St. Pete approves zoning change to increase housing supply

St. Petersburg has approved a zoning change that will allow for more residential units to be added to nearly 3,000 parcels in the city. City council on Thursday voted 7 to 1 to allow some owners of single-family homes to add more units to their property. The change allows for what supporters call “missing middle housing,” such as duplexes, triplexes and quadplexes. Councilman Ed Montanari cast the sole dissenting vote. The vote is a small step toward combating the city’s ongoing housing…Original Article

Nine renters compete for every one apartment in Tampa Bay

Tampa Bay is one of the hardest places in Florida for renters to find a new unit, according to a recent report by the rental listing website RentCafe. The report found that high home prices, tight housing supply and inflation have made Tampa Bay one of Florida’s most competitive rental markets at the start of 2023. To compile the report, RentCafe analyzed the 134 largest markets in the U.S. where data was available. It looked at the most revealing metrics when it came to competition, including: the…Original Article

Zillow: Tampa Bay homebuyers are ready, but interest rates have sellers on the fence

"Home sellers seem to be sitting out the early spring selling season in surprising numbers."Original Article

Affordable housing plan headed to Florida house floor

The “Live Local Act” includes providing incentives for investment in affordable housing and seeking more mixed-use developments.Original Article

Banking turmoil creates bump in mortgage applications but surge in housing market unlikely

In the immediate aftermath of Silicon Valley Bank's failure on March 10, mortgage rates dropped a half percent as concerns over the banking sector and broader U.S. economy took hold.Original Article

Several Tampa Bay neighborhoods make Niche’s ‘Best Places to Live in Florida’ list

A new report from Niche, a data-driven platform with ratings and reviews of cities across America, ranked the Tampa Bay area highly in multiple categories. The 2023 Best Places to Live in America report includes several categories: the best cities (urban areas with a population of 100,000 or more), the places with the lowest cost of living, the best places to buy a house, the best neighborhoods and more. According to the report, Tampa Bay has six of the top 10 best places to live in Florida, six…Original Article

Downtown St. Pete penthouse under contract for more than $6 million

A penthouse in the 42-story condo tower Art House St. Petersburg is under contract for $6.1 million. Kolter Urban is the developer of the tower, which is under construction in the 200 block of Central Avenue in downtown St. Petersburg. It was designed by SB Architects, with interiors by ID & Design International. The 4,847-square-foot penthouse has views of downtown St. Petersburg and Tampa Bay and includes a deep wraparound terrace, according to a representative for the developer. The top-level…Original Article

State could override local tenant laws

A Florida House panel on Monday approved a bill that would lead to state law trumping local regulations governing landlords and tenants.Original Article

Outback Steakhouse co-founder buys Bayshore home from Tampa philanthropists

A luxury property on Bayshore Boulevard has changed hands between two of the biggest names in Tampa Bay business. Chris Sullivan, co-founder of Outback Steakhouse, paid $3.3 million for a townhouse that's part of condominium tower Alagon on Bayshore, according to Hillsborough County property records. The sellers were Les and Pam Muma, some of the Tampa Bay region's most prolific philanthropists. Les Muma is a co-founder of Fiserv Inc., a Fortune 500 technology company. Teale Taggart Smith of Keller…Original Article

Tampa will seek a developer to integrate affordable housing with new downtown I-275 ramp

U.S. Department of Transportation officials visited Tampa last week to tout a new grant which may spur a new housing development.Original Article