Buyers who have the cash are in a much better position to get the best REO property listings deals in South Florida. A growing number of traditional homebuyers find themselves losing their desired properties to investors who flood the real estate market with cash offers.

Take for example the case of a couple who made an offer of $70,000 on a repossessed home located in northwest Cape Coral. They lost the deal to a cash offer of $50,000. Between January 1 and May 31, 60 percent of the 6,474 homes sold in Lee County were purchased by cash buyers. And in the case of homes on REO property listings, 64 percent went to buyers who offered cash.

According to industry experts, during the peak of the housing market, only one out of 10 sales deals was cash transaction. Realtors Association of Greater Fort Myers and the Beach President Suzanne Sherer pointed out the irony of the current situation wherein homebuyers who have good credit standing and reasonable income and who qualify for financing are being sideline in lieu of cash offers.

On the part of banks, they prefer to sell homes on REO property listings to cash buyers for a quick turnaround. David Hall, president of First Community Bank of Southwest Florida, explained that if banks sell foreclosed properties, lenders are paying carrying costs. He added that a financed deal may require banks to hold onto properties for months, incurring more costs on insurance, maintenance and taxes.

Another factor that makes cash buyers preferred purchasers of foreclosed properties is they do not have monthly mortgage payments to contend later. However, industry experts pointed out that cash buyers are pushing aside first-time homebuyers and families who want to purchase properties to live in instead of for investment.

Owen Beitsch of Real Estate Research Consultants said that financial obligations are being shifted from bankers to investors. He claimed that this defeats the purpose of finding someone to occupy and live on vacant properties.

Statewide, investment funds with cash to offer are grabbing discounted homes on REO property listings in bulk. Purchasing bulk properties gives leverage to investors to negotiate for even lower prices than originally offered by banks.