Behind the Scenes of Celebrity Real Estate

Summary

Podcast Summary: "Behind the Scenes of Celebrity Real Estate" from Money Rehab with Nicole Lapin

Money Rehab with Nicole Lapin, hosted by Nicole Lapin from Money News Network, delves into the often-taboo topic of money management with accessible and actionable advice. In the episode titled "Behind the Scenes of Celebrity Real Estate," Nicole welcomes Dylan Eckhart, a prominent real estate agent and cast member of HBO Max's Selling the Hamptons. Known as the "Prince of Montauk," Dylan shares his insights and experiences working with high-profile clients and navigating the glamorous yet challenging world of celebrity real estate.

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1. Introduction to Dylan Eckhart

Nicole Lapin opens the episode by introducing Dylan Eckhart, highlighting his expertise in the Hamptons and Los Angeles real estate markets. She emphasizes his confident persona and hints at his knack for handling controversial and intriguing stories within the celebrity real estate sphere.

Nicole Lapin [00:02]: "The best business tool out there isn't productivity software, your corporate card, or even your phone. It is confidence. And Dylan Eckhart has that in spades."

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2. Dylan's Background and Hustler Mentality

Dylan delves into his upbringing in Montauk, describing the transformation of the Hamptons from a small fishing town with a "drinking problem" to a bustling year-round residence. He discusses his early start in making money, influenced by his mother's restaurant business, which fostered his hustler's mentality.

Dylan Eckhart [02:17]: "When did you start making money? Straight out the womb. I've always had a hustler's mentality..."

He recounts how advice from Diddy pushed him to take equity over direct payment, allowing him to build a diversified portfolio with stakes in various properties and businesses.

Dylan Eckhart [02:19]: "...Diddy was the first person to tell me about taking equity over money."

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3. Working with High-Profile Clients

Dylan shares his experiences working with an array of celebrities, including Justin Bieber, Kanye West, Selena Gomez, and Rihanna. He reveals his preference for clients who trust him and avoid micromanaging.

Dylan Eckhart [03:42]: "I did Selena, I did Rihanna. I like Justin. He pretty business, pretty heads up. And I like people that trust other people."

When asked about the "craziest" celebrity he's worked with, Dylan candidly mentions Kanye West, comparing their similar high-energy personalities.

Dylan Eckhart [04:01]: "I'm both a lot alike. We're both a little manic. He got a bot. He don't even sign for his own shit. He's a lot to deal with."

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4. The Mariah Carey Anecdote

One of the standout stories involves Dylan's interaction with Mariah Carey. Initially approached under false pretenses, the situation escalates when Mariah Carey herself contacts him. The deal turns sour when she leaves a rental property in disarray, highlighting the potential pitfalls of handling celebrity clients.

Dylan Eckhart [04:14]: "Mariah's not performing in the Hampton because the only live music venues I own. So I doubt that."

He recounts the chaotic aftermath of her tenancy:

Dylan Eckhart [06:11]: "Because I had to pick up 150 Diet Coke cans."

Despite the troubles, Dylan maintains a professional relationship with Mariah Carey, illustrating the complexities of celebrity real estate dealings.

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5. Challenges in Celebrity Real Estate Transactions

Dylan discusses how celebrity involvement can both elevate a property's profile and complicate its sale. He references the Michael Jordan house in Chicago, which remained unsold for a decade, and the controversy surrounding Jeff Bezos' real estate transactions.

Dylan Eckhart [07:39]: "You saw the Michael Jordan house in Chicago. It took a decade."

Regarding Jeff Bezos, Dylan critiques a situation where a seller sues Douglas Elliman for discounting the property upon realizing the buyer's high-profile status.

Dylan Eckhart [07:58]: "I'm on Team Bezos for this one, obviously... It shouldn't matter what the property is worth and how quick they're willing to sell."

He emphasizes that a property's value should remain consistent regardless of the buyer's identity or wealth.

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6. Personal Reflections and Business Philosophy

Beyond his professional life, Dylan opens up about his personal insecurities and the juxtaposition between his confident exterior and inner fears. He likens himself to a "Jekyll and Hyde" persona, demanding excellence in business while grappling with deep-seated anxieties.

Dylan Eckhart [09:06]: "I'm you good looking, I serve really well and I'm super connected. So I've always had that thing. But I used to do this is when people would say, how much is my house worth? ... I'm scared."

Dylan outlines his aggressive approach to real estate, refusing to conform to traditional methods like open houses and instead leveraging his extensive network to secure deals efficiently.

Dylan Eckhart [09:40]: "I treat real estate like stock market in the 80s. When it's high, we sell. When it's low, we buy."

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7. Money Tip: Leveraging Other People's Money

Concluding the episode, Dylan shares a valuable financial tip for listeners: utilize other people's money (OPM) instead of relying solely on personal funds. He advocates for strategies like hard money loans or property mortgages to maximize investment potential and minimize personal financial risk.

Dylan Eckhart [11:38]: "Never use your own money. Other money is cheap right now and you can always refinance and pull out and then pay off your money. Use other people's money."

This advice underscores the importance of strategic financial planning and leveraging available resources to build wealth effectively.

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8. Closing Remarks

Nicole wraps up the episode by encouraging listeners to seek their own money-related insights and interventions through the show’s channels. She highlights the collaborative effort behind Money Rehab and invites audience engagement via email and social media.

Nicole Lapin [12:02]: "Do you need some Money Rehab? ... email us your Money questions [e-mail]..."

Dylan extends his gratitude, reinforcing the episode's core message of investing in oneself.

Nicole Lapin [12:32]: "Thank you for listening and for investing in yourself, which is the most important investment you can make."

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This episode provides a behind-the-scenes look at the high-stakes world of celebrity real estate, blending personal anecdotes with practical financial advice. Dylan Eckhart's experiences illuminate both the allure and challenges of managing high-profile clients, offering listeners valuable lessons in confidence, strategic investment, and the nuanced dynamics of luxury property transactions.

Transcript

[Nicole Lapin]

I'm Nicole Lapin, the only financial expert. You don't need a dictionary to understand it's time for some money rehab. The best business tool out there isn't productivity software, your corporate card, or even your phone. It is confidence. And Dylan Eckhart has that in spades. Dylan is a real estate agent, one of the cast members of HBO Max's Selling the Hamptons and the self proclaimed Prince of Montauk. He grew up in Montauk and so the Hamptons has become his real estate area of expertise. But he also works in la and honestly, you get the impression that he has properties everywhere. Today we talk about where he gets his confidence and I get his take on some controversial stories in the real estate world, from Jeff Bezos to Diddy, Mariah Carey and everyone in between. When he tells the stories, I can't honestly tell if he's bluffing. So I take everything he says with a grain of salt. But I hope the Mariah Carey story is true because honestly, I fell in love with her a little bit after this. For all the celebrity real estate tea, here's Dylan.

[Dylan Eckhart]

Dylan Eckhart, welcome to money Rehab.

Better than going to rehab, right?

[Nicole Lapin]

Have you ever been to real rehab? No. Have you ever needed money rehab?

[Dylan Eckhart]

Definitely not good with money.

Why do you say that?

What if someone said to me a long time ago, dylan, you've got an addiction, a bad addiction of spending money, but you have a better addiction of making money. So at the same time, it keeps me moving. I've always wanted the best, and I grew up in Montauk. Like Montauk was a small fishing town with a drinking problem before, yes, they said I sold it out. But it was a small town with a drinking problem, the Hamptons. Now it's a small drinking town with a yuppie problem. And the yuppies, I don't know if you guys use that word on the west coast, but yuppies is like young urban rich. But we had learned to adapt. When you grew up in a town like I grew up in the Hamptons, 12 months a year. It's cool. Memorial Day to Labor Day. Don't get me wrong, but come Labor Day after Labor Day, we call it Tumbleweed Tuesday because the last day is Monday. And Tumbleweed Tuesday means back to normal. My graduating class was eight kids. I graduated high school, class was 36 kids. Now it's turned into a year round residence.

When did you start making money?

Straight out the womb. I've always had a hustler's mentality, but I've always been that person where people would come to the Hamptons and need to know where to go, what to do. My mother had a restaurant soon. So people always were like, can I get a reservation? Can I get this? Can I get that? And finally I was like, all right, enough's enough. Like, how much am I going to do for that? And I hate to say it right now, I know it's a horrible, touchy subject, but Diddy was the first person to tell me about taking equity over money. So what I was doing was selling hotel groups. So I would sell a hotel in Montauk for 50 million. Instead of taking money, I would take equity. I would own 0.0001%. Restaurants, surf, lunch. 0.001%. And I would take equity in a lot of the deals I did.

Was Diddy your client?

I did two of Diddy's houses. Yeah.

Obviously, he's in the news for horrific stuff. He was also in the news about his real estate recently.

He tried to leverage it for bail.

Well, he paid off his mortgage because right in Florida, there's the Homestead act, that they can't take it away if he pays well.

He also bail himself out. He tried to put that as collateral.

Who's your favorite celebrity to work with?

Myself.

You think you're a celebrity?

Think I'm infamous? I think that I'm that guy. I think that I do turn dreams into reality. I think everyone's famous in their own mind.

So besides you, you've worked with so many.

I mean, from Justin Bieber, Kanye Post for long this year, Dre London. I did Selena, I did Rihanna. I like Justin. He pretty business, pretty heads off. And I like people that trust other people.

Like, not a micromanager, not a helicopter. Who's the craziest celebrity? We can bleep it out.

I don't give a fuck. Kanye.

Why?

We're both a lot alike. We're both little manic. He got a bot. He don't even sign for his own shit. He's a lot to deal with.

You also helped Mariah Carey find a rental in the Hamptons, right?

Yeah. Turn into a Say. I got in trouble for that one. So, yeah, I was listing a house for 50 million in Noia.

Hampton's adjacent.

Yeah, adjacent. I love that word. And, Mariah, this is a great story, actually. I get a phone call and it's like, hey, Dylan, it's mc. I'm like, word. I'm like, all right, cool. Why cool? And they're like, oh, Jamaicar. Gave me your phone number. Who owns Surf Lodge? I was like, all right, cool. And they're like, mc. I'm like, are we like a dj? Like, what's going on? I got time for this. And I'm quick on the phone. I don't deal with. I was like, all right. Like, it's Mariah. I said, mariah? Who's like, Mariah Carey. I'm like, all right, cool. I'm like, FaceTime me. It's like, I'm not gonna FaceTime, man. I could hear it. And I'm second. I'm like, then I don't have time this. But I hung up the phone. I thought it was someone with me. And phone calls back, hey, Dylan, this is Fran. I represent Mariah Carey. I said, I quote, just listen. I got time for this. I'm busy. I'm running around. They're like, she needs a house in the Hamptons. She's going to perform yada, yada, yada at this place. All right, cool. I'm like, mariah's not performing in the Hampton because the only live music venues I own. So I doubt that. Boom. I hang up again. Now the owner of the live music jama calls me. I'm just like, dylan, Mariah's been reaching out to. Now I call them back. Now they're not answering. Finally, a picture sent of Mariah giving me the finger. I'm like, all right, cool. We end up linking up. And it was the worst deal of my life. First of all, when she left that house, she left 150 Diet Coke cans in that house. The whole house had to be fumigated because there was so much perfume smell in the house. And she took every mattress from the whole house and put it in the master bedroom. And I understand if you have kids, you want to sleep next to you on the floor, but not 12 mattresses. And the Coke. Diet Coke cans were everywhere. The whole house had to be fumigated when she left because of perfume smell.

So she basically trashed the house?

Yeah.

How much does she rent this house for?

Not enough.

So why is it the worst deal you've done?

Because I had to pick up 150 Diet Coke cans.

You personally did that?

Yes.

And do you still work with her?

Yes, I did.

It's not always the case that being a celebrity will sell your house. Right.

It brings attention to the property. And your increase is about 18 to 35% extra because there are a lot of star out there.

You saw the Michael Jordan house in Chicago. It took a decade.

Yeah. And it's still lost. But then again, Michael was staying on a number. The reason celebrities don't want you to use their name to sell their house is because they don't want people to think they're going broke. They don't want people to think they're in financial problems and having to sell their house.

But that's not the only reason you sell a house.

That's a lot of times you think of that, oh, Selena Gomez selling her house in Encino. She must be going broke or she.

Might be trading up.

First thing you think about, though, in your head is why she's selling your house. She financial problems.

What's the biggest super fan you've seen buy their idol's house?

I think it's Bo Bellwood, who had just sold Kanye West's house. I think it's a really tough one to buy Matsuyu, the designer that designed it, but Kanye took this house and ripped all the windows, all the doors, and I'll show you videos of what it looks like right now. No windows, no doors. And tried to make that a full bunker. No windows, no plumbing, no electric, no anything. He ripped it all off.

Sounds great for resale.

No, no. The town said, are you fucking nuts? So he sat it there for four years as a monstrosity. And now you have neighbors. Everyone's like, what the fuck are we doing here?

Wasn't there the story out of Florida where there's a seller suing Douglas Elliman for the house that Jeff Bezos bought?

Crazy.

So basically what happened is that they were approached to take a few million off. I think that it was listed for 85 and then it sold for 79. And he asked the CEO of Douglas Elliman if the buyer was Bezos, and they said no. And now he's pissed that he gave it at a discount.

First of all, you don't have to disclose. That's confidential.

I'm on Team Bezos for this one, obviously.

Why wouldn't you be? Whoever's buying house should not matter if you're worth 100 million or you're worth 100,000. And because it is him, they're upset because they lost a few million. First of all, the house I believe was worth 73 million. Yeah, if that. So what? That's like saying that if you see me pull up in a Ferrari, that you're going to charge me extra than if I pulled up in a Prius. It's the same scenario. It shouldn't matter what you are, who you are, how much Money you have, it's what the property is worth and how quick they're willing to sell. Douglas Elder should be lucky they got that fucking deal because I don't believe the deal was worth it.

The first time we talked, you really went through your bona fides around real estate. You gave me like a really great elevator pitch. I was very impressed.

What it is, people look at me and they don't Google me. I'm chatted up. I drive bulletproof cars and I'm very. I guess it comes across as arrogant, but I would say it's just a little bit of I'm insecure. So I covered it up with that. It's like, oh, here's my guard up. All right, you can pick on the prince, but Dylan is Dylan Eckhart. Who I really am is very scared.

What are you scared of?

Everything.

That's why I'm curious because you really gave me this pitch, which I thought was so persuasive and also so confident. And I think a lot of people don't know how to pitch themselves.

That's what it is. That's the Jekyll and Hyde as much. It's like, I demand excellence, I give excellence in business. I'm that guy. There's no one better than me in real estate. There isn't because it is. I don't stop. What I say is, we could sit in a room together, you and me and you. Let's say there's three people here. You're going to try to sell your house. You say it's worth $20 million. Altman is going to say, okay, I'll list over 20. I'm not that dude. I'm not going to list over 20 because I'm an analyst. So I know it's worth 16, 5. So am I going to say this? I'm going to say, listen, I'll get you 17 million for the house. I don't want to list. I'm not going to sit open house, hand out fucking waters and fucking cookies and walking through a three bedroom house. I'm not doing that. I'm going to show you what it is and how it's done. And you know what it was is over years of being a party boy and always being out, people used to always approach me. I used to wear shirts that said no pictures or humble with a hint of Kanye, you know, because I always wanted that give or take attention. But I've always got it because I'm you good looking, I serve really well and I'm super connected. So I've always had that thing. But I used to do this is when people would say, how much is my house worth? And I'm out at surf lodge at 2 in the morning. Oh, 6 million. The next day I get the call, hey, Dylan, it's Jonathan. You said my house worth $6 million. I'd love to listen with you. And I'm like, oh, yeah, what house was that? Then I'm running numbers. So when people say, all right, I'm looking for this and they're going to use a regular agent, I don't give a fuck if it's Tracy Tudor, Josh Holtman, fucking Frederick, anyone, Aaron Kirkman, any of the big boys, they're going to take time to find this. I'm not. I'm going to already have it in my Rolodex when I use the word Rolodex. Because I am old school. I treat real estate like stock market in the 80s. When it's high, we sell. When it's low, we buy. And I deal with a lot of developers and a lot of funds where people allow me to deal with 50, 60 million dollars of their money as long as I'm giving back a 20% return. And I never fail.

All right, Dylan. We end our episodes by asking all of our guests for a tip, a money tip that listeners can take straight to the bank.

Never use your own money. Other money is cheap right now and you can always refinance and pull out and then pay off your money. Use other people's money. Use your 10, 20% down of yours. Take a hard money loan or take a mortgage on the property. You can always refinance that and pull money out more than it's worth.

[Nicole Lapin]

Money Rehab is a production of Money News Network. I'm your host, Nicole Lapin. Money Rehab's executive producer is Morgan Lavoy. Our researcher is Emily Holmes. Do you need some Money Rehab? And let's be honest, we all do. So email us your Money questions money rehaboneynewsnetwork.com to potentially have your questions answered on the show or even have a one on one intervention with with me. And follow us on Instagram @moneynews and TikTok unynewsnetwork for exclusive video content.

[Dylan Eckhart]

And lastly, thank you.

[Nicole Lapin]

No, seriously, thank you. Thank you for listening and for investing in yourself, which is the most important investment you can make.