’m going to succeed. I’ve enjoyed working here, and I would make it happen at Credit Suisse, but if not, I’m still going to win. So, you’ve got to decide what you’re looking for and what is important to you in your next analyst. Do you want someone who has a pretty resume or someone who has already proven they can do it?”
Matt looked right back at me and said — you’re hired.
One question, one answer and I got my dream job. My life had changed that day. I love sharing that story because of the lessons in it. First off, follow your dream until the end and don’t let anyone tell you that you cannot do something or you’re not good enough. You’ve got to believe in yourself, do the work, and keep going until you find a way. The second lesson is that you have to be able to adapt. Things aren’t always going to go as you planned, but that may work out even better. Don’t get stuck for too long, regroup, and make the most of the situation.
Are you working on any exciting new projects now? How do you think that will help people?
Yes! I am working on the most exciting project I’ve ever been involved in. It’s called Elevate Money, and it’s something I think all my years of experience in finance and business have groomed me for.
Elevate Money provides many investors access to real estate, starting with a little as $100. Building wealth through real estate is universal; however, it was mainly restricted to wealthy individuals or institutions. We believe everyone should have access to the same opportunities regardless of the financial levels they need to start with.
We’ve already seen crowdfunding and fractionalized investments change how stocks are traded through Robinhood, and now we’re seeing a similar shift happen in alternative investments such as art and collectibles. With real estate being the largest alternative asset class and one that can potentially provide income, capital appreciation, and diversification, we believe many more investors should have 10–20% of their savings allocated to it, just as wealthier investors have done for many years.
Not only will we find, buy, and manage the real estate on behalf of our investors, we also will continue to provide education and share our knowledge so that they can learn as they invest with us. We currently do this by providing an Elevate Lens+ report for properties purchased on our website. EL+ is our proprietary financial model we use to evaluate all potential real estate investments.
None of us are able to achieve success without some help along the way. Is there a particular person who you are grateful towards who helped get you to where you are? Can you share a story about that?
If I had to pick one, it would be my mother. My parents didn’t have the easiest time, and we experienced a lot of hardships when I was younger. Once when things were really bad, my mom gave me a stone that said, “Never, Never Quit.” It wasn’t just the words, but it was the look of assurance she gave me when she handed it to me. I still have that stone with me in my office and have turned to it many times. It gives me the power to pick up and carry on, knowing it will all work out.
Let’s shift a bit to what is happening today in the broader world. Many people have become anxious from the dramatic jolts of the news cycle. The fears related to the coronavirus pandemic have understandably heightened a sense of uncertainty and loneliness. From your experience, what are a few ideas that we can use to effectively offer support to our families and loved ones who are feeling anxious? Can you explain?
I think, in some ways, the pandemic showed us what is truly important. Above all else, we have to take care of ourselves and our families emotionally, spiritually, mentally and financially.
One thing we see today, especially with social media, is all different ways people are making money, but what we have to understand is that while some people may have actually gotten rich quickly, most are only showing you the one or two winners and not all the losers. Now I’m not saying, don’t invest in stocks, options, crypto, NFTs, or any of that. What I am saying is that I wouldn’t recommend going all-in on any one thing. Having a balanced portfolio and understanding your risks is the most important thing. We have no control over what can happen in the world, but we do have control over the actions we take.
Ok. Thanks for all that. Let’s now jump to the main core of our interview. As you know the stock market and the economy, in general, have become extremely volatile and uncertain. Many people “dollar cost average” and put aside a monthly sum into a long-term savings plan for retirement, college, or a home purchase. If a loved one or a client came to you and said, “I have been saving and investing $500 every month in an S&P 500 index fund. Over the next few months until the dust settles, should I be doing something else with my money?”, what would you say to them?
A balanced portfolio. Sometimes, when you may only have $500 a month to invest, a person may think they have to hit home runs for it to be worth investing that money. However, you have to take your time and your goals into account. We’re seeing more and more people — younger than ever — showing interest in investing, which I think is great. However, many of them do not have a balanced strategy to broaden their portfolio mix. Real estate is an area that offers potential diversification to other investments such as stocks, crypto, NFTs. Real estate that pays income also provides the opportunity to compound growth through dividend reinvest, which many novice investors may miss. There is a reason wealthy investors have a portion of their portfolio in this asset class and that there is over $3 trillion of assets in Real Estate Investment Trusts in the US.
Eventually, the economy will recover and rebound. Certain sectors, like travel and hospitality, might be hurting for a while. But other sectors, like technology and healthcare, might do very well. If someone wanted to prepare today to take advantage of the future recovery, what would you suggest they do?
I think we’re seeing a tale of two economies at the moment. Many people are still facing hardships from the pandemic, but at the same time, many asset prices are at all-time highs. There could be many reasons for this, but spike inflation is a key factor. While some believe it is transitory from supply chain issues due to the pandemic, others believe rising inflation is here to stay. During times of inflation, hard assets such as real estate tend to do well. Given the uncertainties of the times, I would again lean towards a stable approach with a balanced portfolio and not going all-in on any one sector.
Are there sectors that provide exciting and lucrative investment opportunities today, specifically because of the volatility and uncertainty?
It is a great time to be an entrepreneur. The market is rewarding innovation and creativity. The world is changing fast, and those that can help disrupt the old system, provide efficiencies and opportunities that help advance our world are in a great position. As for volatility and uncertainty, I think we always have to beware of that. Things seem to turn when no one is looking, and I wouldn’t go all in chasing any specific opportunity.
Are there alternative investments that you think more people should look more deeply at?
I think alternative investments as a whole are gaining recognition from a larger group of investors than ever before. I believe that real estate is the largest alternative investment and one that is backed by a real hard asset and may provide income is not purely a price appreciation bet is something people should consider.
If a person in their thirties and forties came to you today and said that they have $10,000 that they want to put away today for a long-term investment what would you advise them to do with it?
My advice would be to understand your goals, understand your time horizon, consider the different risks versus returns, and do your best to have a balanced portfolio.
Can you please give us your favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Can you share how that was relevant to you in your life?
“Be you because everyone else is taken.” I read this quote in Laird Hamilton’s book Force of Nature, and it was such a necessary thing for me to hear at the time. Like many people, I felt like I was trying to live my life a certain way because that was what others expected from me. This quote freed me up from that burden. It allowed me to be myself, have my own way, ideas, and priorities, and it didn’t matter if anyone else agreed with me or saw it my way.
You are a person of enormous influence. If you could inspire a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the greatest amount of people, what would that be? You never know what your idea can trigger. :-)
Breaking the paradigm that we can only do one thing at a time or be one-dimensional, which holds true for millennials and the younger generations more than ever before. We should be allowed and encouraged to have different interests, develop multiple skill sets, and build wealth through multiple income streams. I don’t think people should be pigeonholed any longer. For example, it used to be if you didn’t have a job in finance, then you shouldn’t make your own financial and investment decisions. People are more intelligent and have more aptitude for learning than we’ve been given credit for. With the internet and social media, information is readily available to us, and of course, platforms like Elevate Money allow us to make those decisions for ourselves.
Thank you for the interview. We wish you only continued success!
