The DealMachine Real Estate Investing Podcast

Carlos Lujan, an 18-year-old entrepreneur, is already flipping sneakers and watches—but now he’s got his sights set on real estate. In this episode, David breaks down the similarities between reselling and wholesaling, shares key steps to getting started, and gives Carlos a game plan to land his first deal. If you’re looking for practical, no-BS advice on real estate investing, this one’s for you.

KEY TALKING POINTS:

0:00 - Why Does Carlos Want To Get Into Entrepreneurship?

1:41 - How Flipping A House Compares To Reselling Shoes

4:18 - How To Take The Next Step Towards Real Estate

7:56 - Discipline Creates Success

10:40 - 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/

Costa Karellas made $120K on his first flip in Boston—but instead of doubling down, he pivoted to wholesaling remotely in Kansas City. In this episode, he reveals why he made the switch, the power of partnerships, and the Marine Corps mindset that drives his success. Plus, David shares insights on balancing investing while running DealMachine.

KEY TALKING POINTS:

0:00 - Introduction

0:10 - What Costa Karellas Learned From Being A Marine Corps Captain

5:16 - His Goal When He Started His Business

7:47 - The Power Of Leveraging Partnerships

11:20 - Getting The Reps

12:19 - How Long Costa Has Been In His Market

13:32 - Learning Skills Before You Hire Someone Else

17:34 - Moving Slow To Move Fast

20:34 - David Speaks On Investing Alongside Running DealMachine

22:44 - Costa’s Business Partners And Personality Profiles He Looks For

26:31 - His Worst Day As A Real Estate Investor

31:33 - Why He Decided To Switch To Wholesaling

34:03 - Outro

LINKS:

Instagram: Costa Karellas

https://www.instagram.com/costa_karellas/

Website: Costa Karellas

https://www.kl-propertygroup.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/

How do you consistently close 50+ real estate deals a year without burning out? Chad Klamen shares his journey from mentorship and early struggles to building a business that operates at high volume. He reveals the hiring strategies that made the biggest difference, his approach to balancing wholesaling, flipping, and rentals, and why his focus now is on scaling smarter, not just bigger.

KEY TALKING POINTS:

0:00 - Introduction

0:31 - An Overview of Chad Klamen’s Business

3:44 - Learning Through Mentorship From The Richest People In St. Louis

12:15 - Finally Getting Hired By His Dad

16:00 - Is Wholesaling Affected By Interest Rates?

18:58 - What’s Driving Chad To Grow His Business

23:22 - What He’s Learned From Being In CG

27:04 - Hiring Executive Assistants And Good Hiring Practices

33:59 - Outro

LINKS:

Instagram: Chad Klamen

https://www.instagram.com/insta___chad/

Website: Chad Klamen

https://www.klamengroup.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/

What would you do if you lost everything? David Choi has closed over 1,000 real estate deals, but in this 15-minute highlight, he lays out the 7 steps he’d take if he had to start over from scratch. With limited resources and no network, this is the exact blueprint he’d follow to rebuild a million-dollar business—and you can follow it too.

KEY TALKING POINTS:

0:00 - What David Choi Would Do If He Went Bankrupt Today

1:05 - Step 1: Create An Entity, Then Get Your CRM And Dialer In Place

6:39 - Step 2: Getting Your Marketing Set Up

8:07 - Step 3: See Where You Need To Improve Based On KPIs

11:06 - Step 4: Going Deep On Your Data

12:04 - Step 5: Building Out Your Direct Mail Approach

13:24 - Step 6: Lead Management

13:48 - Step 7: Leadership

14:57 - Outro

LINKS:

Instagram: David Choi

https://www.instagram.com/davidchoi.biz/

Website: David Choi

https://www.dealsanddollarsacademy.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/

Codie Chesner flips 50 houses a year—and he’s not slowing down. He breaks down how he finds deals, raises private money through social media, and keeps contractors in check. Plus, he shares the biggest lessons from scaling his business and why he’s shifting gears in 2025.

KEY TALKING POINTS:

0:00 - An Overview Of Codie Chesner’s Business

0:57 - What Drew Codie To Fix & Flips

2:22 - The Average Time & Profit For Their Flips

5:50 - When Codie Did His First Deal

7:52 - His Second Deal

10:03 - How He Raises Money From Social Media

12:14 - Working With Lenders

15:13 - His Biggest Challenge Of Getting To 50 Flips Per Year

17:08 - Preventing Contractors From Taking Money

19:09 - Where He Wants To Take His Business In 2025

21:33 - Gain Knowledge And Skills First, Then Hire

24:24 - Outro

LINKS:

Instagram: Codie Chesner

https://www.instagram.com/codie.chesner/

Website: Codie Chesner

https://www.chesnerinv.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/

Most wholesalers are leaving deals (and cash) on the table—Zach Cook isn’t. He breaks down how he converts more leads, builds seller relationships, and monetizes deals others walk away from. From cold calling to creative deal structuring, Zach shares the strategies that keep his pipeline full and his profits growing. If you’re in the game, you need to hear this.

KEY TALKING POINTS:

0:00 - An Overview of Zach Cook’s Business

1:21 - The Marketing Strategies They Use In Their Business

4:49 - What Is A Novation?

5:49 - How Zach Measures His Success

8:39 - How To Tell If Someone Is Actually Serious About Selling

10:27 - The Hardest Part Of Zach’s Role

12:05 - Their Employee Structure & Getting Licensed As An Agent

15:45 - What’s New For Them In 2025

17:54 - How He Got Started In Real Estate

20:02 - Advice For Aspiring Investors

21:45 - Outro

LINKS:

Instagram: Zach Cook

https://www.instagram.com/zcookrealestate706/

Website: Zach Cook

https://www.myershousebuyers.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/

David sits down with Paul Myers to explore how he turned Myers House Buyers into a $1 million-a-year real estate business. From leveraging postcards, cold calling, and SEO to building strong relationships with agents, Paul reveals the systems and strategies that fueled his success.

KEY TALKING POINTS:

0:00 - Paul Myers’ Business

3:25 - When He Decided To Go Into Real Estate Full Time

5:19 - His First Hire In His Business

8:44 - Their First Deal

12:07 - Finding Buyers At A Local Auction

15:49 - How Him And His Wife Felt After His First Deal

16:54 - His First Employee’s First Deal

19:31 - What Percentage Is A Standard Wholesale Deal?

21:55 - Wholesaling And The Changing Real Estate Market

22:47 - Where He Wants To Take His Business In 2025

27:46 - The Power Of Driving For Dollars

34:45 - Outro

LINKS:

Instagram: Paul Myers

https://www.instagram.com/therealpaulmyers/

Website: Paul Myers

https://www.myershousebuyers.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/

Discover the five steps to raising private money in 2025 with insights from Jay Conner. This 15-minute highlight from the DealMachine Masterclass breaks down everything you need to know, including where to find private lenders, crafting effective scripts, and securing stress-free funding. Perfect for investors ready to level up their funding game.

KEY TALKING POINTS:

0:00 - What Is A Private Lender?

1:55 - When To Use Private Money

2:48 - Why Would A Lender Be Interested?

4:57 - Step 1: Identify Prospects

5:55 - Step 2: Opening Conversation Script

11:05 - Step 3: Stress-Free Investing Audio

11:44 - Step 4: One-On-One Appointment

12:45 - Step 5: Verbal Pledge

13:24 - What To Concentrate On First & Know Your Program

14:28 - The Documents You’ll Need

15:00 - 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/

Bob Schneider shares the hard lessons he learned on his journey from running a family real estate business to mastering fix-and-flips. Hear how he navigated the challenges of auctions, lead generation, and finding his groove in real estate, and discover the strategies that helped him turn mistakes into lasting success. If you're looking to avoid costly missteps and build a stronger business, this episode is packed with takeaways.

KEY TALKING POINTS:

0:00 - An Overview of Bob Schneider’s Business

3:22 - Using Live Auctions To Sell Houses

5:24 - Bob’s Method For Generating Leads

6:40 - His First Investor Deal

10:15 - How He Got Started With Finding Motivated Sellers

18:29 - Bob’s Goal With His Business

21:41 - How His Family Reacted To His New Approach With An Old Business

24:16 - What He Hopes To Learn At CG This Year

28:19 - Bob’s Advice For Aspiring Investors

29:24 - Outro

LINKS:

Facebook: Bob Schneider

https://www.facebook.com/BobbyVRealty

Website: Schneider Group RAI

https://schneidergrouprai.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/

Are cold calls still safe for homebuyers? With the new FCC rule taking effect on January 27th, this bonus episode unpacks what it means for real estate investors. From navigating compliance with the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) to avoiding costly mistakes, we break down everything you need to know. Tune in to learn how to protect your business while staying effective in your outreach.

KEY TALKING POINTS:

0:00 - The 4 Mistakes Real Estate Investors Make Regarding Cold Calling Compliance

0:39 - Defining The TCPA, FCC, and FTC

1:57 - DealMachine’s Recent Blog About TCPA Compliance

3:24 - Mistake 1: Using ChatGPT For Legal Advice

3:54 - Mistake 2: Offering Agent (Or Related) Services To The DNC List

4:23 - Mistake 3: Not Looking At Case Law From Prior Litigation

5:15 - Mistake 4: Getting Confused About Whether New FCC/FTC Laws Apply To Them

6:03 - 4 Reasons Why The New Rules Don’t Apply To Investors Using DealMachine

7:00 - How David’s Keeping Himself Compliant

10:30 - 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/