{
  "id": 11892981,
  "title": "Real-estate investors who started with little savings share 4 creative ways they bought property",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/04/real-estate-investors-who-started-with-little-savings-share-4",
  "topic": "finance",
  "section": "Finance & Markets",
  "published": "2026-10-04T09:25:01.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Business Insider",
    "slug": "business-insider",
    "url": "https://www.businessinsider.com/creative-financing-strategies-buying-real-estate-investment-properties-building-wealth-2026-10"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Real-estate investors with limited savings have discovered creative ways to finance their first rental properties. Four investors share their strategies, which include borrowing from retirement accounts, home equity lines of credit (HELOCs), home equity loans, and even a paid-off truck. This approach makes real estate investing more accessible to those who may not have tens of thousands of dollars in cash on hand.\n\nLucy Zheng, a California resident, bought her first rental property in Detroit by borrowing $15,000 from her 401(k) and putting in $15,000 of her own money. The loan was processed quickly, and the interest was repaid back into her retirement account. However, this option comes with the risk of having to repay the loan immediately if she left her job.\n\nMark Kearney, a Florida-based investor, used a HELOC to buy a property in Virginia. His paid-off home was worth $200,000, and he took out a $30,000 line of credit, which was about 15% of his home's value. This allowed him to purchase a $100,000 single-family house and generate about $220 a month in profit after paying the rental's expenses and repaying the loan.\n\nKent He used a home-equity loan to buy a short-term rental property in San Diego. After their primary residence's value increased, they borrowed $160,000 from their home equity to invest in a short-term rental. A home-equity loan provides a lump sum upfront, while a HELOC offers a credit limit that can be drawn upon during a specific period.\n\nMike Savage, a former firefighter and EMT, financed his first deal using a loan against his paid-off truck. After relocating his family to South Carolina, Savage and his wife had little money left, but he owned his truck outright. Taking out a loan against the truck allowed him to cover the roughly $10,000 down payment for a three-bedroom, one-bath house in South Carolina. This strategy enabled him to enter the real estate market without waiting years to save up the necessary cash.",
  "summary": "One investor used his paid-off truck to buy property. Three others found creative ways in.",
  "key_points": [
    "Four real-estate investors share creative financing strategies for first-time property purchases.",
    "Lucy Zheng borrowed $15,000 from her 401(k) to buy a rental property in Detroit.",
    "Mark Kearney used a home equity line of credit (HELOC) to purchase a property in Virginia."
  ],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}