Building a PropTech Venture with a Virtual Team: Discount Lots President Paul Hersko (Part 2)

Paul Hersko: Then my entire life changed in 2019. My brother-in-law took me to this party. He said, “I have a good friend who owns this business. He’s our age. You might like him.” I started talking to him. I was learning about his business and he was like, “I have this company where I sell land online and people buy land with a credit card.”

We started to become good friends and learned more and more about what he was doing. I was absolutely fascinated. I was in e-commerce, which I loved. And it was real estate that I wanted to be involved with, but didn’t have experience in it.

Part two was, I started looking at the market of what he was doing. At that time in 2019, this was something that could be totally disruptive. I could change this industry.

Sramana Mitra: What was the concept?

Paul Hersko: To summarize, we became good friends. We decided to partner up and start a new company called Discount Lots.

Sramana Mitra: Who was the other founder?

Paul Hersko: My business partner Willie. Willie had been doing this with one employee for many years, but it was never a huge business. It was a great business. He made a lot of money doing it; but once we partnered up, we formed this new company and that’s how we got to where we are today. For a brief overview, we have 60 employees now.

Sramana Mitra: What is the concept that you started with?

Paul Hersko: The concept is we make land easy and affordable for everyone. We buy land from owners. We sell it online on owner finance terms. You can go to our website and find a property that you like. This is just land. You can go to our website and checkout within three clicks. It’s essentially rent-to-own for land.

Sramana Mitra: I don’t understand. I’m buying land on credit card?

Paul Hersko: Do you understand what vacant land is?

Sramana Mitra: Sure.

Paul Hersko: You can buy a piece of property that you want with a credit card. That’s the simplest way of explaining it.

Sramana Mitra: What’s the value of that land?

Paul Hersko: We have thousands of people doing all kinds of things with the land. They use it for recreation, buying it to build their dream house or dream property. They’re buying it for investment. You name it, they’re doing it. The list is endless.

Sramana Mitra: What denomination are we talking about?

Paul Hersko: Our average property sells anywhere from $25,000 to $50,000.

Sramana Mitra: People are buying, on credit card, $25,000 to $50,000 properties on your website.

Paul Hersko: Yes. We’re offering owner finance. That $25,000 property, we charge your credit card $250 a month and you can use the land while you’re making the monthly payments. It’s basically rent-to-own for land.

Sramana Mitra: The land is on your balance sheet.

Paul Hersko: Yes, and we’re owner-financing it to people.

Sramana Mitra: Then you transfer the title after they’re finished paying the installments?

Paul Hersko: Exactly.

This segment is part 2 in the series : Building a PropTech Venture with a Virtual Team: Discount Lots President Paul Hersko
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