Nearly 38% of homes and condos purchased nationwide in the second quarter were all-cash transactions. While this was slightly lower than the previous quarter’s three-year high of 42% of transactions, it was also higher than the year before.

The portion of sales conducted exclusively in cash sales varied widely across the United States. In Madison, Wisconsin only 18.5% of home and condo purchases were all-cash sales, the lowest proportion nationwide. In the Miami metro area, more than 64% of home sales were all-cash sales. Based on data provided by RealtyTrac, a housing data and analytics firm, these are the cities where home buyers pay with cash.

Click here to see the 10 cities where homebuyers pay cash

Although demographics of home purchasers are not specifically tracked, all-cash homebuyers usually fall into three categories, Daren Blomquist, vice president at RealtyTrac, told 24/7 Wall St. Blomquist identified the first type as institutional investors, who buy homes that will serve as rental properties. The second type includes international buyers who buy properties because they see “U.S. real estate as a safe haven for their cash.” Finally, retirees often pay in cash as well.

The higher activity of institutional investors in recovering housing markets can partly explain the high levels of cash purchases in some areas. These buyers are defined as “entities that purchase at least 10 properties in a calendar year.” Seven of the 10 cities with the highest shares of cash-only buyers were also among the top 20 cities for the percentage of shares to institutional buyers. Notably, institutional investors bought roughly 15% of all homes sold in the Las Vegas metro area in the second quarter, more than in all but one other city nationwide.

All-cash sales tend to be more likely in areas with distressed housing markets. This is especially the case in cities where real estate markets were hit hardest during the recession. In Florida, where home prices plummeted during the Great Recession, all-cash purchases made up the majority of home sales. Eight of the 10 cities with the most home buyers paying cash are located in Florida.

Short sales is another measure of a distressed housing market. A short sale occurs when a house sells for less than the balance of the outstanding mortgage debt. Although it is not always the case, a short sale “is and indication that the market is still working through distress and underwater properties, and generally that is a good opportunity for investors to come in who are paying with cash,” Blomquist said. The metro areas where home buyers most frequently paid with cash also had among the highest proportions of short sales. All but one of these markets was among the top 10 markets for short sales.

Cash sales also tended to be higher for both the lowest-priced and most expensive properties. They made up two-thirds of purchases of homes selling for up to $100,000, as well as 45% of purchases of homes selling for more than $2 million. According to Blomquist, institutions tend to favor the lower-end properties, while international buyers typically prefer the higher-priced homes.

Based on data provided by RealtyTrac, 24/7 Wall St. reviewed the cities where the largest percentage of homes sold in the second quarter of 2014 were purchased with cash. RealtyTrac also provided median list price and short sale data as of July 2014, as well as quarterly institutional sales data. Figures on the percentages of households with a mortgage are from the U.S. Census Bureau and are current as of 2012.

These are the 10 cities where homebuyers are paying cash.

10. Las Vegas-Paradise, Nev.
> Pct. cash sales: 50.7%
> Median list price: $204,000 (43rd highest)
> Pct. institutional sales: 14.4% (2nd highest)

More than 50% of all property sales were all-cash in the Las Vegas-Paradise metro area, one of only a handful of large metro areas where cash sales represented a majority of homes sold. Unlike the rest of the nation, the percentage of area home purchases conducted in cash declined between the second quarters of 2013 and 2014. Still, the Las Vegas area was among those hit hardest by the housing crisis, and the local housing market is still distressed. While just 4.5% of nationwide real estate transactions were short sales in July, such sales accounted for more than 13% of deals in the Las Vegas metro area. Good deals on housing can also attract institutional investors, who made up more than 14% of sales last quarter, versus 4.7% across the U.S.

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9. Palm Bay-Melbourne-Titusville, Fla.
> Pct. cash sales: 50.7%
> Median list price: $149,900 (23rd lowest)
> Pct. institutional sales: 2.1% (50th lowest)

Like other regions where the majority of home sales were conducted in cash, the Palm Bay housing market has been relatively distressed. In the second quarter, 11% of home sales were short sales, more than double the national rate. Unlike many other popular all-cash markets and other Florida metro areas, institutional investors accounted for only a small share of sales in Palm Bay. Institutions bought just over 2% of homes sold in the area in the second quarter, considerably less than the national rate of 4.7%.

8. Jacksonville, Fla.
> Pct. cash sales: 51.5%
> Median list price: $169,900 (40th lowest)
> Pct. institutional sales: 12.5% (3rd highest)

Institutional investors bought 12.5% of all homes sold in Jacksonville during the second quarter of 2014, the third highest among metro areas reviewed. Additionally, home prices were low relative to national prices as well as the area’s historical levels. The median home price was just under $170,000 as of July 2014, unchanged from the year before and lower than in the majority of large metro areas, according to RealtyTrac. These factors may have attracted all-cash purchasers to the area. All-cash transactions rose from 47.4% of all sales in the second quarter of 2013 to 51.5% in the second quarter of this year.

7. McAllen-Edinburg-Mission, Texas
> Pct. cash sales: 52.0%
> Median list price: $149,000 (21st lowest)
> Pct. institutional sales: 3.7% (33rd highest)

Just over a third of homes in the United States did not have a mortgage as of 2012. In the McAllen metro area, however, nearly 52% of homes did not have mortgages, among the highest rates in the nation. This figure was likely bolstered by low home prices and all-cash sales. More than half of all sales were all-cash in the second quarter, versus less than 40% of home sales during the same time last year. Over a similar time frame, from July 2013 to July 2014, the median listing price rose by 6.8%, better than just over half of all metro areas reviewed. However, homes in McAllen are still relatively inexpensive, with a median listing price of just $149,000, lower than most areas..

6. Orlando-Kissimmee, Fla.
> Pct. cash sales: 52.2%
> Median list price: $174,900 (42nd lowest)
> Pct. institutional sales: 7.2% (12th highest)

More than 52% of Orlando area homes were paid for in cash during the second quarter of 2014, a number that is just slightly lower than the previous quarter. With home prices in the Orlando metro area rising in the 12 months through July, short sales declined from 25% of all sales in July 2013 to 13.7% of all sales in July of 2014. Still, this was second highest proportion in the United States. The median list price rose by 9% in the year through July 2014, more than the majority of cities nationwide.

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5. Lakeland, Fla.
> Pct. cash sales: 53.0%
> Median list price: $119,995 (4th lowest)
> Pct. institutional sales: 5.8% (19th highest)

Institutional investor purchases accounted for 5.8% of Lakeland home sales in the second quarter of 2014, which was less than half the share in the same period last year. The share of purchases conducted in cash, on the other hand, decreased only slightly. In the second quarter of 2014, 53% of sales were made without a mortgage, only four percentage points less than in the year prior. But while new homeowners were buying without a mortgage, many sellers were looking to simply get out from under theirs. More than 14% of sales were short sales, the highest proportion among all cities reviewed.

4. Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, Fla.
> Pct. cash sales: 54.6%
> Median list price: $144,900 (17th lowest)
> Pct. institutional sales: 6.9% (15th highest)

Investors appeared to be attracted to the Tampa area’s low home prices. A typical property was listed for $144,900 in July, lower than in most major metro areas. Nearly 55% of home purchases were made with cash, and nearly 7% of sales went to institutional investors in the second quarter of 2014, higher than in most cities. These figures were actually lower than in previous months. In the first quarter of 2014, all-cash purchases accounted for 63% of transactions, and institutional investors purchased one in seven homes sold.

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3. Sarasota-Bradenton-Venice, Fla.
> Pct. cash sales: 61.5%
> Median list price: $181,000 (47th lowest)
> Pct. institutional sales: 6.6% (16th highest)

All-cash purchases accounted for more than 60% of all home purchases in the Sarasota metro area. Homes in this area were still far cheaper than five years ago. The median listing price was only $181,000 in July, up 7% from the year prior, but 27% lower than the median listing price in 2009. Home prices in this metro area vary widely. Homes in parts of the area are far more expensive, particularly those along the water. However, portions of the area can be extremely cheap, with homes often listed for less than $100,000.

2. Cape Coral-Fort Myers, Fla.
> Pct. cash sales: 62.1%
> Median list price: $221,450 (32nd highest)
> Pct. institutional sales: 4.2% (31st highest)

Like the rest of the state, the Cape Coral metro area was hit hard by the housing crisis. More recently, however, the city has shown signs of a housing market recovery. The typical home price rose by 20% in only a year, from $183,900 in July 2013 to $210,450 in July 2014, among the larger increases of any city reviewed. Despite rising prices, homebuyers have continued to largely pay for property in cash, with the percentage of cash purchases little changed between the second quarters of 2013 and 2014. Additionally, over 11% of July transactions were short sales, more than in all but five other metro areas.

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1. Miami-Fort Lauderdale-Pompano Beach, Fla.
> Pct. cash sales: 64.1%
> Median list price: $225,000 (28th highest)
> Pct. institutional sales: 8.2% (10th highest)

More than 64% of home sales in the Miami metro area were paid for in cash during the second quarter of this year, more than in any other metro area in the nation. Like every other area where all-cash home purchases were common, the housing market in the Miami metro area has been relatively distressed. More than 10% of property sales in the area were short sales in July, among the higher rates in the U.S. The local real estate market has also attracted interest from institutional investors, who made up more than 8% of sales in the second quarter, more than in all but a handful of other metro areas. Wealthy Latin American buyers, too, are often credited with providing a boost to Miami real estate.

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