Alex Charfen is CEO of Charfen, and tours as a motivational speaker.

He also has appeared on television and print for major media outlets such as MSNBC, CNBC, Fox News, The Wall Street Journal, USA TODAY and The Huffington Post.

Alex was born with an undiagnosed digestive-tract defect as an infant and needed emergency surgery.

Further respiratory and development issues soon drove his family to relocate from the pollution of Mexico City to more favorable conditions in the United States of America.

As a child in America, Alex found social situations challenging, especially school.

Unable to adapt and conform to traditional classroom structure and teaching methodologies, he swung between the honor roll and complete failure, alternately considered “gifted and talented” or needing “special education.”

Alex has three sisters.

He sold his first business at sixteen, and then dropped out of college to sell another venture at 21.

He then started a consultancy with clients such as Fuji, Samsung, Cannon, Home Shopping and Walmart.

After meeting and getting engaged to his future wife, Cadey, he sold the business and started working with Cadey, creating several multimillion-dollar businesses and an expansive real estate portfolio.

In 2007, amid the real estate crash, he was forced to declare bankruptcy.

Alex and Cadey created the Certified Distressed Property Expert (CDPE) designation for real estate agents and brokers.

In total, the more than 46,000 real estate agents, brokers, attorneys, title officers, and loss mitigation representatives earned the CDPE designation to help homeowners avoid foreclosure.

^[1]