While the newspapers are publishing articles of doom and gloom (the Tampa Tribune today talked about the fourth quarter of 2006 and stated that the Tampa Bay area was the worst in Florida), statistics from the Tampa Bay Builders Association reports that even though the market is taking a breather from 2005, prices are still rising. They compare October 2006 to October 2005 (it's in their February 2007 newsletter, but it seems everyone is using slightly old statistics).
In Hillsborough County (Tampa) the average price of a new single family home rose 12% from $334,449 to $373,957.
In Pasco County (adjacent to the north) the average price rose 14% from $275,850 to $315,181.
In Pinellas County (St Petersburg and Clearwater), a more build-out and landlocked area, the average price for new homes increased 28%, from $390,644 to $490,366.
It's a great time to buy new construction - interest rates are still low, and there are still some builder incentives out there.
