David Stanger

The most efficient thing to do is slow down and tackle problems one at a time rather than trying to multitask multiple at once.

 

David Stanger was born and grew up in Teaneck, New Jersey. After completing his Bachelors of Talmudic Law from Beth Medrash Govoha, David Stanger went on to study Real Estate Finance and Investment at NYU SCPS. After investing in residential properties for several years, when the Real Estate market crashed in 2010, he decided it was the perfect time to build a business focusing on helping people handle all the foreclosures that were developing from the recession.

Today, David Stanger remains with his company, the Westmarq Real Estate Group, as the VP where he helps clients with their real estate and foreclosure issues.

Where did the idea for Westmarq Real Estate Group come from?

The idea for the Westmarq Real Estate Group came from a need we identified in the market after the crash. After the recession and housing crisis hit we saw how many houses were being foreclosed and realized there was a tremendous need for a real estate agency that focused on assisting homeowners get out from under their debt. It’s a complicated area and many real estate agencies weren’t equipped to handle it. It required dealing with banks, investors and homeowners and meeting everyone’s needs.

What does your typical day look like and how do you make it productive?

My typical day generally involves arriving to the office early in the morning and then responding to emails and internal business before I spend my late mornings and afternoons meeting with our staff to discuss the needs in the market and how best to address them. By structuring my day this way, I am able to ensure that I always have time for my work while leaving plenty of time for enhancing our service to our clients.

How do you bring ideas to life?

I am a firm believer that many hands make light work. Therefore, whenever I have new ideas for our company, I discuss them with my staff allowing us to bounce ideas between ourselves to make them the best possible ones for the business.

What’s one trend that excites you?

One trend that is exciting is the development of Opportunity Zones across America. Opportunity Zones were created by the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 which gives tax advantages to investing in regions with lower income. Already there are more than 8,700 Opportunity Zones across the states and I am excited to see how they continue to develop.

What is one habit of yours that makes you more productive as an entrepreneur?

The one habit that I have that has made me productive as an entrepreneur is my unwillingness to give up. Whenever I set my eyes on a targeted goal, I will work to ensure that I achieve it and adjust as needed along the way to do so.

What advice would you give your younger self?

The advice that I would give to my younger self would be that hard work pays off. It is a long road to reach success, but the rewards have been worth the effort that I have put in.

Tell us something that’s true that almost nobody agrees with you on.

Something we encourage our clients to think about is that a short sale is often a more efficient method of turning your financial life around rather than believe that declaring bankruptcy will delay or stop a foreclosure. Many attorneys market bankruptcy to homeowners in foreclosure, and many people trust that advice, given that they are receiving it from an attorney. However, many times a bankruptcy is costly and doesn’t relieve the debt burden or remove the property from the client’s name, leaving them still open to all sorts of liability. A short sale can complete the process of totally settling the debt and moving on. We always recommend consulting an attorney that is impartial.

As an entrepreneur, what is the one thing you do over and over and recommend everyone else do?

One thing that I do repeatedly is that I ensure that I am always putting my best foot forward when interacting with clients. In a business such as real estate, the interaction between a client and their agents is of the utmost importance. Positive interactions help to lead to a better overall experience for the clients and I would recommend everyone in any industry where they communicate with clients to heed this advice.

What is one strategy that has helped you grow your business?

One strategy that has helped me to grow and develop my business over the years is that I have never really stopped trying to grow my business. From the very beginning, I have continuously been networking with other industry professionals and looking for new ideas that I can implement to improve Westmarq.

What is one failure you had as an entrepreneur, and how did you overcome it?

One failure that I have had as an entrepreneur was trying to do too much too fast. It took some time for me to realize that sometimes the most efficient thing to do is slow down and tackle problems one at a time rather than trying to multitask multiple at once.

What is one business idea that you’re willing to give away to our readers?

One business idea would be to develop a piece of software that would allow someone to directly compare two different houses with each other.

What is the best $100 you recently spent? What and why?

The best $100 dollars that I have recently spent was a donation to charity. I believe that those of us that have been fortunate enough to have found success in life should do our part in helping those that have not had the same successes.

What is one piece of software or a web service that helps you be productive?

One software service that helps me to be productive is Salesforce. Salesforce is a cloud-based software company focusing on customer-relationship management. I use Salesforce daily to ensure that I am on track and completing tasks in a timely manner.

What is the one book that you recommend our community should read and why?

One book that I would recommend the community read is The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People. This book has been very important in helping me to achieve success in my business as I have taken the skills that are mentioned to heart.

What is your favorite quote?

“Life is 10% what happens to you and 90% how you react to it.”

Key Learnings:

• Hard work does pay off
• A short sale is often better than declaring bankruptcy to avoid foreclosure
• Give to charity if you can
• If you need help with real estate contact a professional

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