All-Cash Share of U.S. Home Purchases in May Drops to Lowest Level Since November 2009 With Institutional Investor Purchases at 15-Year Low and Distressed Sales Drying Up - Seite 3

Metro areas with a population of at least 200,000 with the highest share of distressed sales were Flint, Michigan (26.0 percent), Tallahassee, Florida (24.2 percent), Memphis, Tennessee (24.1 percent), Pensacola, Florida (23.0 percent), and Ocala, Florida (21.7 percent).

"The market has shifted. In 2010, almost 30 percent of all listings in the Seattle area were distressed -- either REO or subject to a short-sale -- and today the figure about one-third of that. Although, still running at above historical averages, the decline in distressed sales is not surprising given that we continue to see a decline in these listings," said Matthew Gardner, Chief Economist Windermere Real Estate, covering the Seattle market. "Moreover, when we look at the decline in institutional investors -- as well as all cash buyers -- this is a sign that Seattle home prices have escalated to a point that it is increasingly difficult for these buyers to see significant returns on their investments."

Bank-owned sales
Bank-owned sales accounted for 3.9 percent of all residential property sales in May, down from 6.9 percent the previous month and down from 9.0 percent a year ago to the lowest level since January 2011.

Metros with the highest share of REO sales were Flint, Michigan (16.0 percent), Mobile, Alabama (13.1 percent), Tallahassee, Florida (12.6 percent), Palm Bay-Melbourne-Titusville, Florida (11.9 percent), and Fayetteville, North Carolina (11.9 percent).

In-foreclosure sales
Properties that sold while in the foreclosure process -- but not yet bank-owned -- accounted for 6.6 percent of all residential property sales in May, down from 8.5 percent the previous month and down from 9.2 percent a year ago to the lowest level since January 2011.

Metros with the highest share of in-foreclosure sales were Chicago (14.8 percent), Rockford, Illinois (14.6 percent), Toledo, Ohio (13.4 percent), New Haven, Connecticut (12.7 percent), and Memphis, Tennessee (12.7 percent).

"While housing demand has remained high across much of Ohio, there are communities where we have noticed year-over-year decreases in foreclosure inventory, coupled with year-over-year decreases in institutional and cash sales, creating a slight decrease in pending sales and median prices for the month of May," said Michael Mahon, president at HER Realtors, covering the Cincinnati, Dayton and Columbus markets in Ohio.