HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY, Fla. — According to Realtor.com, in February of 2023, the median listing home price in Tampa was $394.9k, which trended up 5.3% year-over-year.
Geesh Francois feels that pressure as a future first-time home-buyer. He's been on the hunt for a home for two years and counting.
"I'm looking, personally, for a single-family home, you know, something simple, nothing too crazy... I absolutely love this home... It's just a little bit outside my budget," Francois explained.
Francois said it's important for him to buy a home within his budget. But it hasn't been easy. High-interest rates and low inventory keep Francois and many others out of possibilities.
"There's a lot of uncertainty right now because we just simply don't know, are we buying too high? Will I ever get the value out of my home when I do want to sell in the future? Am I getting it at a decent interest rate? Is it going to always be at this point is it going to go lower? If it goes so low, you can refinance?" Francois added.
Those questions loom across the Tampa Bay area as new data shows deflation hitting the housing market out west and northeast.
According to the National Association of Realtors, home prices fell for the first time in over a decade.
"There are numbers of cities where home values have dropped, prices have dropped, but that's not been the case here. We are up again, year-over-year and prices have continued to maintain themselves," Local realtor, Tom Schulz, said.
Schulz said interest rates are to blame, but he's hopeful they'll continue to drop. He adds that Tampa Bay's inventory is at its lowest since about 2013. Come Spring, Schulz predicts that will change as more people look to relocate during the summer and before the next school year.
"We're guardedly hopeful that April is going to see an increase in the numbers of properties that people would be able to buy," Schulz said.
Meanwhile, Francois continues to be patient. He suggests other home buyers do their research to get the most bang for their buck.
"A common misunderstanding is that you need 20% down to purchase a home. You don't. You can purchase as low as 3.5% with the FHA or conventional 5-10%... And sleep on it, and chances are if you like it, seven other people like it as well," Francois said.
