They don't say "cash is king" for nothing - and in residential real estate, nothing could be truer. In a time of unprecedented economic turbulence, the amount of all cash buyers if off the charts. A recent article posted by DoctorHousingBubble.com dissects the trends of home buyers and their preferred method of payment. According to the article, Wall Street investors as well as foreign buyers are dominating the market with all-cash purchases. In 2012, all-cash transactions in southern California hit a record high of 35.8% in December, and last month, that number was mimicked by 35.6%, much higher than historical norms. The article also explains that 31% of these buyers are absentee buyers, meaning they are not planning to live in these homes, and dating back to 2000, the monthly average of absentee buyers was nearly half at 17 percent. The graph above provides a visual description of all-cash transactions in specific markets across the country.
Graph provided by DrHousingBubble.com