077 Buying over 900 Houses with Real Estate Investor David Krulac

On this podcast I talk with David Krulac, who has bought over 900 homes in his career. David is not only a real estate investor, but is also a real estate broker who runs his own office. David was one of the top agents in his area because he helped develop subdivisions, and worked with many builders. David loves to buy rentals and flip properties, and has developed many ways to find deals. He is an expert at finding good deals through tax sales, the MLS, and networking.

How did David Krulac get started in the real estate business?

David got started in real estate because he had a friend who had found some success buying houses. David bought his first house at an auction that was owned by the state highway department. There were some delays in closing on the property, and as a result David ended up living in the home for free for 6 months! After buying his first house, he realized how much he loved real estate and got his real estate license one year later. David worked part-time as an agent to begin with, but eventually became one of the top salesman in  his office and then opened his own brokerage.

How did David find success as a real estate agent and broker?

David started out as a traditional agent, and did very well. When he found his niche he became one of the most successful agents in his area. He became an expert at developing subdivisions, working with builders, and selling lots. Because David was able to develop land, he always had a large supply of listings. The more listings you can get as a real estate agent, the more successful you will be. David was doing very well working as an agent, but he knew he was paying a lot of money to his broker that he could be keeping for himself. David obtained his broker’s license and opened up his own real estate office. He still operates his own office and loves it!

How did David learn to develop subdivisions?

David has always been a fan of tax sales in his area (Pennsylvania). At one of the sales he kept seeing the same investor over and over, eventually they started talking and became friends. This investor developed land and taught David how to develop a subdivision. David also became certified to install septic systems, which was a huge benefit for developers. David and the investor he met at the tax sales ended up creating many subdivisions, and selling a lot of property.

David explains on the show how it takes about three years to develop land into a subdivision and sell the lots. You have to go through the planning, the approvals, and the actual development, before you can sell anything. David even created subdivisions before the housing crisis, but made out okay because he has always believed in getting a great deal on anything he buys.

How does David buy so many houses?

Not only has David done very well as a real estate agent and broker, he is a very successful investor. He has bought over 900 houses in his career from a variety of sources. David holds most of his houses as rentals, but has also flipped houses and wholesaled deals. David shares many of his techniques for buying houses on this show. Below are  a few highlights:

• Tax Sales: David loves the tax sales, because in his area he can buy tax deeds. In other parts of the country you may only be able to buy a tax lien, which means you may never get the property.
• MLS: I buy most of my properties from the MLS as does David. Being a real estate agent is a huge advantage for finding more deals.
• Networking: I get deals from networking as well. I have agents bringing me deals, but David had a slightly different strategy that I love. He talks to all the neighbors when he buys a house and says he ends up having many neighbors call him to sell down the road.

How can you learn more from David?

David has written a book that details many of his acquisition strategies. In fact his book is made up mostly of case studies. He goes into the details of how he bought hundreds of his houses. You can find the book right here.