Home swapping rises as Tampa Bay vacation properties fly off market
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Illustration: Brendan Lynch/Axios
Buying a vacation home is out in many parts of the country — except Tampa Bay.
Driving the news: Across the U.S., demand for second homes is down more than half from pre-pandemic levels, fueled by high costs, a cooling short-term rental market and a pullback in remote work, per a new Redfin report.
- Meanwhile, home-swap networks — where two people or families agree to vacation in each other's homes — are on the rise.
Be smart: There's still a big appetite in Tampa Bay to own a place you can rent to vacationers, Mike Wyckoff, president of Clearwater's Pinellas Realtor Organization, tells Axios.
- Those properties are increasingly valuable because they're hard to get, Wyckoff says.
- "Many municipalities, especially in the desirable vacation areas like the beaches, don't allow short-term rentals in most of their zoning districts. So that creates a better situation for somebody who owns."
Yes, but: There's a shortage of inventory. New listings are snapped up almost immediately, with some drawing multiple offers, he says.
Zoom in: Last month, San Francisco-based home-swap network Kindred announced it raised $15 million to expand its members-only business into Europe.
- The platform, which includes listings in Tampa and St. Petersburg, has more than 2,500 homes in over 50 cities across North America and will debut in major overseas cities such as London and Berlin later this year.
How it works: Kindred has a "give-to-get" model. You earn credits toward booking a place by hosting a member in your own home.
- There are no nightly rental fees. For each trip, members cover the cost of cleaning and a service fee capped at $25 per night.
- Membership is pay-as-you-go, and there's a waitlist to join, as homes are accepted based on supply and demand across locations.
The bottom line: Sharing is caring — and one way to offset pricier vacations during what's expected to be a record-setting travel season.