{"id":20529,"date":"2020-12-22T19:11:04","date_gmt":"2020-12-23T03:11:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.homelight.com\/blog\/?p=20529"},"modified":"2022-01-15T11:04:13","modified_gmt":"2022-01-15T19:04:13","slug":"buyer-i-bought-a-house-in-tampa-during-coronavirus","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.homelight.com\/blog\/buyer-i-bought-a-house-in-tampa-during-coronavirus\/","title":{"rendered":"Sheltered Home Shopping: I Bought a House in Tampa During Coronavirus"},"content":{"rendered":"

When Crystal and Anthony Rivera decided to upgrade their Tampa home this past summer, they knew it would be a challenge. The couple would have to tackle both selling their current home and<\/i> buying a new one \u2014 all during the coronavirus pandemic.<\/p>\n

Plus, they knew the competition would be hot: Tampa\u2019s housing market is stronger than ever, and it\u2019s seen impressive growth over the past year.<\/p>\n

According to the latest real estate data, Tampa homes sell for a median of $290,000<\/a>, and properties fly off the market quickly, averaging just 10 days from listing to contract.<\/p>\n

And Tampa is definitely not the place to lowball a seller: An impressive 100% of listings get their asking price or higher.<\/p>\n

\"A<\/a>
<\/a> Source: (Katie Harp \/ Unsplash)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Tampa\u2019s housing market trends in a coronavirus world<\/h2>\n

Top real estate agent Andrew Duncan<\/a>, who works with 72% more single-family homes than the average Tampa agent \u2014 and whose team worked with the Riveras \u2014\u00a0says Tampa has become particularly hot since the start of coronavirus.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve seen a surge in the number of people moving here, as well as a surge in the number of people moving to rural and suburban areas outside the city,\u201d he shares.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a very competitive market, and there aren\u2019t as many listings as we saw a year ago. Considering we have more buyers and not as many listings, that obviously tells you that prices have been rising.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Home prices are up<\/h3>\n

In fact, prices in Tampa have gone up 15.6%<\/a> from 2019 to 2020. Duncan says bidding wars are increasingly common, and many buyers are forced to offer above asking price if they want to get their foot in the homeownership door.<\/p>\n

Demand is rising with new buyers entering the market<\/h3>\n

Tampa Bay is what Duncan calls a military market, with MacDill Air Force Base as the city\u2019s largest employer. Because many of the city\u2019s residents are there on orders, there\u2019s always demand for housing in Tampa.<\/p>\n

Compounding the housing shortage, in the early months of coronavirus, many wealthy New Yorkers began to flee to Tampa to buy second homes. Add to that the many Tampa residents who \u2014 once forced to work from home \u2014 decided to upgrade to more spacious properties, and these converging factors have created unprecedented demand in the Tampa Bay market. Which is to say, if you\u2019re planning to buy in the Big Guava, you might be facing some serious competition.<\/p>\n

Low inventory means bidding wars<\/h3>\n

\u201cWe already had an inventory challenge,\u201d prior to coronavirus, Duncan explains. \u201cAnd then when you add in people being fearful to put their home on the market because of the virus, it definitely compounded the shortage of supply of homes.\u201d<\/p>\n

Expect multiple offers, potential bidding wars, and sellers unwilling to budge on their terms. Savvy buyers who want to compete in the Tampa real estate market may have to get creative with their bidding<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Inconsistencies in home showing policies<\/h3>\n

One major thing that\u2019s frustrating agents and buyers alike during this time? The inconsistencies in how sellers handle coronavirus safety measures.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere was no consistency from one seller to another,\u201d Duncan explains. \u201cWe had some sellers who said \u2018we\u2019re only showing Fridays from five to seven.\u2019 We had some sellers who required people to wear masks and booties and gloves.\u201d<\/p>\n

He even had one buyer who was required by a seller to produce a negative coronavirus test before he could see a home.<\/p>\n

Buyers making offers sight unseen<\/h3>\n

Still, these complications haven\u2019t exactly slowed buyers down. In some cases, Duncan says he\u2019s seen out-of-town buyers \u201croll the dice\u201d and buy homes after only a video tour.<\/p>\n

Closings are taking longer than ever<\/h3>\n

Another change Duncan has noticed in the Tampa real estate market is that closing times are taking longer than ever. Prior to COVID-19, he says, closings in the city took an average of 30 to 35 days, whereas now homes can take more than 45 days to close.<\/p>\n

There are a few reasons for these long wait times:<\/p>\n