Private Capital Mortgage
About Us
Seed Money
Red Schluraff looked at post-WWII America and knew he needed to leave Pennsylvania. He was a 30-year-old tool & die maker with a wife and 2 kids and General Electric was exiting the battleship business.
He had a good feeling about Florida.
The family made the trip south only to find that Florida had no use for a tool and die maker. He searched Tampa, Orlando, and Daytona for jobs, but there were no opportunities for the industrious laborer. He kept searching until resources were almost gone — and Red had one final, inspired idea.
With their last $11 he bought boxes of citrus and parked his truck at the side of the road with a sign targeting tourists — who stopped and bought his oranges. At the end of that day in 1946 he went back to his wife with $22 and a vision.
Red’s Market launched on South Orange Blossom Trail near I-4 in Orlando with a thatched roof of palmettos Red had cut himself. As the business grew, he drove his truck into Georgia, Alabama, and the Carolinas purchasing diverse inventory with his little boy, Jim, on the seat beside him. In 1964, Jim became a full-time employee. This time Red had another vision: Once Jim turned 30, he'd run the business.
Red retired as planned and Jim continued to grow the wholesale division of the company. Red’s Market imported and supplied produce of all flavors to grocery stores, restaurants, fruit stands, and retailers throughout Central Florida. If you’ve shopped at Skaggs or Albertsons, snacked at Disney or Universal, or dined in just about any Central Florida restaurant, you’ve eaten from Red’s Market.
Along the way Jim was offered the unique opportunity to fund a private mortgage. He was enthralled by the process and how it felt to help a small business owner get started. That experience stayed with him as Red’s Market flourished. In 1989 Jim began considering his own exit strategy, selling fruit for a final time, and entering the private mortgage industry. Today, Red’s Market operates as FreshPoint, a Sysco company.
Jim brought Ian Ertel into the mortgage business. Ian got his Mortgage Loan Originator License and formed Private Capital Mortgage LLC. He’s a trusted colleague, a real estate genius, and, of course, a former Red’s Market employee. Jim says, “Ian drives the bus now while I sit in the back - consulting, advising and being happily retired.”
All because Red had a good feeling about Florida.
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Ian Ertel
It was Jim's wife who suggested he mentor Ian. A smart man, Jim took that advice and Ian turned a small private mortgage business into a licensed enterprise.
Ian Ertel is a quintessential Floridian, graduating from Florida State in 2004. He spent almost 15 years as a Commercial Appraiser and Real Estate Agent on the peninsula. He knows the real estate business here, inside and out.
In 2015 Ian picked up his Mortgage Loan Originator (MLO) license and the business end of the stick. Jim says, "I expected to find someone that I could teach what I had learned, but it didn’t take long for me to understand that Ian's knowledge of real estate was more professional than mine and he quickly became a business partner."
In 2019, Ian established Private Capital Mortgage, LLC. The analytical skills he gained as an appraiser resulted in defining, detailing, and simplifying the loan process. He is a master researcher and knows how to tighten the screws on collateral.
Our clients say Ian has greater impact in a shorter amount of time than anyone they've met. That explains why 95% of our business is done with returning clients. First-timers are welcome.
