Relocating to Tampa, Florida



If you are considering relocating to the Tampa, Florida area, it might be a good idea to get a scale and some weights because there are certainly a large number of pros and cons that you need to consider and that might be one way to find the balance. Tampa is located on the western side of Florida on the Gulf of Mexico. It is a growing city of 342,054 people, but actually is usually lumped with St. Petersburg and Clearwater to constitute the Tampa Bay Metropolitan area which has a population of 2.7 million and is the 12 largest DMA market in the United States.

The climate is really one of the main areas where personal preference is going to come into play. It has a subtropical climate where a serious threat of frost happens once every three or four years. The highs range between 65-95 degrees year round, and although the humidity is high during the summer months, the highest temperature ever recorded is a mere 99 degrees. There is a distinct rainy season, and storms coming off the Gulf are a problem. Tampa trails only a city in Africa for the title of lighting strike capital of the world. If you are not a big fan of long cold winters, Tampa, Florida may make sense.

Tampa has been growing in rapid bursts ever since the wide spread use of air conditioning. The downtown area is undergoing a major transformation that is planned to be finished in time for 2009 when the city will host the Super Bowl. The city is a Mecca for sports fans with a professional football, major league baseball, and National Hockey League team all making their home here. The school system is rated as excellent, and there are several colleges and universities in the area including the University of South Florida and the University of Tampa. The city also sits astride major highways and has an International Airport. The nearby Gulf of Mexico provides a wide variety of aquatic activities.

On a little more negative note, home prices in Tampa have been rising steadily over the past few years. This has been excellent news for local real estate investors, but might make finding an affordable home a bit more of a problem for new residents. In 1998, Tampa ranked near the bottom of the top 123 Metro areas in the United States in median home price. In just eight years, it has moved nearer to the middle. A typical home here costs about the same as in Dallas, Texas, although the median income is at least 30% lower in Tampa. When you consider the entire Metropolitan area, however, there are quite a few outlying areas where good bargains can still be found in housing.

Sadly, the city does not rank real low when considering crime statistics. Murder is the only major violent or property crime that ranks below the national average. This means all the others are above, but in most cases only slightly. Despite these grim stats, Tampa is not considered a particularly unsafe city.

Taxes represent a very good reason for relocating to Tampa, Florida. The state tax rate in Florida ranks 45 out of 50 states for putting the least burden on its citizens. This means the residents of only five other states pay fewer taxes. This represents a pretty good start on making your money go farther.

Relocating to Tampa, Florida has its benefits and negatives. Basically, it all comes down to whether you like this type of climate. Considering the growth of the area, many would seem to.