Sell My House Fast in Tampa
Need to sell your house fast in Tampa?
Competitive cash offers: There’s no need to sort through dozens of We Buy Houses Tampa websites. Our team of experts understands the local market, and we work with one of the largest cash buyer networks in the nation to ensure you get the best offer possible through HomeLight’s Simple Sale Austin platform.
No repairs or roadblocks: We specialize in helping Tampa sellers move quickly, even if a house needs repairs or you’re going through a difficult situation such as divorce, death in the family, or financial troubles.
Simple and fast: Get the cash you need to move on to your next chapter without the stress of showings, negotiations, or waiting months to close.
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Sell My House Fast in Tampa
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10 Tips to Sell a House Fast in Tampa
- Published on
- 15 min read
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Courtney DuChene, Contributing AuthorClose
Courtney DuChene Contributing AuthorCourtney DuChene is a freelance writer covering business, personal finance and real estate, based out of Philadelphia.
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Kelsey Morrison, Former HomeLight EditorClose
Kelsey Morrison Former HomeLight EditorKelsey Morrison worked as an editor for HomeLight's Resource Centers. She has seven years of editorial experience in the real estate and lifestyle spaces. She previously worked as a commerce editor for World of Good Brands (eHow.com and Cuteness.com) and as an associate editor for Livabl.com. Kelsey holds a bachelor’s degree in Journalism from Concordia University in Montreal, Quebec, and lives in a small mountain town in Southern California.
If you need to sell your house fast in Tampa due to a relocation for work, a divorce, or because you need to quickly cash out your home’s equity, the two best strategies are: 1) seek out a cash offer, or 2) work with a top real estate agent. In this guide, we will review the pros and cons of each approach to help you decide which option makes the most sense for your home sale.
Sell Your Tampa House Fast With an All-Cash Offer
Get an all-cash, no-obligation offer through HomeLight’s Simple Sale platform whenever you’re ready. Receive your offer in 24 hours and close in as little as 10 days. No showings, no repairs, no open houses. Available to sellers in Tampa and throughout Florida’s Gulf Coast.
Option 1: Sell your Tampa house fast for cash
HomeLight’s Simple Sale platform connects you to the largest network of cash buyers in the U.S. We use the information you provide about your home plus local neighborhood data to get you a competitive cash offer, allowing you to close in as little as 10 days.
Simple Sale saves time in other ways, too, allowing home sellers to skip repairs, home prep, and showings while still receiving a strong offer from our network.
Here are the three easy steps in the Simple Sale process:
HomeLight was founded in 2012 and is accredited by the Better Business Bureau (BBB) with an A+ rating. The company has a 4.8-star rating on Google based on nearly 300 user reviews.
Who else will buy your Tampa house for cash?
In Tampa, cash buyers are often looking for investment properties they can turn into either short-term or long-term rentals. Because the city is a vacation destination, investors may be looking for a property they can purchase and start renting out quickly on sites like Airbnb and Vrbo. Other cash buyers look for distressed homes or properties in need of significant repairs that can be purchased at a discount and then renovated and resold for a profit.
- iBuyers are real estate technology companies that use digital tools to buy homes directly from sellers using cash.
- Investors often purchase homes to rent them, either as long-term housing or as short-term vacation properties, as is common in Tampa.
- Home flippers buy properties in disrepair, renovate them, and then sell them for a profit. They frequently provide sellers with fast cash offers.
“A cash buyer in our market is typically looking for almost something — I wouldn’t say turnkey — but that is more of a lipstick-type remodel on a newer home,” says Andrew Duncan, a HomeLight Elite agent in Tampa, who sells homes 57% quicker than the average agent in his market.
Let’s take a look at some local companies that buy houses for cash in Tampa.
Cash buyers in Tampa
Tampa Fast Home Buyer: This real estate investment firm provides cash offers to sellers whose homes meet their purchasing criteria. Sellers can expect to close in as little as seven days. Once purchased, they either make repairs and flip the home or keep it as a rental. Tampa Fast Home Buyer has been BBB accredited since February 2021 and holds an A+ rating. The company has a 5-star rating on Google based on 33 reviews.
Emperor House Buyers LLC: Emperor House Buyers LLC is a Tampa-based real estate company that provides sellers with cash offers on their homes and strives to close in as few as five business days (or longer if you’d like). They have experience working with clients who have faced foreclosure, inherited homes, divorce, and more. Emperor House Buyers LLC has been BBB accredited since June 2022 and holds an A rating. It has 4.6 out of 5 stars on Google with 9 reviews.
Cash House Buyers Tampa: If you’ve inherited a home that needs work and want to sell it quickly, Cash House Buyers Tampa may be for you. The company specializes in working with inherited houses and distressed homes. According to its website, sellers can close in as little as seven days, and sometimes even sooner. Cash House Buyers Tampa has a 4.8-star rating on Google with 13 reviews. The company is not listed as BBB accredited but holds an A+ rating.
Sell Quick Tampa
Pros and cons of selling your Tampa home for cash
As with anything, there are pros and cons to selling your home quickly for cash.
Pros
- Fast closing: A cash sale is significantly faster than a traditional mortgage-backed home purchase, often allowing you to close in as few as three to 10 days.
- No repairs needed: You can sell your home as-is, in most cases, with no repairs or renovations.
- No fees or commissions: Many cash buyers will cover closing costs and fees.
- No showings or open houses: You won’t have to stage the home for listing photos or prepare the property for showings or open houses.
- No obligation until you commit: After you receive a no-obligation offer, you can compare it to other offers. You can even consult a Realtor® for comparisons.
- Step away from a problem: With a fast cash sale, you can often avoid dealing with problem tenants or potential foreclosure.
- No contingencies: Cash buyers can waive contingencies that can make negotiations difficult, namely the financing contingency and appraisal contingency.
- No negotiating: You won’t have to deal with multiple buyers or the pressure of back-and-forth negotiating on price, credits, or repairs.
- Move on with life: If you inherited a home, are facing a divorce, dealing with a death, or having financial challenges, a cash sale can help you move on from the home and possibly resolve some issues faster.
Cons
- Lower sale price: Cash sales typically result in a lower selling price than a traditional sale with the help of a qualified real estate agent.
- Repair costs may be deducted: If the home does need major repairs, the cost of those may be deducted from the offer, depending on the cash buyer.
- May be harder to find a buyer: Depending on the condition or location of your home, you may have limited cash buyer options, especially if you have a unique property that will be harder for investors to flip.
- You’ll need to vet companies: It’s important to research “we buy houses for cash” companies to make sure they are legitimate and reputable.
- Transparency may be limited: Some cash buyers won’t share their home evaluation process or how they calculated their offer, which is sometimes reduced last minute.
- Hidden fees: As you vet cash buyers, watch for hidden or unexpected fees. Read your purchase contract carefully before signing.
Option 2: Work with a top agent to sell fast in Tampa
Working with a top agent in Tampa can be a good option for sellers who would like to sell faster than average but who have some time to devote to a traditional sale vs. an instant cash offer.
“One of the most important steps of selling your home fast is working with an agent that knows the market,” Duncan says.
Top listing agents know the ins and outs of the local market and can help you price your home right so it garners interest from buyers. An experienced agent can also help you determine what to fix and what not to fix when preparing your home for sale.
HomeLight data shows that not only do top agents sell their clients’ homes more quickly than average agents, but the top 5% of agents sell homes for 4.8% more than average agents. They also sell homes 10%-50% faster than the average agent.
How fast are homes selling in Tampa?
Though homes have been selling quickly in the city in recent years, rising interest rates and inflation fears have played a role in reducing the number of buyers in the market.
In December 2023, single-family homes in Tampa went under contract two days faster than the same period a year earlier, according to a report by Greater Tampa Realtors. While home sales were down nearly 9%, home prices were 4% higher on a year-over-year basis due to extremely tight inventory.
Tampa’s housing market had a 2.6-month supply in December 2023, indicating the time it would take to sell all listed homes at the current rate of sales. A balanced housing market typically has 5–7 months of supply, meaning Tampa is firmly in seller’s market territory.
Here’s a snapshot of the current housing market in Tampa (dataset only applies to single-family homes):
| Days on market (average time from list to contract) | 27 days* |
| Days to close conventional home loan | 47 days |
| Median home sale price | $410,000 |
| Supply of inventory | 2.6 months |
| Number of closed home sales year over year | -8.6% |
*Does not include time for buyer to close the loan
Data source(s): Greater Tampa Realtors, Ice Mortgage Technology
10 tips to sell a home fast in Tampa
1. Set your price competitively
In any market, pricing your home right is key to generating interest in a property and bringing in competitive offers. It’s even more important when you’re trying to sell quickly but want to balance proceeds with speed.
An experienced top agent will perform a comparative market analysis (CMA) to help you set the best price to sell a house fast in your market.
If you’re curious about your home’s current value, try HomeLight’s Home Value Estimator. While it shouldn’t dictate your final pricing strategy, an online home value estimate can give you a ballpark price range. You can get a preliminary estimate in less than two minutes.
2. Refresh your home’s curb appeal
A 2022 HomeLight survey of top agents revealed that houses with excellent curb appeal, on average, sell for 7% more than those with neglected exteriors. That’s why it’s so important to refresh garden beds with new mulch, paint the front door an eye-catching color, or replace a dinged-up mailbox with something more modern.
“For less than $1,000, you can really spruce up the curb appeal of a home,” confirms Duncan. Plus, it can help make a good first impression with buyers. “The outside of the home is a reflection of what the inside is going to look like,” says Liz Piedra, a top-performing real estate agent in the Tampa Bay area with more than 20 years of experience.
3. Showcase your outdoor area
Tampa home shoppers love usable outdoor space as it allows them to take advantage of the warm year-round weather. Extend your living space outdoors by staging a lounge area with a shade structure. You might consider adding a grill, a fire pit, or even an outdoor television to watch the Buccaneers on a Sunday afternoon. If you have a pool, be sure to show it off in your listing. According to Piedra, homes with pools are more likely to sell quickly.
4. Create a vacation-ready look
Duncan says that Tampa buyers are often looking for turnkey properties that have a vacation feel to their interior design. Whether they’re retirees seeking a beach getaway or cash buyers looking for an investment property, Tampa’s prospective homeowners are drawn to properties with interiors that exude a contemporary, coastal vibe. But don’t overdo it with seashells or beach-themed decor — instead, incorporate tasteful reminders of the beauty of the ocean along with sleek, modern finishes.
5. Do the brunt work upfront
Sellers are often eager to get their homes on the market and will forgo essential renovations. Experienced agents agree that new listings get the most exposure, so make sure your house is in optimal shape when you put it on the market.
6. Make the home stand out
Similar to improving curb appeal and enhancing your outdoor space, it’s also important to make your home’s interior seem “special” before you list it. Add fresh paint where needed, update outdated trends in the home, and do a deep clean to make sure the home is in top condition.
7. Hire a professional photographer and videographer
According to the National Association of Realtors (NAR) 2023 Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers, 100% of buyers used the internet to search for a home last year. That means there’s a good chance a potential buyer’s first impression of your home will come from the photos and videos featured in your online listing. High-quality, professionally captured photos and videos will give buyers a better idea of your home’s layout and design features.
8. Advertise your neighborhood’s walkability
Walkability is important for many Tampa buyers. In their listing descriptions, home sellers should mention parks, coffee shops, restaurants, and other nearby attractions. Walk Score is a useful resource for sellers looking to highlight their neighborhood’s walkability.
9. Promote additional space for lodging
If your property has an accessory dwelling unit (ADU), such as a mother-in-law cottage, emphasize this in your listing. If you are selling a home with ample square footage or a large lot, leverage this.
10. Take advantage of market timing
Along with the recommendations above, it can be helpful to know the level of market activity in your area during different times of the year. HomeLight’s Best Time to Sell Calculator uses housing market data for your area to show you the best and worst months to sell your home. See when is the best time to sell a house if you want to make the most money and which months are best to sell your house fast.
Ready to sell your Tampa home?
A top real estate agent in Tampa can help you navigate the many nuances that you might not otherwise discover until you’re swamped in the process. Their organization efficiencies and marketing expertise can help you sell your Tampa house fast.
If you need an even faster sale, HomeLight’s Simple Sale platform provides cash offers for homes in almost any condition in Tampa. If you don’t have the time or the means to prepare your home or move through the traditional listing process, you can skip the repairs and showings and close in as few as 10 days. Complete a short questionnaire and receive a no-obligation cash offer within 24 hours.
Writers Amna Shamim and Emma Woodward contributed to this story.
Header Image Source: (Chris Norberg/ Unsplash)
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