Nash Aguas, 20, earned praises from fellow celebrities and netizens after posting a photo of him and his latest investment—a house in Las Vegas, Nevada, U.S.A.—two weeks ago.
Former actress Neri Naig made a separate Instagram post and wrote about how proud she is of Nash, who she says sets a good example to the youths today in terms of properly handling their finances.
She also divulged that apart from the abode in Las Vegas, Nash also has a lot of businesses.
PEP.ph (Philippine Entertainment Portal) talked to Nash over the phone, on Wednesday night, May 8, and asked him about his investments and businesses.
Surprisingly, the house that Nash bought in the U.S. is just one of his many real-estate investments.
The young lad is also a businessman who owns a Japanese restaurant that aready has a number of branches.
Nash started really young in showbiz, but his entry wasn’t just a golden ticket handed out to him.
When Nash was five, he got in the "Batang F4," a kiddie talent search in the now-defunct ABS-CBN noontime show MTB, or Magandang Tanghali Bayan.
F4 is a Taiwanese band that rose to international fame because ofMeteor Garden, the 2001 Taiwanese TV series they starred in.
At six years old, he joined the ABS-CBN kiddie talent show Star Circle Quest, and emerged as the grand winner, aka Grand Kid Questor.
That success became his golden ticket to the long-running kiddie gag show Goin’ Bulilit.
And the rest, as they say, is history.
Some of his notable TV shows included the afternoon teleserye Bagito (2014), which he top-billed, and the prime-time series The Good Son (2017), where he was also among the lead stars.
In movies, Nash had won two Best Child Actor awards in the Manila Film Festival—one was for the film Shake, Rattle, & Roll 8 (2006) and the other was for its sequel Shake, Rattle, & Roll 9 (2007).
HOUSE IN LAS VEGAS
In an interview over the phone, Nash said that the house in Las Vegas was bought last year, but was turned over only recently.
It has a lot area of 1,800 square feet, and has three bedrooms.
The big chunk of the payment for the property, he said, came from his savings since he started in showbiz.
But why did he purchase a house-and-lot property, which is 82,078 miles from the Philippines?
“Actually, hindi naman siya para tirhan ko or something.
“I mean puwede ko rin siyang gamitin, pero more on investment talaga siya sa ‘kin.
“Dito ako nagtatrabaho, hindi ko naman siya laging magagamit.
“Pero binili ko iyon dahil maganda yung real estate sa Las Vegas.
“Actually, last year maganda talagang mag-invest,” he explained.
The house was previously owned by his uncle, and is now being rented out.
He continued, “Actually, yung uncle ko and yung tita ko… yung kapatid ng mommy ko yung uncle ko, kasi sa kanya dati yung bahay and then binili ko from him, so iyon…”
Nash said it was his grandfather who got him interested in buying houses.
“Before pa no'n, nag-i-invest ako sa real estate, like sa mga lot properties sa Tagaytay 'tapos Bulacan.
“Siguro dahil namana ko rin sa lolo ko since gano'n siya, nag-i-invest siya sa properties.
“So bata pa lang ako, nakikita ko na siya, kumbaga, nag-start na yung interest ko sa properties,” he related.
How does it feel to own a number of properties at his young age?
“Masaya kasi parang fruit nung pinaghirapan mo, di ba?
“And parang nakikita mong nabubuo yung pinaghirapan mo, and kasi matagal ko nang pangarap na makapag-invest ng bahay sa ibang bansa talaga.”
NASH, THE YOUNG BUSINESSMAN
When asked about MuraMen, the restaurant he co-owns, Nash revealed that it already has a total of eight branches since its first branch opened in 2017.
“Meron na po akong eight branches na po. Yung iba mga franchisees.
“Meron sa Carmona, Las Piñas, pero yung main kasi namin sa Pasig.”
He continued, “Meron kaming team talaga.
“And ako ang trabaho ko talaga ako yung marketing needs, since hindi ako kailangan sa resto, since ang dami kong ginagawa. Nag-hire ako ng iba, and may business partners naman ako.”
Nash expressed his gratitude to his family for supporting his ventures.
“Siguro ano rin, sa guidance ng lolo ko, sa mommy ko, and itong mga taong nakapaligid sa ‘kin, like mga kamag-anak.
“Kumbaga, gina-guide nila ako and kino-consult ko sila kung tama.”
Setting goals and working his way to achieve them have been inherent to him.
“Siguro ano lang kasi parang lahat naman ng tao kaya, pero, like siguro maaga lang ako nagka-interes. Unlike sa iba, sa ganitong edad party-party, ganyan.
“Ako, more on ano lang kasi parang ano kasi ako, gusto ko may sinusundan akong goal.
“Kasi pag wala akong goal, parang naaano ako, parang hindi naman na-a-agitate, feeling ko lost ako.
“So parang palagi akong nagsi-set ng goal.
“Na pag na-reach ko yug goal na yon, gawa akong bago.”
And what's his next goal?
Nash said that he and his business partners want to expand their restaurant franchise.
Asked what advice he can give to fellow celebrities when it comes to investments, Nash said, “Actually, hindi ko alam kung nasa posisyon akong mag-advise kasi bata pa lang naman ako.
“Based sa experience ko, yung iba, natatakot sila pag di sila familiar, pag may dumating na opportunity, like ako, wala naman ako alam how to manage a restaurant.
“Lahat naman ng bagay napapag-aralan, pero hindi lahat nabibigyan ng opportunity, so iyon.”
On top of all these, Nash is a sophomore at Meridian International Business, Arts and Technology (or MINT) College, taking up A.B. Film.
He is also busy with a TV series, which will be top-billed by Gerald Anderson.
“Parang army group of scout rangers kami na sasabak sa giyera na puro mga bata.
“Kumbaga mga teenagers na nagsundalo para pakita natin kung ano yung buhay ng sundalo,” Nash said about his upcoming project.