Woman leaves people stunned after sharing what true meaning is when someone 'pays cash'

If you've ever found yourself in the position to actually buy a house - I know it's rare these days - then you may have come across the term 'cash buyers only'.

I mean, if I ever see it during a doom scroll through Rightmove, I move swiftly on, in the full knowledge that it's not for me, like 99 percent of the houses on the site. But what does it mean?

These days the idea of actually owning a property can seem pretty far-fetched, with house prices at record highs and interest rates about as bad as they could be.

On top of that, you're often up against other house hunters who are much wealthier than yourself.

Not only can they gazump any offer the average Joe is able to put down, they can pay the entire amount straight away; they don't even need a mortgage - they can 'pay cash'.

If you're unsure what that means, though, finance whizz Fran is at hand to demystify the whole process.

In a post to her TikTok account, she explained that the term isn't quite as literal as some would think - sorry if you imagined someone with a bag full of cash heading down to their bank to buy a house.

She wrote: "When someone says they ‘paid cash for their house’ or ‘bought their car with cash’ it doesn’t literally mean they paid with physical notes.

"It just means they had enough money in their bank account to pay the full price upfront, and didn’t need to get a mortgage loan or a car loan."

Well, it turns out that there are a lot of people who didn't realise the above.

Since the vid was posted, it's been viewed over 4.8 million times, with thousands piling into the comments to share their utter shock at the revelation.

"That solved a mystery I was too scared to ask about," wrote one.

Another admitted: "I always imagine they pulled out a briefcase of bills tho."

"I literally pictured people slapping a wad of cash on the table and then the house is theirs," put a third.

While another added: "I was today years old."

Not everyone was surprised by the explanation, though.

I know it's hard to believe, but there are many who've always known the truth.

Taken aback by people's lack of understanding of how the property market works, one user said: "I’m concerned with how many people thought it was actual cash."

Well, quite.