The FORT Podcast: Edward Bogel
Edward Bogel is the Co-Founder of Davidson Bogel, a boutique land investment advisory group and brokerage firm. The company’s base principal is exceptional client service with investment and development of land throughout Texas and Oklahoma. They discuss the journey of founding a company, what makes a great land broker, and the future of development in the DFW area.
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01:50 – What has happened in your life which led you to ZeroDown?
11:30 – Gratefulness is one of your most appealing traits. What has helped you adopt this mindset?
14:35 – How did you get into designing video games when you were younger?
20:20 – Were you exposed to these advanced topics at an early age or was this more your nature?
23:40 – What is the difference between education in India and the United States?
26:20 – How did you find the Paul Graham essays? What about them changed your life?
29:14 – What was it like working at such a fast growing company such as Zenefits?
34:03 – How do you prioritize goals in a hyper-growth company and gain buy in?
37:00 – What your experience as Head of Operations? What did you learn?
41:22 – Overview of ZeroDown
54:10 – What are “loyalty points”? How do they incentivize customers to make their mortgage payments on time?
57:32 – Growth Hacking with Slack
1:03:57 – Is there anything that has shocked you about customers or business since starting ZeroDown?
MORE ABOUT EDWARD
Edward Bogel is Co-Founder and Managing Partner of Davidson Bogel Real Estate. Edward specializes in land sales, acquisitions and ground-up developments throughout the Dallas/Fort Worth area and across portions of Texas. In his career, he has closed more than 200 transactions with an aggregate value in excess of $585 million. After graduating from Texas A&M University with a bachelor’s degree in agribusiness, Edward joined Altschuler and Company (ALT+CO), a boutique brokerage and real estate advisory firm in Dallas. After ALT+CO, Edward was a Senior Vice President with Venture Commercial Real Estate where he helped co-found Venture’s Land Division and expand its land listing portfolio to over 150 properties in a four-year period. He was a top producer within Venture in 2013 and 2014. Edward has been recognized as one of D Magazine’s Power Brokers in seven of the last eight years, an in 2014, he was selected as the youngest member of Dallas Business Journal’s esteemed “40 Under 40,” a list of Dallas’ most influential young business leaders.
Episode Summary
With a legacy rooted in the industry, Bogel’s expertise stems from years of hands-on experience, navigating the challenges and opportunities that define today’s real estate landscape.
The conversation commenced with a frank discussion on the time-intensive nature of real estate, highlighting the imperative for unwavering commitment and perseverance. Bogel underscored the cumulative impact of investing additional hours daily, illustrating how this dedication can translate into months of additional work over time. This segment of the dialogue served as a candid reminder of the real estate sector’s demanding nature, emphasizing its suitability for individuals prepared to commit wholeheartedly.
Bogel then delved into the early stages of his real estate venture, providing a transparent view of the team’s initial composition and the subsequent expansion of their personnel. The narrative unveiled the challenges and learning experiences inherent in the early growth phases of a real estate business, shedding light on the strategic aspects of judicious spending and resource allocation. Bogel shared his expertise on when it is prudent to incur expenses, using the procurement of updated property surveys as a prime example, highlighting its role in facilitating smoother transactions and reducing time constraints for buyers.
Navigating through the complexities of real estate development, Bogel elucidated the pressing issue of parking, outlining the challenges developers face in providing adequate parking spaces. He underscored the financial impracticality imposed by parking requirements, revealing that this factor has become a predominant influence on real estate development decisions in the current market cycle. This segment of the podcast served as a critical examination of the hurdles faced by developers, emphasizing the need for innovative solutions and strategic planning to overcome these challenges.
In the concluding segment of the podcast, Bogel shared his vision for enhancing the efficiency of interactions between developers and city councils. He advocated for a proactive approach, urging the hiring of dedicated individuals focused on addressing issues at the initial stages of real estate projects. This, he believes, would lead to more streamlined development processes, better outcomes, and a more robust real estate sector.