Straight from the Top!

What going on with the average home price in the Tampa Area? Based on numbers released by the Greater Tampa Association of Realtors comparing the first three quarters of 2011 to 2010, it was great for buyers, but quite as good for sellers.

The average residential home closing dropped from $181,944 to $165,934, for a decrease of 8.8%. Condos and townhomes faired a little worse, with decreases of 15.0% and 15.9%, respectively.

I think a large part of the drop is due to the vast numbers of short sales and bank owned properties that were hitting the market. As we work our way through these over the year or two, I would expect to start seeing the prices start to go back on the upswing. If you interested in purchasing in the Tampa Bay area, what would I recommend? Waterfront property. It was some of the hardest hit early on, and therefore, I would expect to see some of the quickest and strongest recovery in that market when the prices do start to turn.