The old saying ‘never judge a book by it’s cover’ could not be better applied to Sal Sortino. It’s not often I’m intrigued or embarrassed by my initial assumptions of someone. I can happily say that I’m very pleased that my initial assumptions about Sal were incorrect. Knowledgable, funny, and just overall a nice guy. I was so intrigued I just kept talking. I’m very pleased to have gotten to do the interview with Sal. Enjoy!

Hi Sal! Thank you for sitting down with me and conversating.  Yes, of course!

Okay so where did you grow up, I know that you have said Ohio but what city in Ohio…. Yes, I grew up in a smaller city …Sandusky, Ohio it is an hour west of Cleveland. I grew up in a very diverse upbringing.

My parents got divorced when I was young, and my mom remarried after a couple of years. It was unique and dynamic how I grew up; my dad’s side of the family were known as the rich side of my family. My mom’s side was not that way, so it was two completely different dynamics.

I attribute who I am to my diverse way that I was raised, and not just with the economic status of my dad versus my mom’s side. As well my stepdad was a black man, so I grew up with…. That’s how you knew who Pharrell was!... Ahahahaha, no I do know Pharrell for sure! So, I grew up being the only white kid in some family events.

I also have an older brother that is special needs, my brother has brain damage. So, I grew up around a lot of kids like him. You learn a lot being around people like my brother. Ultimately, my upbringing was very diverse.

You know when I looked at your Instagram as part of my research for getting ready for our conversating. I did see the post with you and your brother. I must say that showed you from a different perspective, and positive light.

Yesss, but you know I think how you are in business is very different than you are in your personal life. You are correct and so well put too.

People that work with me will say that I am very demanding etc., I was trained in business (and it could be the wrong way) that business has no feelings. Oh! My gosh me too, but when I saw that post with your brother – it just showed a different and nice side of you. That makes sense too because real estate is a people’s business.

You know different people…personalities, you work with many different people…and is it because that you have seen the other side with the special needs that you are more adaptable, or more attuned to people’s feelings…

Yes, I think that is fair to say probably. I also had a good mom that is a special and compassionate person, and a good-hearted human being. Being around that is what ultimately shaped me to be the way that I am for sure.

Did you ever play sports growing up, if so what sport(s)…

I was an athlete my whole life, mainly baseball and basketball as a young kid, and football.  In high school I was a standout basketball player… really!?! Yes!  That was a sport that I could not do.

I fenced, and the same attributes and characteristics that fencing required is what I take into work. What of your athletic abilities do you take into your work, if any currently? You work with a team, and you did a team sport. For me fencing is isolating, and it is more challenging for me to work with people. What are your thoughts…

Yes! I agree with that 100%. Number one I can tell you that I was very competitive, and maybe sometimes to a fault. I think business took over that competitive side of me, people can take this for the good and for the bad. In terms of building a business, one hundred percent; I hire people every day, I assess people. I hire athletes in my businesses because there are three things that you need to be successful in my organizations – you have to be approachable, which you have to be in sports; you have to be extremely discipline with your work ethics, which you have to have if you want to be an elite athlete, and you have to be a good communicator. If you have those three things, you have the intangibles to be successful in sales.

You have listed the qualities that are tantamount for success in your organizations, besides the competitiveness that drives you…what else would you say drives you? There are so many that are okay with the status quo, but what drives you… because as you said you come from an affluent background on your dad side, and you could have been a spoiled little rich kid (not motivated) …

Let me clarify it is my grandad that is the rich guy. My dad not so much. From the outside looking in that was the dynamic – it was my dad’s side of the family that had the money. When I look at it now and putting things into perspective, when you are from a small town (like I am from); you drive a nice car, you will be considered a rich guy because you drive a nice car. Yes, and I do understand that!

So, yes that is kind of the persona. I would say that what drove me to want to be successful in business would be my grandfather. He was an immigrant from Italy, worked hard and made a wonderful life for him and his family. He drove the type of car that I wanted to drive, wore the watch that I wanted to wear, he has the big personality. He was the man.

I simply wanted to be my grandpa. I knew that, and he lived the life that I wanted to live. I knew that took money to live that way. So, I was attracted to his lifestyle since I was a kid, and that is what I wanted to achieve.

I think to have his lifestyle to be a driving factor is okay when you are first starting out, I must say that it does get old – and I did burn out of that philosophy. I wanted to prove that I did not need anyone, that lasted for a long time. I started everything from scratch on my own.

Now that is what I say is a ‘hairflip moment’…  Ahaha, yes I wanted to prove that I could do it, and did not need anyone. What I realized was that no matter how much you accomplish, or how much you do on your own, people are always going to assume that you did not do it on your own.

Although the facts are that you did (did it on your own). It does not matter how much you do they (others) will always try to discredit you. That does get old, and I finally got over that chip on my shoulder.

I realized that there was no better feeling to show other people how to accomplish what you have. Some might strive to live the life that I might live, it is really rewarding to give someone else the opportunity to do the same thing. That is why I have shifted my focus over to building sales teams, to give people the opportunity to build a substantial income for themselves. And to change their lives and their families lives. I like that more than anything!

I know that you have real estate and insurance businesses, what do both have, and what do they give you? I think they both have different mindsets. They both are dealing with people, but one is definitely more sales, and the other one is more like building a relationship… Yes, very true.

The one is one and done (sales), the other is cultivating a relationship (insurance)…so what do you get from each one…and why would you merge them…

Yes, I think real estate – and this is how I look at a business; when I started in real estate, I was a real estate agent. This was how I entered the profession. That was great, and I had a lot of financial success with that aspect of the profession. I realized that I did not love being a realtor. I loved real estate. Being a realtor was not my forte.

The way that I look at real estate today, is that it is the ultimate wealth machine. I can go on forever about my perspective, I invite you to do a Google search of the advantages for buying real estate.

Ultimately, I do not think there is any better opportunity in today’s world in terms of a sales role than life insurance. I got into the life insurance business because one of my good friends, and my business partner.

He came over from Albania on a boat. He said he was a toaster boy in a local deli in his twenty’s here in Lakewood. He quickly became extremely successful and was quickly able to bring his entire family here. His cousins, brothers, and brother-in-law. Anyone he loved he brought here to be with him. And they all became extremely successful very quickly.

I was jealous of that! The way my organization worked I was kind of on an island. I did great. However, the people that worked with me were not necessarily able to have the life that I lived. So that opportunity (the insurance business) was very attractive to me. 

What was so attractive was that the opportunity was so vast that he was able to offer it to others; and make it be successful too. So, that is when I took the jump into insurance. With that in mind – that we can not only help our family, friends, and give opportunities to people; we also play a crucial part in families future.

People must realize is that life insurance can save generations. It might sound a bit dramatic… or morbid… Yes, but it is true. At the end of the day when a loved one could possibly, and tragically pass away; and the family has no income, and it can be a major impactful event on a family.

Yes, that is reality and so true. Yes! And it can one-hundred percent effect generations. And we can get to help people every day. Of course, we get to make great money while doing that, so it is a win for everyone. That is why I switched my sales focus to insurance.

I still have sales teams in real estate, sales teams in mortgage, and other businesses. However, I am passionate about the insurance business as well.

Someone that also grew up privileged as well, my family has a lot of property as well. My dad is Venezuelan and first generation as well, but I do not consider him a true immigrant because he did not struggle. Real estate in my opinion is still a risky investment. I do not know if I say this because, they handle it and do it, it is over my head. Example…you buy an apartment complex, and the tenants do not pay…what is your advice to risk adverse people…   

I would say to educate yourself as much as possible on all the different asset classes within real estate, because can real estate be risky? Yes! Do I think the real estate that I purchase is risky? No. There are reasons for that, because there are a lot of different asset classes within real estate.

I provide affordable housing to lower to moderate income families, where I am getting a large portion of my income guaranteed from the government. As long as I know those rents are guaranteed and they cover all of my debt services – my mortgage, if I borrow money. For me it is simply not much risk in that. I am transactional at times when I flip properties, but my focus is to buy property and to keep that property.

I have a saying – ‘When the equity comes the equity goes, but the cash will always flow’. Ahahaha, now that is catchy! … If you have cash flowing every month after all of your expenses and your debt services – I am happy. 

Let’s say that I brought property for half a million dollars and that property depreciates to two-hundred fifty thousand dollars (now this has not happened to me) …I really do not care because I am making the same amount of money every month, and I am not going to sell the property. Does it hurt me long term? Of course, because if I need to leverage that equity to go get more – then that is where I would feel it. However, it is not the end of the world because I am still making money every month.

It is good that within your business model that you provide housing to lower income families, there is a need for that.  I fill a need within the communities that I invest in, however, I do profit from it.

Your videos on Instagram are informational, and you are trying to inspire people to do more, and be better…why do you think that that is important to provide this to people…

I would say because I was very fortunate in life to have people that I look up to, and to be exposed to people that were successful, and that is what ultimately drove me to be the way that I am.

I believe that you must be exposed to something to know what you can accomplish it. Some people might not appreciate that on occasion I do post my accomplishments and things that make me proud. In my eyes … I saw my granddad with the nice watch, car, home, and that is why I ultimately wanted to achieve it. When I look at his accomplishments, I do not first say/think ‘oh, you do not need that’… ‘I say I want that too’. I put those images out there for people who like me want to see those things that are possible and what they too can achieve.

Hopefully, people will act because of that.

No journey is smoothe…now did you start your real estate journey while you were in University, or after University. What were the ebbs and the flows…

This is a long story, the short is that I dropped out of University going into my Junior year, and I came home and did not know what I was going to do. I started working for my grandpa and my dad, they own a hotel and a restaurant.

So, I did pretty much what I did since I was eight years old. I worked hard, took their orders if they said jump, I said how high. I was working the front desk at 6:00 a.m., then after that I was prep cooking in the kitchen, and then ran the dining room after that.

It was the typical immigrant Italian family, where everyone works in the family business. The American Dream!... Yes, it was the business that my grandad built. It is very cool, and I am blessed to have the blood that I have.

I quickly realized after a few months that this model that I worked since I was eight years old, was not going to work any longer. I knew I wanted something more for myself, I wanted my opportunity now.

I bought a piece of property a land contract, which is a form of seller financing. So, I gave them some of my savings, and I did not have to go to the bank. This property was a duplex, and I was making about a thousand dollars profit monthly from that one property that I owned. I realized that I made this money for literally putting tenants in place. From this point the light bulb went off, if I did these twenty more times, I would have twenty thousand dollars a month.

I asked my mom for a loan for the money to flip my first house, I did well. I made forty-thousand dollars in forty days.  I then flipped another piece of property, and that is how we got started.

How do you stay balanced, grounded…what do you do…

People! People. I love to work, and I work with people from all walks of life, and that does keep me balanced. Solitude though is what does relax and re-center me. I put my phone upside down and just sit and be with my thoughts.

I do love alone time, and to be alone.

What music do you listen to relax…. I love old school R&B music! Usher, Jagged Edge – and someone that I, well … no one can name anymore…

Okay and we will leave it there, thank you…. Of course!