Three Tampa Bay Cities Named Best Places for First-Time Homebuyers
Navigating the housing market can be quite a challenge, especially for first-time home buyers. But a new report by WalletHub.com shows that Tampa is one of the best places to buy a starter home.
WalletHub compared 300 cities of all different sizes, looking at 22 key indicators such as market attractiveness, quality of life and affordability.
Tampa ranked as the third-best city for first-time homebuyers. The Guava City ranked first in the subcategories of quality of life and sixth in real estate market. When it comes to overall affordability though, Tampa came in at 168.
With housing prices starting to decline slightly, more first-time homebuyers are entering the market. In 2022, first-time homebuyers made up 26% of home purchases, down from 34% in the previous year.
In other subcategories of the WalletHub survey, Tampa has room for improvement. Here’s how the city ranked:
- 28th - Median home-price appreciation
- 31st - Property crime rate
- 75th – Total home energy cost
- 91st - Foreclosure rate
- 93rd – Cost-of-living
- 107th - Housing affordability
- 112th – Real estate tax rate
- 134th – Rent-to-price ratio
Another Florida city, Palm Bay, was named as the best place for first-time homebuyers. Meanwhile, St. Petersburg and Clearwater also made it to the WalletHub list at 35 and 36 respectively. Lakeland came in at number 11.
