TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) — Tampa is the third most popular place people in the United States are trying to move to, according to a new Redfin report on mover migration. It follows just two other cities, Phoenix, Arizona., and Miami.

Redfin had already reported home prices nationally were up 16% compared to the year before, in February. Zillow reported inventory was down almost 30% in Tampa last month, as well.

The national mortgage rate for 30-year fixed rate mortgages rose over 4% as the Federal Reserve enacted its first interest rate hike since 2018, one of seven planned for 2022, in a bid to cut back inflation increases.

The seller’s market remains in play, and the Tampa metro is the center of it in Florida. Of all of the homes sold in the state in the past month, 16% were here in Tampa Bay. Across the United States, rent prices have increased by double digits for seven months straight, according to Realtor.com.

In Tampa, rent is up over 30% compared to last year. Still, the region is middle of the pack for the top five places people are trying to move in the whole country, and Miami is the only other Florida city ranked higher, as the most popular move destination in the U.S.

About a third of all homebuyers in the U.S. are looking to relocate, according to Redfin’s analysis. The top five locations to move to starts with Miami and ends with Las Vegas. The next two spots were also in Florida, helping round out the top 10.

  1. Miami, Fla.
  2. Phoenix, Ariz.
  3. Tampa, Fla.
  4. Sacramento, Calif.
  5. Las Vegas, Nev.
  6. Cape Coral, Fla.
  7. North Port, Fla.
  8. Dallas, Texas
  9. San Antonio, Texas
  10. Atlanta, Ga.

In their migration study, Redfin said more buyers were leaving San Francisco, Calif. than any other place in the country over the past two months. Los Angeles, New York City, Washington and Seattle were next, with Boston, Chicago, Denver, Portland and Minneapolis finishing out the top 10 places people wanted to leave.

  1. San Francisco, Calif.
  2. Los Angeles, Calif.
  3. New York, N.Y.
  4. District of Columbia
  5. Seattle, Wash.
  6. Boston, Mass.
  7. Chicago, Ill.
  8. Denver, Colo.
  9. Portland, Ore.
  10. Minneapolis, Minn.

Nationally, Redfin data showed it’s still less expensive to own and pay a mortgage than to rent, but a shrinking inventory makes finding a place to live difficult. Their data showed that in Tampa, the average monthly rent was $2,120 while a monthly mortgage for buyers putting down 20% was just $721.

According to Redfin, mortgage payments were up 22% compared to last year and the median asking price for a home was up 14%. At the same time, new listings of homes for sale decreased 1.4% compared to last year and active listings were down nearly 24%. Redfin reported active listings in Tampa were down even further, at 35.6% less, while new listings were down 5.7% in the region.

The real estate company said the issue arose from the COVID-19 pandemic.

“The number of homes on the market is down 49.9% from two years ago to a record low of roughly 456,000,” Redfin reported just before the second anniversary of the pandemic’s start. Over two years, the company’s data showed that home prices jumped 34% and the number of homes selling above list price has doubled. Homes are selling faster too, with nearly half selling in a week, versus 31% doing so pre-pandemic.

Florida homes are selling like crazy as prices are on the rise, but the inventory is still low.