I believe this is due in part to the average house buyer not being informed on how many options they have.

Being a real estate investor, I have come to find that there are more than a number of ways to finance a deal. Also, there are several which require no down payment or initial equity in the deal. Lease options, seller financing, subject-to deals, wraparound mortages, HELOC (Home Equity Line of Credit), etc. The average consumer is unaware of the flexibilities present in finance, and as such, they tend to believe that conventional financing in the only way to go.