The Broker’s Corner
1. Tampa Bay Rental Market Snapshot
- In August 2025, the average asking rent in Tampa across all property types was about $2,208, a modest +0.1% month-over-month increase. Graystone Investments
- Over in Hillsborough County, data from RentCafe shows an average rent closer to $2,024 (latest update) for standard apartment units. RentCafe
- This suggests the market is largely stable — rents inching up, not skyrocketing — even in a market with steady new supply.
2. Private Equity & Institutional Ownership
- Tampa Bay remains one of the metros with a high share of private equity–owned apartments. Recent reports show nearly 25% of Tampa Bay’s apartment inventory is held by private equity firms. Tampa Bay Times
- This concentration continues to fuel concern among smaller investors and landlords over market influence, pricing power, and the enforcement of fees or stricter lease terms.
3. Supply, Vacancy & Leasing Trends
- New multifamily supply continues to hit the market, especially in submarkets of Hillsborough, Polk, and neighboring counties. Graystone Investments+2Spartan Living+2
- Despite supply pressures, average “days on market” remains relatively healthy at ~48 days in Tampa. Graystone Investments
- Nationally and across many metros, rents are cooling. Apartments.com reports that the U.S. rental market is “cooling off for the year,” and projections expect downward pressure through late 2025. Apartments.com
- On the national level, the median asking rent for two-bedroom units fell ~2.2% year-over-year in August 2025. Realtor
Tampa Bay a “Buyers Market”
Tampa housing prices are down 5% over the past year, continuing to get generally worse
and down an extra .8% just in the last 2 months.
St Petersburg housing prices down 9.2% over the past year, continuing to get generally worse and down an extra 1.4% just in the last 2 months.
