IE Business Daily Business news for the Inland Empire.
Twenty eight point eight percent of all U.S. homebuyers in March paid cash, down one percent year-over-year, according to a report.
That was also the lowest percentage of cash purchases during the third month of the year since 2021, when that number was also 28.8 percent, Seattle-based Redfin reported.
All-cash home purchases peaked at nearly 35 percent in 2023, after mortgage rates reached nearly eight percent. At that time, buyers who could afford to were inclined to pay in cash to avoid high monthly mortgage payments.
Market conditions have now changed – economic uncertainty and a shift toward more sellers than buyers – causing cash purchases to drop.
“Cash buyers have retreated,” said Bet Behling, a Redfin Premier agent, in a statement. “Buyers are feeling jittery about the economy, and it’s not financially comfortable to drop a huge chunk of money into a home. They may prefer to have more cash on hand.”
During March, 38.1`percent of Riverside’s home sales were cash transactions, the fourth-largest of any major US metro market, according to Redfin.
