James Van Der Beek’s friends helped make huge payment one month before his death

Friends of the late actor James Van Der Beek helped him with a down payment for a house his family had been renting so they could own it.

The Dawson's Creek star died earlier this week at the age of 48, with his family posting a tribute on 11 February saying he'd passed in the morning.

A GoFundMe was established for the family which at time of writing had passed $2.6 million as it said that paying for the actor's cancer treatment had left them 'out of funds' and put them through 'significant financial strain'.

Now his representatives have told People that shortly before his death his friends helped him put money towards a Texas ranch his family had been living in and renting.

They explained that Van Der Beek, his wife Kimberly and their six children had been living on the rented ranch until some friends helped set up a trust to put some money down on the property.

James Van Der Beek, pictured last year, bought a house his family had been living in with help from his friends (Kevin Winter/Getty Images)

"James secured down payment for the Texas ranch for the family with the help of friends through a trust so they could shift from rent to mortgage," they explained.

The family had left California in 2020 to move to Austin, Texas and according to Realtor they rented the ranch as they wanted to try life in another state before settling down.

Realtor also reports that the family bought the ranch worth $4.76 million on 9 January, just over a month before Van Der Beek died.

Following his death, tributes to the actor have poured in with his brother Jared saying they had a 'special bond' but now the 'physical bond was broken'.

He said: "I now know why people call it heartbreak when you lose someone close to you. There is a feeling of devastation and pain that runs so deep in the heart, I didn’t know it would hurt so badly.

The actor had help from friends to put a payment down on the house shortly before he died (Emma McIntyre/Getty Images)

"He was my person, the one I went to for any and all things. I’ve looked up to him since I was born. He has never failed to be there for me whenever I needed him."

Jared said his brother had been a 'wise soul' and that as painful as losing his brother was 'all the outpouring of love, prayers, and support' had been helpful.

The actor's last message had come in January where he'd sent a message to his followers talking about the difficulty of a New Year's Resolution and 'new beginnings at a time when nature rests'.