Late in 2012 the California Association of Realtors released their Annual Housing Market Survey, one finding in particular that caught my eye was that nearly 30% of all buyers in California paid all cash for home purchases. That was triple the number of the year of 2001, when only about 9% of buyers paid cash. Of course, these numbers piqued my interest as to how the Big Bear area would compare to the state level.
Over the years, many investors and second home owners have placed their money in the Big Bear real estate market, either in hopes of realizing investment goals or because of lifestyle choices. Either way, it is encouraging to see that buyers have chosen to invest their cash here, even in a down market, when it is generally accepted that any return on investment would be long term.