TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) — March comes in like a lion, as the saying goes, and it’s true again for rent increases in Tampa Bay. After a couple of months of slight decreases in how much rent hikes were hitting, the cost of housing is again spiking in Tampa.
Across the Tampa Bay area, rent and other housing prices increased, sometimes by hundreds of dollars. It’s a refrain we’ve heard and experienced before. Months of increases for fuel, food, and homes, due to an inflation spike that just won’t quit.
The increases are certainly not out of sight, out of mind, as the everyday items American consumers need or want continue to have prices rise due to supply chain snarls and historic jumps in costs.
While the Federal Reserve continues planning its forecasted interest rate hikes to claw out a measure of stabilization for the inflation hitting American wallets, housing inventory remains low across the country. While the inventory shrink continues, price booms are hitting real estate in a storm, and Tampa Bay isn’t an exception but a leader.
The National Association of Realtors said home inventory for purchase reached a record low in January and prices climbed. As a result, more people are renting. But the prices there aren’t immune to increases.
The median price to rent a one-bedroom apartment is currently $1,461 per month, according to the real estate company ApartmentList. If you want a little more space by having a second bedroom, you’ll pay almost $1,800 per month.
And that’s just the city of Tampa.
In the rest of the Tampa Bay area, St. Petersburg’s median rent for a one-bedroom is $1,400, Clearwater’s at $1,340 and Brandon is $1,570. Riverview’s clocking in at $1,800, Wesley Chapel at $1,720 and Plant City at a lower $1,410.
All of the cities ApartmentList surveyed for the March rent report had price increases of more than 25% from March 2021. Tampa, Clearwater, and Riverview all had price jumps over 30%. While the City of Sarasota‘s median one-bedroom rent is $1,587, the report said prices were up 50% compared to last year, a bigger jump than Tampa, or St. Pete.
The average rent increase across Florida is just 29.6%, putting the Tampa Bay metro area in a steep lead over other parts of the state by comparison. Nationally, rent is up 17.6% compared to last March.
While the rent increases are high, Miami remains one of the most expensive cities to rent in in Florida, with median rent coming in at $2,100 for a one-bedroom apartment. Meanwhile, Tallahassee and Lakeland remain on the lower side of the housing cost scale, at $1,350 and $1,176 for a one-bedroom, respectively.
“Lakeland’s year-over-year rent growth lags the state average of 29.6%, but exceeds the national average of 17.6%,” the ApartmentList study said.
| City | Median 1B Rent | Median 2B Rent | M/M Growth | Y/Y Growth |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tampa | $1,460 | $1,780 | 0.8% | 31.2% |
| St. Petersburg | $1,400 | $1,860 | 0.8% | 29.5% |
| Clearwater | $1,340 | $1,830 | 0.4% | 31.6% |
| Brandon | $1,570 | $1,890 | 0.2% | 25.3% |
| Riverview | $1,800 | $1,940 | -1.0% | 32.5% |
| Wesley Chapel | $1,720 | $2,100 | -0.8% | 26.2% |
| Plant City | $1,410 | $1,750 | 0.4% | 40.6% |
| Sarasota | $1,587 | $2,175 | 1.7% | 50.0% |
| Lakeland | $1,176 | $1,493 | 0.5% | 24.6% |
The average rent increase across Florida is 29.6%, putting the Tampa Bay metro area over other parts of the state by comparison. Nationally, rent is up 17.6% compared to last March. According to a recent study by Online Mortgage Advisor, Tampa remains at the top of negative affordability rankings for housing.
