This is an asset that you will need to report unless you sell it or give it away. You are asking colleges to give you need based aid so that you can hold onto $250,000 in home equity? That’s just not how it works.
The equity of your rental will be listed as an asset. Any rents you receive will be income.
In terms of your businesses…please understand that some deductions allowed by the IRS for tax purposes are added back in as income for financial aid purposes by some colleges. These include things like meals, travel, your cell phone, home offices and any expenses related to an office in your home, cars. This is because these are things you would have anyway…even if you didn’t own a business. For example, if you have a home office, you can make deductions for that for tax purposes. But the reality is…this is part of your house and the utilities and even the space are something you would have anyway.
IIRC, if your business employs less than a certain number of people, the value of the business is not reported on the FAFSA form.
BUT if your child goes to a Profile school, all bets are off…they can and do ask for financial information about everything.