How Ruben Izgelov Built a $700M Private Lending Empire in Real Estate | Ruben Izgelov
Millionaire Mindcast
Matt Aitchison
4.4 • 716 Ratings
🗓️ 21 July 2025
⏱️ 37 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
In this powerhouse episode, Matty A is joined by Ruben Izgelov, co-founder of WeLend, a national private lending firm that has originated over $700 million in loans. Ruben shares how
he went from a humble immigrant upbringing to building one of the most respected and secure lending platforms in the country.
He breaks down the real difference between investing and lending, how his fund has never lost investor capital, and what every real estate operator needs to know about current market risks, political headwinds, and construction cost challenges.
What You’ll Learn:
- Why Ruben shifted from active investor to full-time private lender
- The biggest mistakes flippers make with ARVs and renovation costs
- How WeLend consistently generates 13–16.5% passive returns for investors
- The pros and cons of debt funds vs. real estate syndications
- How policy, politics, and inflation impact deal underwriting
- What macroeconomic trends Ruben is watching in 2025
Timestamps:
00:00 – Introduction to Ruben & WeLend
07:00 – Ruben’s story: from immigrant to entrepreneur
10:00 – Lending vs. investing: safest part of the capital stack
14:30 – Common mistakes with ARVs and renovation budgeting
17:00 – The myth of passive real estate income
20:00 – Policy differences between red and blue states
26:00 – How WeLend has originated $700M without a loss
31:00 – Monthly cash flow and liquidity in debt funds
35:00 – Why Ruben prefers debt funds over syndications
38:00 – Risks from tariffs, labor shortages, and supply
Resources from Ruben Izgelov
- Website: https://www.welendllc.com/
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rubenizgelov/
Episode Sponsored By:
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | What's going on, guys. |
| 0:11.2 | Welcome back to the show. |
| 0:12.4 | Today I am joined by Ruben Isgalov, a powerhouse in the private lending space and co-founder |
| 0:19.0 | of Weeland, which is a national private lender that's |
| 0:22.3 | originated over 700 million in loans. And Rubin's not just a lender. He's a former and active |
| 0:29.1 | real estate investor turned capital stack expert who knows the game inside and out. And in today's |
| 0:35.1 | episode, Rubin and I deep dive into what it's really like investing |
| 0:39.2 | and lending in New York's evolving real estate climate with a lot of the political changes |
| 0:44.6 | and a lot of the things that are going on in New York City get some really good insights, |
| 0:49.9 | how he built we lend into a lending machine without losing a dime ever, why private lending might |
| 0:56.3 | be the smartest place in today's market and why he chose to shift from being an investor |
| 1:01.8 | over to a lender. The biggest mistakes investors are making when structuring deals and |
| 1:07.5 | calculating their after repair values and how policy, politics, and construction costs |
| 1:13.1 | are shaping deal flow across the country. So if you are a real estate investor, flipper, |
| 1:17.9 | or capital allocator trying to figure out how to protect your money and still grow it, |
| 1:22.6 | how to build wealth, and how to do it in a very strategic way that protects your downside. This conversation |
| 1:28.8 | is packed with great takeaways. Ruben's journey from immigrant beginnings to a legal scholar |
| 1:34.6 | to high-level lender are going to inspire and educate. Let's dive into today's episode with |
| 1:40.4 | Ruben Eisgloff. Let's take a quick break in here from today's show sponsor. |
| 1:45.7 | I want to personally invite you to the very first wise investor mastermind. |
| 1:50.6 | And this is going to be held in none other than the wine and food mecca of the world, |
| 1:54.5 | Napa Valley, California. |
... |
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