Four Decades of Serving the Real Estate Community

Four decades after founding Excel Trust Deed Investments, Sheldon Perry continues to do what he loves most. That’s not something that everyone gets to say. But for Sheldon, helping people find solutions to complicated financing challenges is literally a dream come true.

Back in the early 1980s, Sheldon wasn’t focused on building a company that would endure for 40 years. Instead, he was working as a mechanical designer at Lam Research while investing in real estate and pursuing professional photography on the side. He was no stranger to hard work.

He soon saw an opportunity and switched careers, going to work for a trust deed investment firm. After three years of hard work learning that business, he recognized several ways to improve it. “I learned what worked, what didn’t, and key areas of improvement that would better serve the community,” says Sheldon.

So in 1986, in the midst of the Savings and Loan crisis and a tighter underwriting environment, Sheldon set out on his own to apply his creative problem-solving skills to help people arrange private lending solutions outside of the traditional banking model. 

Opportunity Was the Birth of Excel TDI

What began as a small private lending operation (formerly Excel Financial) has grown into an established private real estate lending firm serving borrowers, real estate professionals, and private investors throughout California, with a particular focus on Silicon Valley and the San Francisco Bay Area.

Now, Excel TDI embodies the same principles of hard work and integrity that have shaped the company from the beginning. Sheldon and his team are dedicated to understanding each loan opportunity, evaluating the risks, finding a practical solution, and building relationships that last. 

“Real estate transactions don’t always happen on a bank’s timeline or a mortgage company’s schedule,” says Sheldon. “Sometimes there’s a property that needs to close quickly. Sometimes there’s a business opportunity or a personal situation that’s driving the timeline. Our job is to understand what’s happening with any particular deal and find a practical way to make it work.”

Four Decades of a Changing Lending Landscape

The lending industry has changed quite a bit since the firm was founded. Technology has transformed the way loans are processed and serviced. The industry has seen multiple economic and real estate cycles, including the downturns of the early 1990s and 2008. Through it all, Sheldon says the fundamentals of private lending haven’t changed much. 

“You still have to understand what you’re lending against, the real value of the collateral property,” he says. “You have to understand the risk, and you have to have a reasonable expectation that you’re going to get your money back. And after 40 years, we can point at our proven track record of helping our borrowers and investors achieve their goals.”

Driven By Referrals – and a 10% Average Return

As a testament to the firm’s success, over 95% of its current investors can be tracked in one way or another to the closing of Sheldon’s first deal of about $45,000. That first client told friends and colleagues, and as time went on, new potential investors started reaching out.

Excel TDI’s current portfolio now exceeds $100 million, placed primarily in short-term real estate loans secured by residential and commercial property. And Sheldon is proud to point out that his investors have earned an average net return of 10.00% or greater since the firm’s inception.

Serving Investors and Borrowers

Excel TDI is a full-service trust deed investment firm that works with both sides of the private lending equation. The company helps borrowers access financing through bridge loans, construction financing, business-purpose loans, and other private lending solutions. It also works with private investors by evaluating loan proposals and providing loan servicing and administration.

Excel TDI’s investor relationships have included endowment funds from local mortuaries, LLCs and partnership groups, retirement funds from medical and dental groups, as well as many small company retirement funds, personal self-directed IRAs, and investors’ personal funds.

Sheldon’s wife, Diane Perry, joined the company in 1990 and now serves as President and Broker, specializing in loan servicing and compliance. Together with the Excel TDI team, they have built a business based on long-term relationships with an extensive network of borrowers, investors, brokers, and real estate professionals. 

Looking Ahead

Excel TDI is excited to continue helping lenders and investors in the community. The company is always looking to build its investor base as well as offering the most competitive lending deals. It’s also expanding its services to help homeowners explore another way to access their real estate wealth through reverse mortgages.

As with the private lending side of the business, Excel TDI’s approach to reverse mortgages is focused on educating homeowners. The firm aims to help people understand their options, consider the trade-offs, and determine whether a trust deed loan, referral to a traditional lender, or a reverse mortgage strategy makes sense.

After 40 years, the most rewarding part of the business hasn’t changed. Sheldon explains that, “People are always coming to us with a difficult situation that they just can’t figure out. Well,” he says, “I like trying to figure it out. Every transaction is different, and there are always new challenges. That’s why I love what I do.”

For more about Excel Trust Deed Investments, visit our About Page. Find out more about reverse mortgages and whether they’re a good option for you at https://www.exceltdi.com/reverse-mortgages/.