David BruceDB
Real Estate·Design·Project Management
Call DB 310-895-9018David Bruce, REALTOR® · DRE #01839192 · eXp Realty · Equal Housing Opportunity · db@davidbrucerealty.com
About DB
REALTOR®, designer and project manager.
I'm DB. I not only sell homes, I fix them and make them happier to live in and fun to look at. I started working young, at the age of eight, in estate auctions and sales for my dad, buying and selling before I could drive. Art school trained, I was building and renovating homes starting in the mid-90s as a right-hand man to a general contractor on ground-up builds and gut remodels in the Pacific Northwest. Moving to Los Angeles in 1999, I spent seven years in film, TV and commercial production, working in a lot of departments, including art and lighting, and ended up managing because I understood how all the different departments work together.
Licensed REALTOR® since 2008, joining eXp Realty early, and a C.A.R. Certified Probate & Trust Specialist, with an additional certification from CPRES, Certified Probate Real Estate Specialist. I focused primarily on listings and being a seller's advocate, as well as helping buyers in a competitive market. In 2018, I went back to building as an owner-builder and project manager on a 3,500 sq ft home in Santa Monica, taking my design all the way through Certificate of Occupancy while managing over 100 tradespeople on site, inspections, city compliance, schedules and budgets for the entire project. Over the last ten years, I've also taken on three profitable home flips. I can read a house the way a builder does, know what an inspector will flag and what a fix will really cost, all the while knowing how to make a place look its best.
On a build or renovation, I work as your project manager and homeowner's advocate alongside the licensed trades, making sure you get the best out of the crews you've chosen. I keep a tight budget, stay aware of the schedule, and tell you what's a real problem and what's just noise.
See the home: The Modern MonicaAway from work, I'm a married family man who enjoys skiing, cruising my Santa Monica farmer's market for delicious ingredients, enjoying a show, taking a walk with my wife and my dog, or tinkering on my latest, greatest creative project. Whether you're selling, buying, settling a family estate or planning a project, I'd be glad to talk it through with you.
Call DBanytime.
David Bruce — "DB" · REALTOR® · C.A.R. Certified Probate & Trust Specialist · Certified Probate Real Estate Specialist (CPRES) · Homeowner Advocate
Three educations
Auctions taught me what things are worth, carpentry taught me how houses are built, and art school taught me how they should look and feel. Real estate is where it all comes together: homes that are more pleasurable and healthier to live in, and wealth built through ownership.
Since age 8
How I know what things are worth
I started in the estate world working auctions and estate sales for my dad. I was buying and selling before I could drive, and it helped pay my way through life. That early education is still the difference between a house getting cleared out and a house getting understood first.
Gold jewelry stamped "750" isn't fake — it's how 18-karat gold is marked in Italy. Most people, and most agents, would assume costume jewelry. I know the difference.
Art school
How I make a house feel right
I went to art school, and I've been making things my whole life: fine art, and changing how a home looks, feels and works for the people living in it or walking through it. The same eye took me into film and commercial production, where I worked across many departments, including art and lighting, and moved into management, making a set look right to camera so the picture spoke to what was being sold: a product, a music video, a cinematic piece.
Flip, spec home or my own project in Santa Monica, it's all the same thing to me: creativity and art, applied to a house.
Working life
How I can see through walls
I was a carpenter on ground-up builds and remodels, working as the right hand to a general contractor. That means I can look at a wall and know where the studs are, whether it's load-bearing, and how to open it up and support it properly and to code. I also learned eco and green building, and what it does for how people live: healthier homes.
Building, flipping, and walking through thousands of homes has taught me what makes a buyer fall for a house — good flow, the right finishing touch, the moment it feels like theirs.
1980
the year I learned to buy and sell
2008
the year I became a licensed REALTOR®
1,000+
homes I've been in, whether they're listings, previews, projects or estate work
Reach out to DB
Thinking about selling, buying or fixing up a house? Handling a family estate? Or just have a question you'd like to talk through? Call DB or send a note. I'm glad to hear from you.