Tampa FL Homes Thoughts – Things Occurs

The Tampa Fl homes for sale industry is undergoing a shift. From the very first time my husband and I began even thinking about buying a house 5 years ago until now, we have witnessed a market of ups, downs, and all-arounds. Unfortunately, our hopes of owning a househave mirrored those industry shifts. We began our union not being ready to own, then felt trapped in the massive movement to buy out of fear of ever-increasing prices, buying something just to lock in the current price. Us knowing that it was morally improper to take a mortgage that would deem us “house poor”, we decided not to buy anything, revolting against the seller’s market. From there, we gave up plans of ever owning in the Tampa Bay area.

Here we are in 2009 and Tampa real estate is once again reasonable to us lowly first time homebuyers and great houses are now very much worthy of our Tampa loan payment. Our hopes and dreams of owning a slice of real estate in Tampa are rekindled.

Our genuine search for real estate in Tampa began almost two months ago with the help of our agent Rick Durand from Kings Realty & Property Management. In the beginning, we thought that a townhouse would work best because we are not the “outdoorsy” type that will find time to mow lawns or landscape. We would rather just pay someone else to keep our grass under control. A townhouse also seemed typically larger and more stable than most condos in the Tampa real estate market. Tampa is filled with apartment to condo conversions, which in my humble opinion seem more akin to weakly built gingerbread houses. Our search for a respectable townhouse proved prosperous and our agent showed us all the great deals in our desired area of Land O’ Lakes. The townhouses are newer and built in underdeveloped areas where wilderness conservation lots are the norm.

In this Tampa real estate market the buyer can be choosy. We wanted to see all our options and our agent was happy to help us with that request. Continuing in Land O’ Lakes, we found a neighborhood of villas in our desired price range and quickly made an offer on a short sale property. We loved the solid block construction and no grass work that the villa offered as well as the great open floor plan and established neighborhood. We are obtaining everything we wanted without having to give up any of the things on our wish list. Conventionally, purchasing a piece of Tampa real estate meant giving up at least one of your wants and desires like the area, a larger master bedroom, or lots of closet space. We gave up nothing and truthfully are obtaining everything we wanted and more. This was made possible only because of a savvy Tampa homes agent like Rick Durand who navigated around this saturated market where the well-qualified buyer is king, or queen, and is helping us purchase a home. He knew when a property’s listed price was not so much of a deal but rather an attempt to gather up offers that would yield nothing but a long wait with a “no” at the end of the line.

We have watched the Tampa real estate market change more in the last 5 years than it has in the 20 years prior which just confirms, much to the chagrin of some, that shift does indeed happen.

Sincerely,

Anna W.