As the residential real estate market continues to lose steam, competition is weakening, and cash is no longer necessary to win a deal.
The share of cash sales during the first four months of this year was 31.4%, down from 32.3% during the same period a year ago, according to Realtor.com that looks at both new and existing homes. Buyers using mortgages are getting a boost from cooler prices, higher inventory and less confidence among sellers.
Cash buyers are actually dropping out faster than the overall market decline. Total home sales during that same period were down 8.5% year over year, but the number of cash sales fell 11.2%. That coincided with slower price growth. The national median price was up just 0.2% annually, far less than the 1.8% growth in 2025 and well below the 15.4% peak seen 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, in a release. "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."
Cash had been seen as necessary in some of the most competitive markets during the height of the pandemic housing boom, and that continued for several years due to historically lean supply and especially after interest rates rose. The share of all-cash sales in July of this year was 26%, down from 31% in July 2025, according to a survey from the National Association of Realtors, looking only at existing homes.
While cash sales are declining nationally, some markets are still seeing gains. Pittsburgh, Austin, Texas, and San Francisco all saw a rise in the share of cash transactions compared with a year ago. This wasn't just because of fewer total sales. It was because the actual number of cash purchases increased.
Dana Bull is a real estate agent in the Boston area and said she is seeing fewer cash buyers in her market, even though Boston is still quite competitive.
"There was certainly a period of time when cash was king, which was right after interest rates climbed and aggressive bidding wars were commonplace. It's been tapering off," said Bull.
She said she is still seeing waived financing terms, and in hotter neighborhoods she recommends that buyers get pre-underwritten versus just preapproved in order to compete against cash.
"I had a client win a bidding war against about 15 offers this spring (financed with pre-underwriting), and my team member just beat out 27 other offers on a house in Arlington (also financed). I don't think this would have happened in 2022-2025 during the cash craze," said Bull.
