Cash buyers are beginning to lose some of the outsized influence they gained during the pandemic-era housing boom, according to a new Realtor.com report.
Cash purchases accounted for 31.4% of home sales during the first four months of 2026, down from 32.3% a year earlier, and are also declining faster than overall home sales.
Total sales fell 8.5% year-over-year, while the number of cash transactions dropped 11.2%.
At the same time, national home price growth has slowed considerably. The median sale price increased just 0.2% year-over-year, compared with 1.8% growth in 2025 and a 15.4% peak in 2021.
“Cash buyers aren’t disappearing; they’re simply becoming less dominant as the housing market finds its footing,” said Hannah Jones, senior economist at Realtor.com. “More inventory and moderating prices are giving financed buyers more opportunities to compete. Cash still matters, but today its biggest advantage isn’t just winning bidding wars. It’s also giving sellers confidence that a deal will close quickly and with fewer surprises.”
While cash buying is cooling nationally, several major markets are seeing the opposite trend.
Pittsburgh posted the largest increase in cash share among major metros, rising 6.8 percentage points year-over-year. Austin experienced increases in both cash share and the number of cash purchases.
Among states, Mississippi had the highest cash share at 47.2%, followed by Montana at 45.9%, New Mexico at 43.8%, Missouri at 42.0% and Florida at 41.3%.
Among major metropolitan areas, Miami led with a 43.2% cash share, followed by Kansas City at 38.9%, Houston at 38.8%, San Antonio at 38.7% and St. Louis at 37.5%.
At the other end of the spectrum, high-cost employment centers recorded some of the lowest cash shares. Seattle stood at 16.4%, Washington, D.C., at 18.2%, Denver at 18.8% and San Jose at 20.2%.
Despite national pullback, cash purchases remain particularly common among both lower-priced and luxury homes.
More than two-thirds of homes selling for less than $100,000 were purchased in cash during the first four months of 2026. Meanwhile, more than 40% of homes priced above $1 million sold without financing, while a majority of homes priced at $2 million or more were purchased with cash, Realtor.com said.
This article was generated using HousingWire Automation and reviewed by a HousingWire editor before publication.
