Everyone has seen at least one commercial spot where a person tells you that fortunes will be made in real estate and that you need no money whatsoever to succeed. The sad part is that some consumers fall for this ruse and spend money on their foolproof method, which (of course) has more holes in it than a watering can.

Having said that, if you really want to buy real estate there are ways to do it even if you have bad credit or only a little bit of cash. One way to accomplish this is not by actually buying a property out right, but rather negotiating contracts with sellers that then selling that to a retailer. Called assignment contracting, all you need for this type of buying and selling is earnest money. Its fairly easy to make upward of $3,000 on each contract sold.

Note that if the retailer feels uncertain of closing the deal they may put the sale amount in escrow pending actual receipt of the deed and loan documents. This process is called a double closing, and while its a little riskier for the dealer, the profit is usually higher.

If both of these approaches still make you nervous, you could become a real estate scout instead. In this case you get paid for gathering information. What type of information? The address and picture of a house that has potential for fast resale, the name of the owner, and a means of contacting the owner, sale price, any available mortgage data including payment history, and most importantly if theres a known reason for the sale (is the owner moving or retiring, for example). Real estate scouts who provide solid, reliable information often get paid as much as $1,000 per lead.

Another way to obtain property without a down payment or credit check is by finding a seller who simply wants you to assume the mortgage. This is most likely a private transaction, often negotiated with family or friends who trust you will make timely payments.

Option purchasing is yet another, well OPTION! This resembles contract buying except in this case you negotiate for the option to buy within a certain amount of time. You will have to have option money for this transaction and loose that money if you do not exercise your option. Why? Because while you have a buy option, the seller must take the house off the market and continue making mortgage payments. From the buyers perspective this gives you time to gather funding that you might not have had available when you found a perfect house.

Slightly less risky is leasing the property and contracting an option to buy. This contract includes the ultimate buy price for the property and the date by which the seller must exercise or renew the option. In this case lease payments sometimes go partially toward the buyers down payment when the deal goes through.

As you can see, there are ways to get property without having a huge down payment or perfect credit. Even so, this should still be a well-considered endeavor as real estate represents an investment, including personal time. Take care that you get the right property for your needs and goals.