Meet The Team
Zach Smith
Principal & COO
Zach is an experienced private lender committed to helping real estate investors succeed. Before joining Cetan Funds, he built and operated several small businesses in Eugene and Springfield, gaining hands-on insight into every facet of launching, scaling, and managing a business. These experiences shaped his belief in the importance of integrity, loyalty, and exceptional service.
An active real estate investor himself, Zach is passionate about helping Oregon developers, builders, and small businesses achieve strong returns while contributing to the region’s growth. He serves as Principal and COO of Cetan Funds, where he oversees daily operations, business development, loan origination and underwriting, portfolio management, investor relations, and fund operations.
Zach is a licensed mortgage loan originator in Oregon (NMLS #1748167). He earned his B.A. from the University of Oregon, graduating from the Robert D. Clark Honors College with a major in Psychology and minors in Business Administration and Spanish.
Cetan Funds Articles by Zach Smith
Your Top Bridge Loan Questions: Answered by a Private Lender
Most of us know the old saying "time is money," and nowhere is that more true than in real estate investing. At Cetan Funds, we work with investors, builders, and developers throughout Oregon and Southwest Washington every day, and in our experience, getting financing...
Is a Bridge Loan Right for Your Next Real Estate Deal?
How Oregon Investors Use Bridge Loans When Traditional Financing Falls Short In competitive Oregon real estate markets, even experienced investors, builders, and business owners can face timing constraints or limited financing options. In these situations, a bridge...
LTV and ARV Explained: How Smart Investors Evaluate Real Estate Deals
Understanding how lenders evaluate risk is a critical skill for real estate investors and developers. Whether you are analyzing a potential fix-and-flip project, new construction, or a residential rehab project, the numbers behind the deal shape pricing, leverage, and...
The State of the Industry
If 2025 taught the real estate market anything, it’s that “normal” is no longer a reliable benchmark. Working directly with borrowers throughout the year gave us a ground-level view of where deals stalled, where banks pulled back, and how experienced investors adapted...
Cetan Funds 2025 Project Awards: Six Standout Private Loan Projects from the Year
2025 was not an easy year for real estate investors in Oregon and Southwest Washington. Higher rates, tighter bank credit, softer buyer demand, and rising construction costs forced investors to be more disciplined and creative than they had been in years. At Cetan...
A Complete Guide to Fix and Flip Financing
Smart investors know that profitable flips come down to a few timeless principles. Here are a few pearls of wisdom seasoned investors live by when it comes to successful fix and flip projects. Fix and flip projects have long captured the spotlight through endless TV...
10 Common Mistakes in Real Estate Investing & How to Avoid Them
We all make mistakes; it's part of life and business. But when it comes to real estate investing, whether you're taking on a new construction build or a fix-and-flip rehab project, too many missteps will cost you big time. One of the benefits of working with a private...
Speculative Construction vs. Pre-Sold Homes: Which Path Is Right for Oregon Builders?
In Oregon’s evolving housing market, builders and investors often face a strategic decision: pursue speculative construction (spec builds) or focus on pre-sold, contract builds designed for individual buyers. Both approaches have merit, but understanding the...
5 Construction Trends Oregon Builders & Investors Are Focusing On Right Now
Oregon’s housing shortage is fueling one of the busiest construction cycles in decades. With a growing population, changing laws, and shifting demographics, the state is seeing a wave of projects aimed at affordability, density, and smarter land use. At Cetan Funds,...
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