Tampa Florida Real Estate Market: Stability Projected for 2012

As we continue to realize and search for positive signs of a real estate revival, some analysts are pointing to short sales boosting the Florida housing situation. Florida’s bank owned sales and short sales in 2011, hit the national average at 22 percent of all real estate transactions. What’s interesting about this is that the number of short sales has exceeded the number of foreclosures in Florida. State wide, Florida’s bank owned sales were down 32 percent, while short sales inched up 3 percent. This has a tremendous impact on homeowners who are, at times, being presented with great deals to sell their homes instead of going through the long short sale, foreclosure process. Not only is this beneficial to the homeowner, but it is also a favorable option to the banks because they essentially reduce losses. This is helping reduce inventory and increase demand, something the Tampa Bay area has been waiting to see for some years now. Aside from short sales and foreclosures, the greater Central/ South Florida region, which include Tampa and Miami, are projected to see 7 to 8 percent increases in metropolitan growth. This places Tampa and Miami among the 6 highest cities nationwide according to Clear Capital’s Market Report. REO saturation is getting lower in Florida, which is also helping the increased inventory problem we have seen for years prior. Florida markets such as Tampa, Miami, Orlando, and Jacksonville are expected to lead the nation in market recovery in 2012. Some factors leading to the predicted overall success are increases in cash buyers, increased values of lowest priced homes, and the degree in which the Florida market was hit during the downturn. If these projections stand true, the Tampa Bay area is in for quite the spike.