TAMPA, Fla. — Perhaps some good news when it comes to rent prices in the Tampa Bay area — according to several recent reports, the skyrocketing costs are now cooling, at least when compared to last year.
Apartment List said out of the Top 100 most populated cities across America, 40 of those saw decreases in median rent this year compared to this time last year.
Of that list, two Tampa Bay area cities made it — St. Petersburg and Tampa. According to the study, St. Petersburg saw year-over-year growth of -1.3%, while Tampa saw -0.3%.
To put it into the median rent cost, that's about $1,404 for a one-bedroom apartment and $1,732 for a two-bedroom in Tampa. Overall, the median rent in Tampa is $1,702 and the city is ranked as the 25th most expensive large city in the U.S., Apartment List said.
Zumper's national rent report, released at the end of April, suggests rent prices are "normalizing" across the U.S., including here in the Tampa Bay area.
"April marks the sixth month in a row of modest month-over-month changes in national rent prices," the report said in part. "The roller-coaster days of the pandemic — with wildly unpredictable price changes tied to mass migration — are behind us."
Still, as of April 2023, St. Petersburg's rent was listed among Zumper's "top risers" list for April 2023, with month-to-month median rent rising 6% to $1,590 for a one-bedroom apartment.