@Jared Schofield If your house is a rental property, then you will pay taxes on your capital gain (which may include your equity). For example (with very simple numbers), if you bought your rental for $100k and put down $20k, then you have $20k in equity. If you then sell the house for $100k, you have no taxable gain and you get your equity out. If you bought your rental for $100k with $20k down and it increased in value to $120k, then you would have $40k in equity in the house. If you then sold it for $120k, then you would have a $20k taxable gain and you would get your $40k of equity out of the house.