What Is Equity In Real Estate? It sounds simple when someone is talking about it but what does equity actually mean? Equity is basically a fancy word for profit. When someone is talking about how much equity they have in their home they are saying that their home is worth more than what they owe on their mortgage. If you were to sell your home for $450,000 and all you have left to pay off on your mortgage is $200,000 then that means you have $250,000 in equity on your property. Equity is definitely a nice thing to have!