From App to Empire: DealMachine's Journey to EY Recognition

ST. LOUIS, MO – April 29, 2026 – David Lecko and Dave Oster, the co-founders behind the real estate technology platform DealMachine, have been named finalists for the prestigious Entrepreneur Of The Year 2026 Heartland Award. The recognition by Ernst & Young LLP (EY US) places the duo among the region's most innovative and impactful business leaders, celebrating their success in transforming a simple mobile application into a powerhouse for real estate investors across the nation.

In just a few years, DealMachine has scaled to a $17 million annual revenue operation, serving 170,000 investors and fundamentally changing how they find and acquire properties. This nomination for the 41st annual awards program, which honors leaders who disrupt markets and revolutionize industries, validates the company's meteoric rise and its significant influence within the proptech sector.

From Side Hustle to Industry Disruptor

DealMachine's origin story is a classic tale of entrepreneurial problem-solving. In 2017, David Lecko, an engineer by trade and a budding real estate investor, found himself frustrated by the inefficiency of a popular investment strategy known as “driving for dollars.” The process involved manually driving through neighborhoods to spot distressed properties, jotting down addresses, researching owner information later, and sending mailers—a tedious and time-consuming method.

Convinced there had to be a better way, Lecko leveraged his software background to build a solution. The result was the first version of the DealMachine app, a tool designed to automate the entire workflow from his smartphone. He soon joined forces with co-founder and co-CEO Dave Oster, a fellow software developer whose technical expertise was crucial in evolving the initial concept into a robust platform.

"It's an honor to be named finalists for Entrepreneur Of The Year, the world's most prestigious business award recognizing original founders, multigenerational family business leaders, and transformational CEOs," said Lecko and Oster in a joint statement. "This recognition is incredibly meaningful—not just personally, but as a reflection of what our entire team has built together at DealMachine. Three years ago, DealMachine was simply a driving-for-dollars app. Today, it's a 36-person operation that shows up every day to push the product forward. We've developed into a fully-fledged real estate data platform."

Empowering the Everyday Investor

At its core, DealMachine is built to democratize access to real estate investment opportunities. The platform levels the playing field for individual investors—from wholesalers and fix-and-flip specialists to rental property owners—by providing sophisticated data tools that were once the domain of large institutions. Its mobile-first design makes it exceptionally efficient for investors working in the field, turning a car into a mobile acquisition office.

One of the platform's most disruptive features is its inclusion of unlimited, free skip tracing for subscribers. This service, which provides property owner contact information like phone numbers and email addresses, has traditionally been a significant and variable cost for investors. DealMachine estimates it collectively saves its users over $20 million annually compared to legacy competitors who charge per search. This single feature has removed a major financial barrier, enabling more investors to connect with property owners directly and efficiently.

"From day one, our mission has been to give real estate investors access to the data they need to find and close deals faster, smarter, and with more confidence," the co-founders stated. The platform now boasts over 700 filters, allowing users to create highly targeted lead lists, and has facilitated the closing of over 100,000 real estate deals. While competitors like PropStream are often lauded for deep desktop-based data analysis, DealMachine has carved out a dominant niche with its best-in-class mobile experience for active, on-the-ground prospecting.

Heartland Innovation on a National Stage

Based in St. Louis, DealMachine's success is a testament to the thriving innovation ecosystem in the American Heartland. The company's impressive growth metrics—a 36-person team, $17 million in annual revenue, and a user base of 170,000—demonstrate that groundbreaking technology firms can scale and succeed far from traditional tech hubs. This isn't the company's first time in the national spotlight; in 2021, it was recognized as #36 on the Inc. 5000 list of the fastest-growing private companies in the United States.

The EY Entrepreneur Of The Year award carries significant weight. For over four decades, it has been a global benchmark for entrepreneurial excellence, creating an esteemed alumni network of leaders who have collectively generated trillions in revenue and created millions of jobs. For Lecko and Oster, being named finalists alongside leaders from Kansas, Minnesota, and Nebraska places them in this elite category and shines a light on the region's economic dynamism.

The selection by an independent panel of judges was based on criteria including entrepreneurial spirit, purpose, company growth, and long-term impact. The recognition underscores not only DealMachine's financial performance but also its role in creating value for its customers and shaping the future of real estate investing.

Balancing Rapid Growth and User Trust

Navigating the challenges of rapid scaling is a hallmark of successful startups, and DealMachine is no exception. The company maintains an "Excellent" 4.4 out of 5-star rating on Trustpilot, where users frequently praise the platform's ease of use, effective lead generation, and significant cost savings. The responsive customer service team is also a common point of acclaim.

However, like many fast-growing tech companies, it has faced some user-reported challenges related to billing disputes and historical inconsistencies in data accuracy—hurdles that come with managing a massive and complex dataset. In response, the leadership team has remained committed to its customer-centric philosophy. "We've grown by staying focused on exactly that: improving data quality, building tools that remove friction, and listening closely to the people using our platform every day," the co-founders affirmed. This dedication to continuous improvement, driven by user feedback, remains a cornerstone of their strategy.

As finalists, Lecko and Oster will join other regional leaders at a special celebration in Minneapolis on June 18, where the Heartland award winners will be announced. Those winners will then advance to be considered for the Entrepreneur Of The Year National Awards, held in November, with a chance to represent the U.S. at the World Entrepreneur Of The Year competition.