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How can you buy real estate with no money? That's the dream, right? Well, don't worry, I (Alan) have done it many times to the tune of over $30,000,000 in real estate (yeah, 8 zeros). And I'll break it down for you in 3 easy steps.

Using other people's money is the fastest way to grow your real estate portfolio for sure, but it requires networking, relationship building, and a track record. Is that something you are willing to work for you in order to buy real estate with no money?

Perfect. To buy real estate with no money, you have to understand one thing:

It takes more effort to buy property with no money than it does with money.

 You may have to resort to:

• Researching grants specific to your area and income
• Making a lot of low-ball offers before one sticks to make numbers work
• Negotiating with dozens of off-market sellers willing to seller finance (explained here)

Wow, you are three steps ahead of me! Perfect, you get it. Free means strings attached, or you get a smaller slice of the deal, or you have to work with partners. Something has to give and if you accept that, then you are ready to buy real estate without your own money. Since we are completely aligned, let's get on with the show!

Step 1: Be someone you would invest with

If you aren't willing to use your own money, then someone else's money needs to be used. This can sourced from the seller in a seller-financed deal, hard money lender, private money lender, or from active or limited partners.

Who do you think these people are comfortable lending money to or investing in? My guess is someone who is transparent, trustworthy, and currently has a great income and credit score.  Sure you might not have all these things, but the more you have the better.  

You are being trusted with money and that money needs to know they can rely on you to do turn that into more money. Your credit and business acumen in the past is the best indictor of how successful you will be in raising money for new real estate deals. So, if you have no experience at all, starting small with your own money is going to be the best path forward to attract money later.

But really look at yourself and determine would you give money to you to buy real estate? If so, list all the reasons why. Find ways to mention these personal assets on social media or conversation. 

However, you also need to list all the reasons why you would not invest with you. Do not hide from these demerits. Instead, work on them. You need to be able to address them when they come up as you try to acquire more properties with other people's money.

That being said, what's your sales pitch now?

Ok, that's not going to cut it as an elevator pitch. It's a start though, but work on the next two steps to create a full-fledged profile of an investor that is worth taking a bet on.

Step 2: Be someone you would partner with

Sure, you might be a good steward of money as laid out in Step 1, but are you also a good partner? Are you hot-headed? Are you cool under pressure? Do you have a deep real estate network that is an asset in itself?

I've gotten pulled into many no-money deals because my network is valuable. They knew I had the contractor for the job, the hard money team to finance it, the experience working with the city permitting office, the realtor team to promote it, and more.  

Their investment would be so much easier for them and have a higher likelihood of success if I would partner with them and in exchange the could leverage my network for a slice of equity in the deal. 

So, be a one hell of a partner, it's absolutely crucial. What's the magic question you want to be asked?

Bingo! That's the question that leads to buying a ton of property with no money. Make people ask you this question and you will become a prolific investor. This takes experience, time, and purposeful networking.  Again there are no shortcuts to the game of real estate investing, but it pays huge in dividends in the long run.

Step 3: Be the grunt

Every project has a job no one wants: it can be the demo of mold-covered basement, the herding of sub-contractors, the project management of a million moving parts. Network with people who are doing things you want to be doing.

Offer to be the grunt. Not in exchange for money or equity, at least not yet. But do enough grunt work you quickly have the experience to make people want to invest in you and with you. 

It's paying your dues, learning on the fly, and getting a free eduction on someone else's project. This grunt work is so valuable to build a network quickly that you can leverage later. But here's the catch: the grunt work is not fun, which is why people are willing to outsource a lot of it to eager future real estate investors. Be the person they think of first and you will rise to the top of be a connected investor in your town.

No problem, that's fine! Then buying real estate with your own money is the best path forward. And guess who is doing the grunt work on those deals? You either must to do it yourself anyway or pay someone to do it, just be prepared. Remember, I told you more effort goes into no money real estate deals at the top and it's not easy or everyone would do it.

Great, we remain aligned.  I don't want to discourage you from pursuing a no money deal, they are life-changing. I got there with some upfront sacrifice that continues rewarding me now a few years down the line. I think you can get similar results using this same path too.

Summary

• Would you invest with you? Why or why not?
• Would you partner with you? Why or why not?
• Would you do what others won't? Why or why not?
• These answers will lead you to how to buy real estate with no money.