Tampa is a city of fun, excitement, warm weather, and fantastic outdoor parks. One of the biggest reasons for tourist travel to Tampa is the world-famous Busch Gardens. This amusement park is unique for its variety of attractions, including roller coasters, concerts, and even a live-animal zoo. In one single spot in Tampa, you can scream, dance, and hand-feed some giraffes.
As of 2017, Tampa’s population was 385,430 people. This is a relatively big statistic already, but like most cities, this number is constantly increasing. In fact, from just the year prior, the population grew by nearly 10,000 people, from 376,047 in 2016. In 2015, that number was 367,688, meaning an increase of nearly 9,000 over the year.
The population increase appears to be a positive indication of how Tampa is doing as a city. Unfortunately, this is also linked to a rise in rental rates. Of course, the more demand there is for housing, the more landlords can afford to charge for rent. Since this is an inevitability, we figured we’d help you make your renting decisions by figuring out exactly what’s going on with the Tampa rental market.
Here, we’ll explain the Tampa rental market price trends, compare them to the rest of Florida, and then compare them to the whole of the United States.
Average Rent in Tampa
Average rent for an apartment in Tampa was calculated to be $1,316 per month in April 2019, according to Rent Jungle. Rent Café calculated the average rent in Tampa to be $1,309 per month, as of May 2019. You’ll notice discrepancies between these two sources throughout this article, and the reason for this is most likely because of how they calculated their rents. It seems Rent Jungle doesn’t include studio apartments in their calculations, whereas Rent Café does. We recommend using the source most applicable to your rental requirements.
Rent Jungle calculated the average yearly rent increase in Tampa to be 7.75%, whereas Rent Café calculated the average rent increase in Tampa to be 7%. When we use these annual increases to determine the average monthly rent increase in Tampa, we find these numbers to be 0.66% for Rent Jungle and 0.58% for Rent Café.
Tampa Rental Prices by Neighborhood
Although Tampa costs more, it’s certainly worth the money. There’s better public transportation, public schools, public safety, etc. Well, the same factors go into neighborhood rental prices within the city of Tampa.
So, before you make your decision about where you want to look for housing, check out Rent Jungle’s five most expensive neighborhoods in Tampa:
- Bayshore Beautiful: $2,058 per month
- Downtown: $2,022 per month
- Courier City: $1,741 per month
- Beach Park: $1,718 per month
- Port Tampa City: $1,712 per month
You’re looking at an average rental range of $1,712 to $2,058 per month if you want to live in one of the priciest neighborhoods in Tampa. If your budget requires more room to breathe, there are plenty of other areas to choose from, so keep reading for the five least expensive neighborhoods in Tampa:
- West Shore Palms: $1,196 per month
- Bayside West: $1,115 per month
- Wellswood: $1,031 per month
- South Seminole Heights: $991 per month
- Plaza Terrace: $983 per month
Now, if you’re potentially considering a studio apartment, these statistics might be more helpful.
Here are Rent Café’s five most expensive neighborhoods in Tampa:
- Downtown Tampa: $2,024 per month
- Harbour Island: $2,024 per month
- Uptown Tampa: $2,024 per month
- Chanel District: $1,956 per month
- Ybor: $1,956 per month
And here are Rent Café’s least expensive neighborhoods in Tampa:
- Drew Park: $1,049 per month
- Old Seminole Heights: $1,027 per month
- Riverbend: $985 per month
- Lowry Park: $935 per month
- Sulphur Springs: $935 per month
Tampa Rent by Apartment Size
After location, size is probably the most important aspect of an apartment. Luckily, Tampa boasts a relatively big average apartment size, so you’ll have plenty of room for all your favorite furniture.
Rent Café was able to calculate the average apartment size in Tampa, and they found it to be 899 square feet. As Rent Café includes studios, then this average should be even bigger if you’re only looking for apartments with separate bedrooms.
While we’re on the subject of apartments with separate bedrooms, here are the average rent prices in Tampa for one- and two-bedroom apartments, according to Rent Jungle
- One-Bedroom: $1,147
- Two-Bedroom: $1,357
And here are the yearly average rent increases in Tampa by bedroom number, according to Rent Jungle:
- One-Bedroom: 7.5%
- Two-Bedroom: 5.82%
Apartments in Tampa and the State of Florida
How do Tampa’s rent prices compare to similar cities in Florida? Here are the average rent prices in Jacksonville, Orlando, Miami, and St. Petersburg, according to Smartasset:
- Miami: $1,486 per month (More than their Tampa average of $1,319/month)
- Orlando: $1,469 per month (More than their Tampa average of $1,319/month)
- Petersburg: $1,378 per month (More than their Tampa average of $1,319/month)
- Jacksonville: $1,268 per month (Less than their Tampa average of $1,319/month)
So, if you’re looking to live in a major city in Florida, Tampa stacks up pretty well in terms of pricing.
Prices in Tampa and the U.S.
Here’s how Tampa’s rent trends compare to the U.S as a whole, according to Apartmentlist:
- National Average Rent Increase: 1.5% annually (Compared to Tampa’s 7%)
- One-Bedroom Apartment Monthly Rent: $951 (Compared to Tampa’s $1,147)
- Two-Bedroom Apartment Monthly Rent: $1,180 (Compared to Tampa’s $1,357)
Now that you know all about Tampa’s rent trends, feel free to research what’s trending in Tampa right now, read about helpful tips for moving to Tampa, and if you’re interested, take a look at Tampa’s Best Neighborhoods for Millennials.
