TAMPA, Florida. – From palm trees to politics, there are plenty of reasons buyers flock to Florida, Tampa real estate agent Victoria McGuire said, but in her 17-year career she’s never seen the real estate market of the city like this.

“Tampa has always been a robust market, but we’ve never seen price increases of this magnitude,” McGuire said.

The latest Case-Shiller home price index showed Tampa’s year-over-year growth outpacing all 20 major cities analyzed, excluding Phoenix, for an annual home price increase of 30 .8%.

“It’s tough for young buyers,” she said. “I recently wrote up an offer for a young couple – the house they were bidding on had 36 offers.”

In 2018, just four years ago, the median home price in Tampa was around $250,000. Today it is over $400,000.

“A lot of buyers start to give up – they have to make seven, eight, nine or more offers before they can get an offer accepted,” she said.

But the rise in landlord rates for renters has been a catalyst for a lot of buying.

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“They see the reality of how little control they have over what they pay for,” she said. “And again, prices have gone up, but mortgage rates are still low.”

About four percent right now… still a good rate, McGuire said. And the lasting benefit – buying, she said, creates wealth.

“You can generate generational wealth for your family by buying a home,” she said. “People who have never bought a home in the past are starting to notice this, when they see the benefits of the growing equity they have.”