Buying a home in a competitive market? The best way to get the one you want is to put a good deal of money down on the house, and make an all-cash offer. A cash offer can avoid bidding wars and win the day.  

Of course, not everyone has the cash on hand to pay for a house. Some buyers might wait until they have a full loan approval to make their offers. Others might get a boost from friends or relatives willing to advance the cash.

Today, there’s an additional option available that doesn’t require a buyer to fork over the cash. If you qualify for a home loan, chances are you can also get a loan to let you make your seller a “cash offer” as well. That is, you can finance your cash offer.

Here, we take a closer look at the various routes. Depending on the situation, one could lead to a winning deal for you.

Pandemic Highlights Differences Between Local Landlords and Big Companies

In the middle of a housing shortage, rental companies attract a certain amount of criticism. What buyer wants to wind up in a bidding war with a big company? And that’s exactly what happens in many of the top competitive markets. Some hopeful home buyers just can’t win. And they can end up in rental homes — paying rent to those same big companies.

Buying or building rental units is lucrative. Although corporate investors comprise a relatively small percentage of the U.S. rental market, their numbers are steadily growing.

Non-commercial properties — the “mom and pop” investors with four units or fewer in a building — supply a great deal of the country’s affordable housing. Many buy properties in college towns or dynamic tech hubs where a large portion of the population prefers to rent. And some of these small landlords also find themselves trying to compete with wealthy rental companies.

Let’s break this down.

California has changed its laws in wildfire country. Buyers of real estate in in places where the risk of fire is “high” or “very high” will receive information about how the seller cleared the home of surrounding debris, and how the buyer should continue that task, protecting the home from flames and embers. It’s just the latest adjustment to California’s wildfire risk mitigation and disclosure law, prompted by destructive fires in recent seasons.

Seeking Inclusivity and Fairness Through AI

Great news: Eighty percent of U.S. residents have never defaulted on their loans or credit lines.

Not-so-great news: Prime credit is out of reach for most of them.

What this means: Better credit assessments could help lenders approve many more borrowers than they do today — and with better long-term repayment success.

What will it take to make this happen? Could artificial intelligence widen the path to mortgages and home ownership? Some industry newcomers are working on it.

Six Factors Are Keeping the Market Hot

Home prices have surged in recent years. Now, with interest rates lower than the industry ever thought they go, demand keeps rising. And despite the headlines declaring the housing boom is over, credible reports and commentaries suggest the housing market is not cooling down any time soon.

U.S. home prices have risen more sharply than they have in three decades. The market now seems gravity-defying. Even so, according to Freddie Mac’s forecast:

“Strong home sales and robust house price growth will lift home purchase mortgage originations from $1.8 trillion in 2021 to $1.9 trillion in 2022.”