In 2016, after working in finance for a combined 40+ years, Jarred Kessler and Ben Black sought to provide homeowners with an alternative solution to an all-too-common problem: being unable to access the value of their homes without the hassle of loans, banks, and moving.

EasyKnock is revolutionizing homeownership for millions of Americans who are looking to turn their most valuable and cherished asset into a foundation for their futures and their finances.

Unlike loans and iBuyers that only focus on a one-off transaction, we build a relationship with you and a personalized solution that works for your needs and your goals. Fractional ownership companies can provide up to approximately 20% of your home's value, we can provide 100% of your home's value.

We make this possible through our sale-leaseback programs, instead of stressful loans or iBuying. 

How is EasyKnock different from loans, iBuyers, and fractional ownership companies?

A residential sale-leaseback is when the homeowner sells their house to an individual, investor, or business and leases it back. Sale-leaseback is common in many industries, including commercial real estate. Now we’re bringing it to homeowners.

We're a team of about 50 passionate real-estate and customer service experts based mostly in New York, NY and Charlotte, NC with employees in Washington, DC and Los Angeles. We're always looking for new talent so check out our jobs page to join our mission!

We operate in most states, but cannot service every market. The best way to find out if we can serve you is by filling out our qualification form.

EasyKnock was designed entirely with our customer’s needs in mind.

1) We take the time to customize each plan to meet an individuals’ needs and provide thorough guidance every step of the way.

2) We believe in transparency. This means we explain every detail of our estimates and contracts until you are completely comfortable. We outline all fees, the option value, option price, and rent costs.

3) If for some reason, you can no longer make your rent payments, we work with you to create a solution to help get you back on track.

4) The EasyKnock Option™ protects your contractual right to the residual value of the home.

5) We strive to comply with all applicable FTC, state, and tenant laws.

How does EasyKnock ensure the customer comes first? 

We currently offer three programs - Sell & Stay, MoveAbility, and ReLease. All are sale-leasebacks customized to each individual's goals and needs.

We buy single family homes, townhomes, and warrantable condos.

Sell & Stay is EasyKnock’s revolutionary sale-leaseback program in which we buy your house and you lease it back as a tenant. Get the time and money you need to reach your goals without having to move. Then, when you’re ready, you choose whether you want to repurchase the house or move. Your time, your terms.

Sell & Stay is for homeowners who would like to monetize their home value without having to move. Our customers have used Sell & Stay for a variety of reasons, ranging from funding their businesses to paying off debt, to financing important life events.

We are able to provide Sell & Stay to individuals with houses valued at $100,000-$1,000,000, and at least 40% of their mortgage paid off.

Unlike other sale-leasebacks, Sell & Stay includes an Option contract, which gives customers the right to repurchase their home* at any time during the lease term for an agreed-upon price. Customers also have the right to move at any time and receive the additional proceeds and appreciation value*, once the house is sold on the market by EasyKnock.

*There is no guarantee of an appreciation in value

*A repurchase option is not offered in all states 

In a Sell & Stay transaction, the Option gives you the following benefits:

The right to repurchase the home at a predetermined price.

The right to receive the difference, if any, between the final sale price and the Option Exercise Price if the home is put on the market and sold to a third party. Broker fees may apply.

How is Sell & Stay different from other sale-leasebacks?

MoveAbility is our reinvention of the moving process. Access the value of your home now by selling it to us. You get to stay living in the house while paying rent until you’ve found your next home. You’ll have the money you need to fund your dream home without the rush of a typical move.

MoveAbility is for people who are planning on moving within the next year but need cash now. MoveAbility gives our customers the time and money to find and buy their next home without needing to move before they’re ready.

MoveAbility includes an Option contract which gives customers the right to terminate the lease at any time within 12 months by moving. EasyKnock puts the house on the market and once it sells, the customer receives the additional proceeds and appreciation value.* iBuyers require you to move upon closing, which is typically within a week. MoveAbility eliminates the rushed move while getting you your cash fast.

How is MoveAbility different from other sale-leasebacks or iBuyers?

ReLease is the newest program for EasyKnock. It is a standard sale-leaseback where the homeowner sells their house to EasyKnock, gets the money from the sale, and continues to live in the home as a renter. There is no repurchase option and no maximum time they can rent for. The homeowner turned tenant can lease the house back for as long as they need to.

ReLease is for homeowners looking for flexibility and to get out from under the stresses of a mortgage, HOA fees, property taxes, and homeowner’s insurance without having to move. 

This program is helpful if you’re a homeowner looking to get the cash out of your home without the hassle of banks, loans, or moving. If you’re a retiree looking for cash and flexibility, unemployed and behind on your mortgage, or looking for a way to repair your credit, ReLease could be a solution for you.

Yes, we will pay fair market value, determined by independent 3rd party appraisers. Through our programs, you will receive a combination of cash and the EasyKnock Option™ value.

Will you purchase my home at fair market value?

Funding varies based on the program you choose.  The cash portion of a transaction is up to 70% of the home’s value upfront for Sell & Stay, up to 80% upfront for MoveAbility, and full market value upfront for ReLease. A part of this amount is used to settle any existing mortgages or liens on the property and the transaction costs. You will receive the remainder of the funding amount, known as your cash proceeds.

For those who have chosen Sell & Stay or MoveAbility, if and when you ultimately decide to move, you receive the difference between the amount the home sold for on the market, and the Option Exercise Price, this is known as your EasyKnock Option™ Value. The Option is valued as the remaining portion of the purchase price and can be accessed if and when you decide to have EasyKnock sell the property on the open market.

For those who have chosen a ReLease transaction, if you choose to move at the end of your lease term, EasyKnock will sell the house on the open market but you do not receive the appreciation of the home.

Through the Sell & Stay and MoveAbility Options you can request EasyKnock to sell the house at any time during your lease term, without penalty. You control the timing, the asking price, and even the listing agent, as long as you have not defaulted on rent.

With ReLease, we set up an initial lease term of up to 24 months. After your lease is up, you can choose to renew it for as long as you’d like.

The Sell & Stay agreement gives you the right to repurchase your home at any time during your lease term*, without penalty. Provided there has been no default on the lease, the lease renews annually, so you can stay in the home as long as you want and repurchase it at any time. You will be responsible for obtaining the financing needed to buy back your home.

Because MoveAbility is for people planning on moving, there is no repurchase option. 

ReLease is a standard sale-leaseback program and does not have a repurchase option.

*A repurchase option is not offered in all states

Can I repurchase my home after I sell it to you? 

An EasyKnock transaction consists of three main parts:

1) Initial sale: we buy the house from you in exchange for cash proceeds and one of the EasyKnock Options™*. At that time, we will collect a processing fee of 2.5% of the price we purchased the house for (the Purchase Price) and traditional home-sale closing costs**.
2) Lease: this establishes a typical tenant/landlord relationship between you and EasyKnock where you pay monthly rent.
3) Option exercise: when you decide to exercise your EasyKnock Option™, and repurchase your home or move and receive additional cash proceeds (if applicable), we collect the Buyout Price (the amount we funded you plus an average annual increase of 3%). 

ReLease does not come with an EasyKnock Option to repurchase.

*Option to repurchase is not available in every state

**Traditional home-sale costs: Closing costs are typical fees associated with selling your house. These costs are paid to the relevant third parties, states, and counties. EasyKnock collects a closing cost contribution of 1% of the appraised home value. If your state requires home sellers to pay transfer stamp taxes, we will collect this as well.

1) Initial sale: we buy the house from you in exchange for cash proceeds and one of the EasyKnock Options™*. At that time, we will collect a processing fee of 2.5% of the price we purchased the house for (the Purchase Price) and traditional home-sale closing costs.
2) Lease: this establishes a typical tenant/landlord relationship between you and EasyKnock where you pay monthly rent (typically an average of 00.75% of the purchase price per month).
3) Option exercise: when you decide to exercise your EasyKnock Option™, and repurchase your home or move and receive additional cash proceeds (if applicable), we collect the Buyout Price (the amount we funded you plus an annual average increase of 3%). 

*Traditional home-sale costs: Our closing costs are typical fees associated with selling your house. These costs are paid to the relevant third parties, states, and counties. EasyKnock collects a closing cost contribution of 1% of the appraised home value. At closing, any other costs are itemized. If your state requires home sellers to pay transfer stamp taxes, we will collect this as well.

What are the costs and fees of an EasyKnock transaction?

The Sell & Stay option premium is based on the funding amount (i.e. the total amount we paid out to cover your mortgages, liens, and your cash proceeds) as the starting point. Let’s say your home is worth $300,000, as determined by a third party appraisal, with a $50,000 balance from mortgage and liens and you request $50,000 in cash proceeds. That will make the total funding amount $100,000.

This may be referred to as the Option Exercise Price. This is the amount that will be paid to EasyKnock upon a subsequent sale of the house by EasyKnock after you have instructed EasyKnock to sell it on the market. This is also the price you would pay EasyKnock to repurchase the home. 

*Option to repurchase not available in all states

Once EasyKnock buys your home, we pay the property taxes, homeowners insurance, and any HOA fees.

Who pays property taxes and homeowners insurance?

Like a typical home sale, you will pay the closing costs when we purchase the house. 

If you decide to repurchase the home or move, EasyKnock will pay those closing costs.

Sell & Stay lease: Customers can renew their lease indefinitely on a yearly basis. Your rent will increase by the greater of 2.5% or CPI (Consumer Price Index) annually.

MoveAbility lease: Customers can renew their lease for up to 12 months with a renewal fee of 1% of EasyKnocks’s total purchase price every 6 months.

ReLease lease: Customers have a minimum lease of 24 months and can renew it indefinitely on a yearly basis. Your rent will increase by the greater of 2.5% or CPI (Consumer Price Index) annually.

We charge market rent. We determine your home’s market rent using independent third party rent data providers. The number will be based on rent for similar homes in your area.

We require renter’s insurance so that you can protect yourself from certain losses. For example, if your home were to flood, renter’s insurance would reimburse you for any of your personal belongings that were damaged.

Sell & Stay allows you to rent for as long as you like. The lease auto-renews on a yearly basis. You can also terminate your lease at any time with no penalty by exercising your EasyKnock Option™.

With MoveAbility, the initial lease term is 6 months. You can renew twice, for a total lease term of 12 months. After that, the house will be put on the market.

ReLease has a minimum lease of 24 months and can renew it indefinitely on a yearly basis.

We want to help you figure out a way to stay in your home. If someone stops paying rent we provide notice and work with them to create a plan to get back on track. We also always try our best to make sure the customer can afford the rent before we move forward with an agreement. 

EasyKnock’s top priority is customer satisfaction, so we’ll work closely with you to find a solution. 

If we are unable to come to a solution, EasyKnock may have to initiate eviction proceedings. In the unlikely event that this happens, you'll still receive the EasyKnock Option Value after we’ve recouped the unpaid rent, the selling costs, and any legal fees associated with the eviction. In the case of eviction, we will list the house to be sold with an agent/broker.

What happens if I default on my rent payments?

For general inquiries: hello@easyknock.com
For media inquiries: media@easyknock.com

Learn more about EasyKnock and our residential sale-leaseback programs.

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FAQ

Getting to Know EasyKnock

Who is EasyKnock?

How is EasyKnock different from loans, iBuyers, and fractional ownership companies?

What is a residential sale-leaseback?

Where are you based?

Which markets do you serve?

How does EasyKnock ensure the customer comes first?