Determine how much equity a property has

[Matt Beans]

I am a new to REI and am building a list of criteria of what a property must meet in order for it to be profitable. through my research I have found that it MUST have high equity. However, how do I determine how much equity is in a house? do I have to contact the owner to ask? or can I use the assessors office? Any advice is helpful!! Thank you!

[Ned Carey]

No, You can do a short sale to create equity. Although I am not a fan of lease options, they can be structured to work on properties with no equity. Traditional lease options, sandwich leases, link options are all strategies that can be used with little or no equity.

Depending on the market, rentals can be done with little or no equity. I buy tax liens and foreclose and wipe out any mortgage. This essentially created 100% equity. You can sometimes buy the note on an upside down property at a discount to create equity.

Now I am not saying it is easy to work with little equity but it can be done. I wouldn't call it low hanging fruit. My point is this It is more important to focus on motivation than equity. You can do a deal with a motivated seller and no equity. You probably can't do a deal with lots of equity but no motivation.

Good luck - Ned