Cash is king when it comes to buying a house. Always has been, and always will be. And these days, individual cash buyers -- as opposed to cash-laden investors -- have an even better shot of scoring the house of their dreams.

The share of investors currently trolling the resale market is at its lowest point since 2008, according to a report from the National Association of Realtors. And the National Association of Home Builders says all-cash sales in the new-home sector have also been trending lower.

Consequently, individual buyers now face less competition from investors -- and paying with cash gives them a leg up on buyers who must use financing.

Sellers like it when there is no mortgage involved: For one thing, cash allows for a quicker closing. An appraisal is not required, and no lender means there will be no lender-caused delays. All in all, there is less risk of something derailing a cash transaction on the way to settlement.

But there are downsides. Do you really want to empty your piggy bank, close out your retirement accounts and unload all your stocks and bonds, just to have all those assets tied up in a house?

You might, if there was a way to get your cash back in relatively short order. And that's possible with a technique known as delayed financing.

Delayed financing isn’t a kind of mortgage. Rather, it is a method for refinancing a cash purchase right after closing. Normally, homebuyers have to wait at least six months to pull money out of their deals. But with delayed financing, there is no waiting period.

The technique is particularly helpful in competitive markets in which bidding wars are common. Unfortunately, "not many people know about this program, and even fewer are using it,” says agent John Meussner of Fair Oaks, California.

When he posted about it on the ActiveRain real estate site in 2014, the response was “tremendous,” Meussner reports. “Comments like, ‘My lender didn’t know what I was talking about when I asked him about delayed financing’ were common,” he wrote in a follow-up post.

There are plenty of reasons you might want to retrieve some money out of your purchase. One is that houses are illiquid assets: It often takes months to buy and sell them -- unlike, say, stocks, which can be traded in seconds. Also, the money you used to buy your house cannot be used to make other investments. That goes against the adage that it's wisest to diversify your holdings -- to spread your money among different types of assets.

All-cash purchases also violate another basic investment tenant, which says it's best to invest with borrowed money, putting less of your own cash at risk.

Delayed financing pushes aside all these drawbacks. But as always, there are rules:

-- First and foremost, the refinanced mortgage has to be purchased from your lender by secondary market entity Fannie Mae. Check with your lender first to make sure that's the case.

-- Next, while there is no six-month wait to refinance, there is a six-month window in which you must do so. The window opens the day you close on your house and stays open for 180 days thereafter. If you miss the deadline, the opportunity is lost.

-- Refi now or later -- what’s the difference? In a regular refinance, the loan amount usually cannot exceed 80% of the home's value. But in a delayed financing, the loan amount can go up to the actual amount of your original investment in the property, as documented by the HUD-1 settlement statement -- plus whatever closing costs, prepaid fees and points you paid at that time.

That total, though, is subject to the loan-to-value ratio set for your new mortgage. And the loan amount cannot exceed Fannie Mae’s maximum loan limit, which changes yearly. Currently, that limit is $766,550 in most places, and about $1.15 million in high-cost markets.

-- Only your acquisition and closing costs can be financed under the delayed financing exception. Any costs incurred to renovate the property cannot be included. If you want to recoup those costs, as well as some of your original outlay, you’ll have to wait six months and apply for a standard cash-out refinance.

-- The purchase must have been an arm's-length transaction in which the buyer and seller both acted in their own individual interests.

-- The source of funds for your cash deal must be documented with bank statements, personal loan documents or a loan on another property you own. Any loans, including home equity lines of credit, used as a source of money for the purchase must be repaid from the proceeds from the delayed financing exception.

-- Gift funds can be used as a source of cash. But if the money Mom and Dad gave you must be repaid, it is not a gift; rather, it is a loan that must also be repaid from the delayed refi proceeds.

-- There can be no outstanding liens on the property, so make sure your taxes, insurance and homeowners association dues are paid up.

These days, disasters like wildfires, tornadoes, floods and hurricanes are more powerful -- and more frequent -- than ever. It’s increasingly likely that wherever you live, your home will be hit one way or another.

You already know it's crucial to be prepared for such an emergency, but what happens afterward is just as important.

The first step, per the nonprofit Consumers' Checkbook, is to assess your property and take any necessary steps to prevent further damage. If a falling tree put a hole in your roof, for example, put up a tarp as soon as it is safe to do so. Otherwise, subsequent damage to furnishings that were unscathed from the original event may not be covered by your insurer.

Next, take pictures or videos of the damage, whether it's the structure, your belongings or both. Capture how everything looks in the immediate aftermath before starting to clean and repair damaged items. Consumers' Checkbook advises people not to dispose of anything until an insurance adjuster has examined it, and to keep receipts for any expenses. Most policies cover those costs.

If you need help repairing your place, make sure you hire reputable contractors who don’t ask for cash up front. Before signing a contract, make sure the pros are licensed and bonded. If you have the time, check their references.

Beware of fly-by-night contractors who work out of their trucks, make hasty estimates and demand half the money in advance. These storm-chasers might do some work, but usually won’t finish -- instead, they'll hightail it out of town to the next disaster, leaving unhappy homeowners in their wake.

"Withhold as much payment as possible" until the job is done, advises a post on the Consumers' Checkbook website (checkbook.org). "If the repair work is extensive, the contractor may ask for periodic partial payments ... but no reputable contractor should request full payment in advance.”

After you’ve secured your house, call your insurance company to file a claim. Many insurers have disaster units that swarm into affected areas to help their clients when a calamity occurs. But be patient: They may be overwhelmed with customers in the area, and they tend to take the worst cases first.

When the adjuster shows up, the Insurance Information Institute (III) says, have a list of damaged items ready to show them, and point out any structural damage. To substantiate your losses, hand over any receipts that you still have -- just make copies of them first.

Be persistent, too. If your insurance company’s claims department seems to be moving too slow, call your agent to light a fire under the claims adjuster. If you still feel like you're getting nowhere, complain to your state’s insurance department. That office holds a lot of sway, and often resolves complaints in consumers’ favor.

Another option is to hire a private insurance adjuster. A private adjuster does the same job as the company’s, only they work for you. Many private adjusters once worked at insurance companies, so they know how to get through all the legalese to the heart of the matter. They'll take a cut of what your insurer eventually pays, but it may be worth that much -- and more -- to remove that burden from your shoulders.

Your next call should be to the company that collects your monthly house payments: usually a loan servicer. This outfit collects your payments, makes sure your insurance and taxes are paid and distributes the remainder to the investor who actually owns your mortgage.

Notify the servicer that your place has been severely damaged or is uninhabitable. Armed with that information, the company may be able to let you slide for a few months until you can move back in. All government-related agencies that touch mortgages -- Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, the Federal Housing Administration, Veterans Affairs and the Rural Housing Service -- have rules about forbearance, and many private lenders follow their lead.

“The rules are essentially the same,” says Donna Schmidt of DLS Servicing, which provides loss mitigation and default services for investors. “If a borrower’s property or work was adversely impacted, the servicer may offer a forbearance period.” This period gives you some financial relief until you return to work or complete the repairs to your house.

During that time -- “usually about three months,” Schmidt says, “with extensions if necessary” -- the servicer will agree to let you make partial payments, or even no payments at all, and they cannot report delinquent payments to the credit bureaus for the duration.

But remember: The missed payments must eventually be made. Once you can begin paying again, says Schmidt, the servicer will discuss the various options. One might be to modify the loan by extending the terms. Another might be to place the missing amounts into a second lien, which need not be paid back until you sell the house or otherwise pay off the primary mortgage.

To help you rebuild, you might also be eligible for a grant from Uncle Sam. Your state may be able to kick in a few bucks, too.

At the federal level, the Federal Emergency Management Agency makes assistance available to homeowners and students to cover uninsured losses. And through the Rapid Unsheltered Survivor Housing program from the Department of Housing and Urban Development, local jurisdictions are given money to disburse to people in declared disaster areas who are about to become homeless, or who are already without shelter.

Some states are taking long-overdue legislative steps to deal with squatters: people who take over others' properties without their consent, sometimes dumping the owner’s stuff and trashing their homes.

While squatting is trespassing, most jurisdictions treat the problem as a landlord-tenant dispute. This turns the ousting of the illegal occupants into a long, drawn-out legal process. Wary of becoming embroiled in legal complications, or of the situation escalating into violence, law enforcement agencies frequently advise property owners to file for eviction.

But waiting for civil eviction procedures to run their course can leave rightful owners unable to occupy their homes for months or even years -- and can cost thousands in legal fees and repairs.

Meanwhile, squatters can severely damage the houses they occupy. Per a new report from the Pacific Legal Foundation, "In one egregious example, a Dallas woman sustained more than $150,000 in property damage from squatters. And a New York City homeowner saw his utility bill increase by more than $1,000 per month when squatters took over his home."

But some states have taken notice by passing legislation to recognize squatting as a criminal offense. According to the PLF report, "As of May 2024, Alabama, California, Florida, Georgia, Nevada, Tennessee, Washington and West Virginia have passed laws that criminalize squatting, while 11 other states have introduced bills to do so."

In Florida, the law now allows the property owner to ask law enforcement to immediately remove a squatter if the occupant has entered unlawfully, has refused to leave after being told to do so and is not a current or former tenant.

“We are putting an end to the squatters scam in Florida,” said Gov. Ron DeSantis in signing the legislation. “While other states are siding with the squatters, we are protecting property owners and punishing criminals looking to game the system ... You are not going to be able to commandeer somebody’s private property and expect to get away with it.”

Tennessee’s new law also expedites the removal process. Before the measure, property owners had to begin a judicial eviction when they encountered squatters in their home -- a process that often took months.

“They enter your property, change the locks,” said State Rep. Tim Rudd, who sponsored the legislation. “You try to get them out, they then claim you leased it, the sheriff can’t make that decision at the house, so it becomes a civil matter.”

In addition to speeding up the eviction process, Georgia law now allows property owners to go after squatters for damages. It also makes squatting a misdemeanor punishable by up to a year in jail. And in Louisiana, squatters can now be charged with burglary, which incurs a fine of up to $2,500 or 12 years in jail -- or both.

The White House has taken notice of the squatting problem, too.

“We are certainly tracking that issue. The rights of property owners and renters must be protected,” said press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre, when asked about it in April. But, she added, “Ultimately this is a local issue, and it is critical that local governments take action to address it.”

Toward that end, New York is one of the states with pending legislation on the issue. Squatters are defined as tenants under current state law, whereas a bipartisan package of bills would redefine them as trespassers and expedite their removal.

But PLF says many states have yet to adequately address the situation.

“Removing squatters is extremely difficult in most states,” says Kyle Sweetland, PLF strategic research manager. “But as states like Georgia have shown, once the laws are updated to recognize squatting as criminal activity, property rights are better protected. Other states should follow Georgia’s lead.”

Little data exists on the number of squatting incidents. According to a survey by the National Rental Home Council (a landlord trade group), about 1,200 houses in Atlanta that are operated by NRHC members have been occupied by squatters, as have some 475 in the Dallas-Fort Worth region. However, these numbers were not broken down by year.

Attempting to dig deeper, the PFL report reads, "Case counts tabulated from centralized civil court records in Georgia and New York ... generally reveal an upward trend beginning in 2019." In the Peach State, civil cases involving squatting grew from 30 in 2019 to 198 in 2023. And in the Empire State, cases rose from nine in 2020 to 37 in 2023.

Until the authorities decide to get tougher on squatters, there’s little you can do if you find yourself in this situation except follow the law. A preventive measure, however, would be to purchase squatters insurance.

One insurer that offers this unusual coverage is Montana's Proper Insurance Services. Its policy covers landlords for up to $10,000 in legal expenses and $20,000 in lost revenue.

And if you really need help, consider calling in the “Squatter Hunter,” aka California handyman Flash Shelton. He turns squatters’ rights against them by occupying the property -- with a legal lease from the homeowner -- when the squatters are away. Shelton came up with his plan after squatters took over his mother’s house while she was living with him. He did what most people do: called the authorities to report a break-in, only to be told it was a civil matter.

Now, he vows to get his customers' unwanted “guests” out within 24 hours. His motto: “If they can take a house, I can take a house.”