Despite record low mortgage rates for most of the year, 38% of all homes sold will be all greenbacks, no mortgage involved, HI reports. That's up from 34% in 2010 and double the rate of all-cash deals recorded in 2006.

And the trend is likely to continue, at least in the near term, the research wing of the Hanley-Wood publishing company suggests, as long as investors continue to take down a big share of the properties for sale, especially in which the previous owner was in some sort of duress.

For the record, 20% of all housing sales in 2007 were for cash. In 2008, the figure jumped to 26%. And in 2009, it moved up again to 31%