Why Shawn Durkovic Believes Rental Properties Build More Wealth Than Flips

Shawn Durkovic (00:00)
gosh, just stick with it. And then I think the other thing is, a big paycheck’s nice, but when you only get it once, you gotta keep doing that big work. So I told you I flip and I also like rental property.

that’s where the wealth is created in the rentals, that the residual income over and over and over, getting that paycheck again and again and again.

Scott Bursey (00:54)
Welcome back to the Real Estate Pros podcast powered by Investor Fuel. I’m your host, Scott Bursey. Glad you’re with us. Today we’re pleased to be joined by Shawn Durkovic, the driving force behind Durk’s Real Property Solutions and Durkovic Dunnit Construction. Shawn brings extensive hands-on experience.

uniquely combining active investing with general contracting to streamline projects from acquisition to completion. Listeners get ready for some serious tactical insights on execution and scaling. Shawn, welcome to the show.

Shawn Durkovic (01:28)
Thank you, Scott. good to be here.

Scott Bursey (01:29)
It’s excellent to have you here. Let’s dive right in. Please give our listeners a front row seat, if you will, on how your career ignited and where you’re pouring your fuel now.

Shawn Durkovic (01:41)
sure. so I started as a residential carpenter. framing was my first love there. So I started as new construction frame carpenter, and working for other folks. at some point decided to veer off and start my own company.

So I’ve been doing new construction and remodeling contracting for quite some time. Started, like I said, in the residential field. And I went out into the commercial field. I’ve traveled half the country building and remodeling different commercial projects. now I’m back home, living in my own house again and back on the residential field. And I’ve been studying real estate investing for a long time, they kind of go hand in hand.

I bought a duplex I don’t know, probably more than fifteen years ago now. And then because the path of my other job, my construction business, like I said, I was traveling and whatnot. I didn’t really have the time. I didn’t feel like I had the time to put any energy into it. so I didn’t purchase any more property until twenty nineteen. Since twenty nineteen, I’ve been

working both businesses, I really kind of geared up in my real estate investing and use the knowledge that I gained and coaches and mentors and purchased 19 buildings since then looking for number 20 right now. actually just finishing up a rehab for rental. very little bit to go. We had to get the basement painted up and a little touch punch out.

So I’m kind of dividing my energy between both businesses right now. I’m still working for retail customers, homeowners doing kitchen, bath, and basement remodeling, and then acquiring and renovating and either renting or selling homes for myself in the real estate investment world.

Scott Bursey (03:18)
Appreciate you sharing that background, Shawn That foundation makes all the difference when you’re scaling in this space. And what really caught my attention about you was the way you’ve been able to bridge the gap between heavy construction and investing without losing your margins. Building off that, curious to know, where are you winning the most in your rehab turnarounds currently?

Shawn Durkovic (03:42)
I like the rental. I’m at this time I’m still just a long term rental guy. I haven’t dabbled in the short term stuff. I collect in both areas. it’s great to, hit a nice rehab home run and get a big old paycheck, but you get one and done. so I like the rentals. I fix them up really nice.

So I try to put good people in there and get a little higher rents than maybe my area. I make the improvements where you can see them. and then I get to collect those paychecks every month and every year. that’s really what the goal is.

Scott Bursey (04:12)
Thanks for highlighting that, Shawn. And wondering, what is the biggest difficulty in your contracting operations today as it stands?

Shawn Durkovic (04:21)
Getting the right people, the right help in place, I’d have to say there’s kind of a tie. I need to perfect my systems as well. And I know there’s a lot of tech out there available for different systems. there may be too much for me. I need to narrow it down. But yep, hiring good help and then, getting my systems in place. But I think those kind of come hand in hand.

I get the right help, it can free me up to perfect systems.

Scott Bursey (04:45)
Finding the right contractors is key. Appreciate that. And I’ve always wondered how are you keeping timelines tight when material delays occur?

Shawn Durkovic (04:56)
sometimes well sometimes you gotta pivot. do the best you can. I try not to when it comes to customers, I try not to promise deadlines that I in areas that I don’t control every piece. So I don’t schedule based upon a vendor’s promise of delivery.

Right. I wait until product is delivered before I make a promise. now in the and that’s like the contracting side, that’s kind of how I handle that. so do my best not to disappoint. as far as the in investing side, if I’m rehabbing my house and I can’t get what I want, I’ll either go to another vendor.

’cause I do have, multiple resources. That’s always helpful. Maybe you can find a similar product with another vendor, or maybe you just have to change pace and go with something different altogether. but if you don’t have time to wait, you gotta find what’s still gonna work and be the same quality as you intended to begin with.

Scott Bursey (05:50)
That’s slicing and dicing right there, Shawn. Let me ask you this. Where are you seeing the best opportunity in flips right now in your market?

Shawn Durkovic (06:01)
how do you consider the best opportunity, the easiest one to get or the highest margin, I’m not sure. But so in my market up here in the Cleveland area along the lakes, we got next to the lake is always good. And then, I think like anywhere across the nation, if you pick the hotter neighborhoods,

you’re gonna sell quicker and for higher money. just because you can get a property cheaper sometimes it’s not gonna get you the best margins,

Scott Bursey (06:26)
Finding that spread in the current market takes a sharp eye.

Shawn Durkovic (06:30)
yeah, so you do. You gotta always be looking. and reach out to folks that maybe don’t know they wanna sell their house until you talk to

Scott Bursey (06:36)
Shawn, what is the one thing you’re most concerned about in the local market there by the Erie?

Shawn Durkovic (06:43)
but yeah, I think like a lot of folks, you do have to look a little harder to find those deals nowadays. So that would be a concern, but that’s it. so maybe you gotta spend a little more energy trying to find that deal. but they’re still there. I’m still finding them.

Scott Bursey (06:55)
How are you protecting your margins if holding costs stretch out?

Shawn Durkovic (07:39)
well you gotta buy right. you gotta factor in a little fudge.

Scott Bursey (07:41)
Absolutely. and fast tracking this. What’s your go to play for turning, let’s say, a messy project around so it’s actually profitable?

Shawn Durkovic (07:51)
stay at it. I assume when you say messy, maybe something that isn’t working out quite like you had planned, right? So the key thing is don’t ignore it. stay after it. make the calls, find the people, find the material. it’s not gonna go away. You can’t bury your head.

Problems only get bigger if you leave alone. So that’s it really. Just stay after it. Do it until it’s done.

Scott Bursey (08:13)
What’s one of your winning recipe strategies that makes the deal go?

Shawn Durkovic (08:18)
gosh, I try not to skip any of the steps, right? We got a checklist and make sure you check I guess that would be it. Make sure you check your list.

Absolutely. you build these steps for a reason. so you ought to follow them all. If you wanna once you find out what’s working for you, follow them all and don’t be afraid to add a step. as you go, you’re always learning, right? We always kinda wanna keep learning, keep growing. So anything that can make it easier, than the time before, write it down and keep it close for next time.

Scott Bursey (08:45)
That is a winning recipe right there. Make a checklist and then make sure everything’s in order. Hit every step. That makes a lot of sense, Shawn. Thank you for highlighting that. And let me ask you this. What does your professional network look like right now?

Shawn Durkovic (09:02)
I’ve been doing this for a while in both businesses. so there’s a lot of groups, the market meetings, real estate investor associations, business owner groups in my area, not necessarily just real estate, but just all entrepreneurs.

so I like that group. I like the REIA groups. so I got a network there, contractors I’ve worked with in the past, my subcontractors, realtors, other real estate investors, yeah, networking, just

is key, right? definitely try to stay out there talking to people. in the same line, in the same businesses.

Scott Bursey (09:39)
Shawn, you have been in the construction business for thirty years, almost thirty years. What sort of value have you found being around like-minded individuals throughout your career?

Shawn Durkovic (10:26)
tons of value. you can bounce ideas off each other for sure. early on I worked for other folks. I didn’t just, jump in as a business owner in the construction business. So I worked for other folks and I worked for multiple other contractors and I got to see things that were good and things that were not so good. and I think that’s helpful in any area,

you gotta widen your line of vision, So if you’re just looking on one stream, you don’t always it’s just good to see different options and different ways to do things. Take what’s good, leave the bad behind, and so I had that opportunity. So yep, bouncing ideas off of each other. that’s good when you’re together with a group and you’re shop talking.

you’re bound to just hear new ideas, maybe easier ways to do things, or maybe another contact that you can make a connection, knowing the right people is just as good or better than knowing the right way.

Scott Bursey (11:15)
Thank you for giving us a peek into your circle. Shawn, if you had to drop one high octane piece of advice for an investor looking to master project management on fix and flips, rehabs, let’s say tomorrow, what would that advice be?

Shawn Durkovic (11:32)
so one is

Make sure you got a professional looking at your project. If you’re not familiar with the build space,

is the project going to be sound, et cetera. that’s before you even go and just make sure your pencil’s sharp. that’d be if we’re looking for just one piece, that would be it. Make sure you get a professional in there to look at it first. You can’t just go by, here’s this house and here’s this price. You got to know what you’re getting into in the meat and the bones.

Scott Bursey (11:56)
That’s solid advice right there. And Shawn, you have given us a tremendous amount of solid advice here today. But is there any additional words of wisdom, a golden nugget or two that you like to leave with our listeners?

Shawn Durkovic (12:12)
gosh, just stick with it. And then I think the other thing is, a big paycheck’s nice, but when you only get it once, you gotta keep doing that big work. So I told you I flip and I also like rental property.

that’s where the wealth is created in the rentals, that the residual income over and over and over, getting that paycheck again and again and again. So just keep that in mind. we all need a paycheck sometimes, my goal is to grow that rental portfolio so I can quit working so hard at some point.

Scott Bursey (12:41)
Appreciate that, Shawn. And for those of our listeners that want to keep this conversation moving, stay in your lane, perhaps collaborate with you on future deals. What’s the best way for them to plug into your pipeline and reach you directly?

Shawn Durkovic (12:55)
Yeah, so you can go to Durk’s Real Property Solutions dot com. you can go to Durkovic Dunnit Construction dot com. those are probably the easiest ways. You can find me on Facebook, Shawn Durkovic or Durk’s Real Property Solutions. you can find either one of those on Facebook. I’m a little behind the times. That’s the only social

media that I use. so those would be good ways to reach out.

Scott Bursey (13:20)
Shawn, thank you for joining us today on the Real Estate Pros podcast.

Shawn Durkovic (13:24)
All right, you’re welcome. Thank you, Scott. It’s been fun.

Scott Bursey (13:26)
It certainly has. And to our listeners, we appreciate you. If you receive value from today’s episode, please subscribe. We’ll be filling your tanks with the lineup of elite guests, just like Shawn Durkovic, who are accelerating and setting the pace for the rest of the industry. Until next time, keep your standards high and your vision clear. We’ll see you in the next episode, everyone.