The DealMachine Real Estate Investing Podcast

Three brothers landed their first client with a postcard and grew to manage 250 vacation rentals in just two years. Zachary and Alex Meringoff break down how they target owners and what makes their direct mail work. They also share how delivering better service turned those early clients into a steady source of referrals. You’ll hear how they’re building a team to keep up with that growth while keeping homeowners happy.

KEY TALKING POINTS:

0:00 - Intro & Overview of Ocean City Vacation Homes

1:07 - Closing The First Deals

3:00 - Postcard Content & Targeting

4:42 - Why Vacation Rentals

7:16 - Building The Team

11:00 - Communication Is Everything

12:38 - Why Property Management Is Bad

14:42 - Finding DealMachine & Tech Stack

17:07 - Outsourcing Cleaning & Quality Control

19:42 - Goals & Expansion Plans

21:06 - Limiting Beliefs & Competitors

25:49 - Advice For Beginners

32:26 - Outro

LINKS:

Instagram: Ocean City Vacation Homes

https://www.instagram.com/ocvacationhomes/

Website: Ocean City Vacation Homes

https://www.oceancityvacationhomes.com/

Instagram: David Lecko

https://www.instagram.com/dlecko

Website: DealMachine

https://www.dealmachine.com/pod

Instagram: Ryan Haywood

https://www.instagram.com/heritage_home_investments

Website: Heritage Home Investments

https://www.heritagehomeinvestments.com/

You may already know someone who could fund your next deal. Jay Conner breaks down his five-step approach to raising private money through relationships you already have. He explains how to introduce the opportunity and build interest without making an awkward ask. It starts with lining up the money before you need it.

KEY TALKING POINTS:

0:00 - Raise Money Without Asking

0:51 - Who Is a Private Lender

1:44 - You Make the Rules

2:56 - Not a JV, Hard Money, or Bank

4:30 - Mindset and Protecting Lenders

5:32 - When to Use Private Money

7:19 - Deal or Money First

12:05 - Final Mindset and Protections

13:38 - Closing Documents

14:05 - Outro

LINKS:

Instagram: Jay Conner

https://www.instagram.com/privatemoneyauthority/

Website: Jay Conner

https://www.jayconner.com/

Instagram: David Lecko

https://www.instagram.com/dlecko

Website: DealMachine

https://www.dealmachine.com/pod

Instagram: Ryan Haywood

https://www.instagram.com/heritage_home_investments

Website: Heritage Home Investments

https://www.heritagehomeinvestments.com/

Tyler Dumont does six deals per month while handling acquisitions himself. He joins David to share how he finds motivated sellers and keeps his marketing consistent. Learn why he still knocks on doors and relies on just one or two core buyers. Plus, hear how slow follow-up can cost you a deal.

KEY TALKING POINTS:

0:01 - Meet Tyler Dumont & His Business

0:51 - First Deal & Hedge Fund Sales

1:43 - Why Fix and Flips Now

3:54 - Finding Deals & Driving for Dollars

8:01 - Marketing Channels & Spend

9:41 - Marketing Cycles & Texting Debate

13:59 - Vetting Serious Sellers

16:40 - Lesson From a Bad Deal

19:21 - Limiting Beliefs & Staying Consistent

20:43 - Current Projects & Bigger Deals

22:29 - Access to Capital Advantage

24:09 - Advice for Beginners

26:01 - Where to Find Tyler & His Backstory

27:36 - Hard-to-Get Data & Wrap-Up

29:07 - Outro

LINKS:

Instagram: Tyler Dumont

https://www.instagram.com/tylerndumont/

Website: The Simplex Group

https://thesimplexgroup.com/

Instagram: David Lecko

https://www.instagram.com/dlecko

Website: DealMachine

https://www.dealmachine.com/pod

Instagram: Ryan Haywood

https://www.instagram.com/heritage_home_investments

Website: Heritage Home Investments

https://www.heritagehomeinvestments.com/

Frank Iglesias shares the hard lessons he’s learned from 17 years in real estate and hundreds of deals. He explains how renovation delays and overlooked details can turn a promising deal into a loss. We also discuss understanding what sellers actually want, finding deals through relationships, and why he now prefers simpler projects. Whether you’re chasing your first deal or growing your business, Frank’s experience can help you avoid some expensive mistakes.

KEY TALKING POINTS:

0:00 - Intro & Frank Iglesias’ 17 Years in Real Estate

2:12 - The $30,000 Fence Story

6:00 - Why Fences Matter to Wholesalers

7:38 - Getting Started with Foreclosures

8:58 - Why Flipping Is Hard Now

10:35 - Targeting Reasonable Sellers

16:06 - First Wholesale Deals

20:39 - Evolving Marketing Strategies

23:52 - Building a Lean Team with AI

26:30 - Lessons from Billionaires: Business Is People

29:59 - Betrayal & Hell on Earth Story

31:16 - Comps vs. Market Trends

34:43 - Favorite Exit Strategies & Wholetailing

37:46 - Where to Connect & Substack

39:03 - Advice: Play the Long Game

41:03 - Outro

LINKS:

Instagram: Frank Iglesias

https://www.instagram.com/frank.iglesias/

Website: REI Coaching With Frank

https://www.reicoachingwithfrank.com/

Instagram: David Lecko

https://www.instagram.com/dlecko

Website: DealMachine

https://www.dealmachine.com/pod

Instagram: Ryan Haywood

https://www.instagram.com/heritage_home_investments

Website: Heritage Home Investments

https://www.heritagehomeinvestments.com/

Chris Logan went from dropping every deal he put under contract to closing 40 in a single year, and it happened when he stopped chasing sellers and found his buyer first. In this masterclass, he covers how to pick a territory you have never visited, and the four things you have to get from a seller before you actually have a lead. If you are marketing hard and still watching contracts fall apart, the problem is probably not your leads, it is who you lined up to buy them.

KEY TALKING POINTS:

0:00 - Choosing Your Territory

1:27 - Building Your Power Team

3:08 - Why Cold Calling Wins

5:12 - Find Your Buyer First

6:28 - Three Types of Buyers

8:10 - Targeting Motivated Sellers

10:55 - Four Things to Get on Calls

12:01 - Selling the Deal

13:35 - Qualifying Your Buyers

14:59 - Outro

LINKS:

Instagram: Chris Logan

https://www.instagram.com/chrisloganrei/

Website: Virtual Wholesaling Made Simple

https://www.virtualwholesalingmadesimple.com/

Instagram: David Lecko

https://www.instagram.com/dlecko

Website: DealMachine

https://www.dealmachine.com/pod

Instagram: Ryan Haywood

https://www.instagram.com/heritage_home_investments

Website: Heritage Home Investments

https://www.heritagehomeinvestments.com/

Owner financing turns a house into mailbox money, and Jack has built his entire one man portfolio around it instead of renting. He explains how a contract for deed actually works, from the 10 percent down payment that keeps a buyer invested to the single foreclosure he has filed in 20 years. He also walks through the four house package he just put under contract in Lancaster, South Carolina for $450,000 that appraised at over $700,000.

KEY TALKING POINTS:

0:00 - Becoming the Bank

1:49 - Early Rentals & Mobile Home Parks

3:36 - Four Deals in Lancaster

6:42 - Contract for Deed Explained

10:47 - Marketing Owner Financing

13:39 - Finding Deals with AI & Mail

15:55 - Financing with an Equity Line

17:35 - How Jack Got Started

20:56 - Backing Out & First Real Deal

23:47 - Foreclosure & State Differences

25:59 - Advice for Beginners

28:13 - Outro

LINKS:

Instagram: David Lecko

https://www.instagram.com/dlecko

Website: DealMachine

https://www.dealmachine.com/pod

Instagram: Ryan Haywood

https://www.instagram.com/heritage_home_investments

Website: Heritage Home Investments

https://www.heritagehomeinvestments.com/

Wholesaling real estate in Chicago takes more moving pieces than most markets, and AJ Fattori and Charlie Pyles have built a business on it in their early 20s. They break down the escrow holdback that keeps a deal alive when a seller can't move out, and why they keep three to five buyers on speed dial instead of a list of a thousand. They also get honest about blowing through the money early on and worrying about rent while deals were closing.

KEY TALKING POINTS:

0:00 - Intro

1:30 - How AJ & Charlie Started

4:53 - Their First Flip

5:56 - Funding the Deal

8:52 - Escrow Holdback Explained

14:11 - Finding the Deal & Motivation

18:21 - Building Trust With Sellers

21:24 - Building a Buyers List

25:07 - Speed & Title Work

27:16 - Scariest Moments & Money Lessons

32:42 - Advice for New Wholesalers

37:13 - Wrap-Up & Where to Find Them

37:55 - Outro

LINKS:

Instagram: AJ Fattori

https://www.instagram.com/ajfattori/

Instagram: Charlie Pyles

https://www.instagram.com/charliee.pyles/

Instagram: David Lecko

https://www.instagram.com/dlecko

Website: DealMachine

https://www.dealmachine.com/pod

Instagram: Ryan Haywood

https://www.instagram.com/heritage_home_investments

Website: Heritage Home Investments

https://www.heritagehomeinvestments.com/

Philip Louden calls it becoming the bank: you buy a cheap livable house in a small market, then resell it on seller financing to a family that wants to own instead of rent. He explains why this arbitrage works, how he finds and structures these deals, and where the financing comes from when you do not have cash. If you have been chasing assignment fees and want something that pays you every month, this is the model to study.

KEY TALKING POINTS:

0:00 - What Are Starter Wraps

1:46 - How Starter Wraps Work

3:37 - The Power of Financial Arbitrage

5:46 - A Deal In Marion, Indiana

8:26 - Financing These Deals

11:33 - The BRRRR Jacket Strategy

13:28 - Best Markets & Serving Buyers

14:33 - Final Goal & Wrap-Up

15:13 - Outro

LINKS:

Instagram: Philip Louden

https://www.instagram.com/phil_louden

Website: Seller Finance Freedom Academy

https://www.skool.com/sellerfinancefree/about

Instagram: David Lecko

https://www.instagram.com/dlecko

Website: DealMachine

https://www.dealmachine.com/pod

Instagram: Ryan Haywood

https://www.instagram.com/heritage_home_investments

Website: Heritage Home Investments

https://www.heritagehomeinvestments.com/

Mobile homes are still an untapped niche in real estate investing, and Aaron Bihl does 8 to 10 deals a month with them as his focus. He explains why the stigma around them gets him better deals than a stick built house, and why he's moving toward buying lots and putting new homes on them. He also walks through the soil test that cost him 1,600 dollars and killed a two lot deal he was ready to close.

KEY TALKING POINTS:

0:00 - Intro

0:48 - Ryan's Rent Collection Update

2:25 - The Business Aaron Bihl Built

3:48 - How Aaron Got Started

6:10 - First Deals & Working Under a Broker

9:15 - Finding Those First Deals

10:46 - DealMachine Data & Land Filters

13:58 - Why He Focused on Mobile Homes

18:03 - Worst Condition He'll Buy

20:44 - Single-Wides & Deal Discipline

22:31 - The Georgia Deal Lesson

25:19 - Marketing & Selling the Lots

27:22 - Business Partnership Split

29:00 - Excited About Land-Home Scaling

33:43 - Advice for the Cubicle Dreamer

39:00 - Where to Find Aaron

39:18 - Outro

LINKS:

Instagram: Aaron Bihl

https://www.instagram.com/aaron.bihl

Website: Flip Trailers

https://www.fliptrailers.com/

Instagram: David Lecko

https://www.instagram.com/dlecko

Website: DealMachine

https://www.dealmachine.com/pod

Instagram: Ryan Haywood

https://www.instagram.com/heritage_home_investments

Website: Heritage Home Investments

https://www.heritagehomeinvestments.com/
 

Wholesale deal flow gets easier when other wholesalers bring you the deals, and that's how Phil Cacciatore does 30 to 50 a month in Tampa Bay. He walks through how his sales team finds cash buyers by reverse searching who already bought nearby. He also covers how 21 Property Group went from six sales reps to 45 in about a year and a half.

KEY TALKING POINTS:

0:00 - Intro & Hosts

1:15 - Ryan's Slow Market Year

2:04 - Phil Cacciatore's Business Overview

3:27 - The Investor Marketplace Model

4:26 - Joining & Scaling the Company

6:44 - Building the Dispo Process

9:16 - Finding Buyers with DealMachine

11:57 - Hardest Part of Scaling

14:00 - Marketing & Lead Sources

16:21 - Structuring 10K Partnerships

17:31 - Helping New Wholesalers Analyze Deals

18:53 - Motivating the Sales Team

21:05 - Inventory Ups and Downs

22:03 - Advice for Solo Wholesalers

23:05 - Favorite Podcasts & Learning

23:54 - The Implementation Process

27:48 - Where to Find Phil

28:04 - Outro

LINKS:

Instagram: Phil Cacciatore

https://www.instagram.com/phil_cacciatore/

Website: 21 Property Group

https://www.21propertygroup.com/

Instagram: David Lecko

https://www.instagram.com/dlecko

Website: DealMachine

https://www.dealmachine.com/pod

Instagram: Ryan Haywood

https://www.instagram.com/heritage_home_investments

Website: Heritage Home Investments

https://www.heritagehomeinvestments.com/