PALM BEACH COUNTY, Fla. — Many homebuyers in South Florida are choosing the cash for deed transaction route when buying a home.
Mortgage lenders say cash is king right now, making the market even more competitive for the average home buyer.
“I feel like I’m forced into basically living in my car,” April Wade, a Palm Beach County teacher, told WPTV.
Wade said she doesn’t know what her next step will be.
“We moved here to be … I wanted to raise my children close to family,” she said.
WPTV
April Wade of Palm Springs is among the renters struggling with the rising housing costs in Palm Beach County.
Wade and her husband relocated to South Florida four years ago when housing was much more affordable.
“We rent a two-bedroom, two-bathroom townhouse in Palm Springs, and we pay more than what one of my paychecks is,” Wade said. “I get paid biweekly.”
They pay $1,600 a month for just enough space for their family of four.
However, the family’s lease is up in August, and with rent up 57% from last year, the largest increase in the nation, Wade said she can see the writing on the wall.
WPTV
April Wade doesn’t believe she can continue to afford to live in her townhome in Palm Springs.
“Looking at the current market, I’m thinking it’s going to go up at least $400, if not more, which would put us up into the $2,000s range,” Wade said.
Wade said they won’t be able to afford that increase if it happens. She told WPTV they’ve been trying to save to buy a home but getting financing would be tough right now.
“We both work full time and the money that we make goes right into the bills, right into rent, and we’re left with very little,” Wade said.
One new avenue a lot of people are using to buy a home right now is through what is called a cash for deed transaction, making the market even more competitive.
The property is transferred from seller to buyer without involving a lender, like a bank.
WPTV
South Florida has experienced the largest rent increase in the nation since last year.
Instead, the buyer makes their payments directly to the seller who retains the home’s title until the final payment is made.
“This market currently is unprecedented,” Greg Downs, a mortgage loan consultant with New American Funding, said. “In previous years, 90% of transactions, or greater, involved mortgage financing.”
Downs told WPTV that right now buyers are getting aggressive and creative. Besides the …….