David S. Howicz - Executive Bio
David S. Howicz, Founder and President of Legend Realty Services, Inc., has been active in national real estate markets for over 30 years. Dave has participated in hundreds of real estate transactions involving many types of commercial properties across the country.
Dave’s vision for Legend Realty Services is two-fold: 1.) be a versatile and dependable single-source provider of commercial real estate services, and 2.) create high-quality real estate investments that maintain lasting value for their owners and the communities in which they are located.
Dave began his real estate career in 1987 while working as a Brokerage Associate with Coldwell Banker in Chicago. He later joined Prudential in the same capacity. Interestingly, Dave’s career took a temporary detour as he left the corporate world for 7 years to pursue his graduate degree and his passion for athletics. He was an athletic administrator and baseball coach from 1990-1996 at St. Xavier University (Chicago), Stetson University (Deland, FL) and Xavier University (Cincinnati, OH).
Henkle Schueler and Associates, located in Lebanon (Cincinnati), Ohio, was his next stop. There Dave developed and sold industrial and office properties. His responsibilities included large land tract acquisition and syndication, industrial park development, speculative and build-to-suit investments for the corporate portfolio, obtaining and servicing third-party development management and brokerage accounts, selling construction services, and managing staff and sales personnel. He was named Warren County’s Top Commercial Brokerage Producer in 1999, 2000 and 2001.
In 2001, Dave accepted a position with Paul Hemmer Companies, a Kentucky-based real estate developer, as Vice President. Dave was responsible for facilitating the company’s first successful full-service office expansion into the Chicago market and implementing a company-wide development services program for national retail clients. In less than 4 years, Dave hired, trained and managed the Chicago team responsible for procuring several national retail client relationships and developing numerous build-to-suit and speculative retail, office and industrial projects. At the end of 2006, Dave left Paul Hemmer Companies and formed Legend Realty Services, Inc.
Dave has been a licensed real estate broker in five states and a member of the National Association of Realtors (NAR), the International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC) and the National Association of Office & Industrial Properties (NAIOP).
Dave received his Bachelor of Arts degree in Business Administration in 1988 and a Master of Arts degree in Education Administration in 1990 from Saint Xavier University in Chicago. He was honored by his alma mater by being named into the Saint Xavier Athletic Hall of Fame in 1991. Dave and his wife, Mary, live in Nashville, TN near their two children, Garret and Elena. They enjoy volunteering in support of various community-based causes in their spare time.