Josh Terwilliger and his fiancee Gail Berlam offered $70,000 on a foreclosure in insurance northwest Cape Coral only to lose out to a $50,000 offer from a buyer with cash. When the cash deal fell through, Berlam and Terwilliger lost out again to a buyer putting down 20 percent on a $66,000 offer.
Realtors say the couple’s story is growing more common in Southwest Florida as investors flood the housing market with cash offers, pushing out traditional home owners.
Of the 6,474 homes sold in Lee County between Jan. 1 and May 31, almost 60 percent went to cash buyers. The proportion of cash buyers is even higher on foreclosed properties. About 64 percent of bank-owned properties are going to buyers with cash.
During the boom years, Cape Coral Realtor Paula K. Hellenbrand said she would be surprised if one of every 10 sales was a cash transaction.
“We finally have buyers that can qualify for financing, they have the income, they have the credit score and the prices are where they can afford to do it,” said Suzanne Sherer, president of the Realtors Association of Greater Fort Myers and the Beach. “But they’re being forced out.”
Berlam and Terwilliger are first time homebuyers with good credit, government incentives and steady jobs at a resort in Fort Myers Beach.