February 3, 2026
Tampa and the surrounding region continue to draw attention as one of the nation’s top markets for home buyers, and that attention is balanced along with the need for greater affordability.
Zillow recently ranked Tampa as one of the nation’s 10 most buyer friendly markets among the nation’s top 50 cities. The rankings highlight places where buyers are more likely to find a balanced mix of opportunity and sustainability — not just lower prices, but a friendlier overall buying experience.
“Buyers in these markets can expect to see more homes within budget, while forecasted appreciation suggests strong long-term financial potential,” the Zillow release stated.
Zillow stated that cities in the top 10 also can expect market corrections to be balanced long-term by home value appreciation. It’s a key factor in making the markets buyer friendly.
Tampa placed ninth among the rankings while two other Florida cities rated in the top 10: Jacksonville at No. 4 and Miami at No. 8.
The forecast aligns with other predictions for the region with the market appearing to move towards stabilization. Much of the change relates to added inventory in the area. In the fall of 2025, Tampa’s inventory shift made it one of 21 of the nation’s top 50 metro areas to have more active housing inventory than it did in October 2019.
According to FastCompany’s Lance Lambert, this is a key factor in making markets more friendly for buyers.
“When and where needed, builders are often willing to reduce prices or make other affordability adjustments to maintain sales,” Lambert wrote about the return to pre-pandemic inventory levels. “These adjustments in the new construction market also create a cooling effect on the resale market, as some buyers who might have opted for an existing home shift their focus to new homes where deals are still available.”
It also helps buyers that mortgage lending rates have dropped to their lowest level in nearly three years according to a recent Redfin blog.
Yet, while buyers look to be gaining greater leverage, they still have to grapple with affordability issues. In a recent TBBA presentation, Lesley Deutch noted that Tampa home payments have risen much faster than incomes (and rents). Since 2014, the home payment for an entry level has risen 180 percent, while wages have only gone up 61 percent.
The affordability issue also has proven to be a drag on the buyer-friendly conditions. Redfin Chief Economist Daryl Fairweather offered a perfect summary.
“Now is a good time to buy a home, if you can afford it,” Fairweather recently said. “Prices keep climbing, pushing people out of the market, and giving buyers an upper hand in negotiations. An uneasy economy is making everyone wary, though, and local housing markets vary widely.”