Tampa Bay continues flexing its strength on almost every economic measure. A youthful population growth, healthy transportation investment and robust construction pipeline have created a commercial real estate market that can be hard to pin down. Below you will find 10 things we are tracking to help you exercise the right strategy. Click here

1. 10things toknow
Command
central
Collective
action
The price
is right
Always in
season
Well worth
the wait
Riding the
coworking wave
Younger than
you think
Traffic relief
is coming
Going stronger
than Gasparilla
Elevating
equality
Tampa Bay

2. 1. Command central
Tampa’s favorable business climate continues
to attract corporate headquarter relocations
and expansions. Amgen, Mosaic, Baker
McKenzie, Axogen and others announced major
projects in the area last year. These giants
count among them a long list of locally based
main offices, a fact that helped Tampa rank
among the top five South Atlantic cities on Site
Selection’s annual list.
Tampa Bay |Ten Things to Know 2

3. 2. Collective action
The people have spoken—this time with
their wallets—as a self-imposed 1 percent
sales tax hike was approved for Hillsborough
County. These funds will go towards
funding transportation improvements
and development, which has been a long-
standing issue for the area.
Tampa Bay |Ten Things to Know 3

4. 3. The price is right
The year 2018 proved to be one for the record
books for Tampa Bay’s commercial real estate
market, as asking rates surged to new heights and
vacancy dropped to historical lows across most
office and industrial product. Even better, when
its benchmarked against peer cities across the
Southeast, Tampa Bay still charts room to grow.
Tampa Bay |Ten Things to Know 4

5. 4. Always in season
At the 2018 US Conference of Mayors, Tampa
Bay was voted the nation’s most livable large
city among a peer set of 150. Mayor Bob
Buckhorn was honored for his Stay and Play
program, aimed at providing youth with safe
access to parks and recreation facilities, which
also helped curb crime rates by 8.9 percent.
Tampa Bay |Ten Things to Know 5

6. 5. Well worth the wait
It took the Tampa Bay Buccaneers 25 years to
return a kick off for a touchdown, and it has been
a quarter century since Tampa has seen new
office development downtown. This will change in
2019 as SPP brings the Water Street Tampa mixed-
use district to Channelside Drive. Paired with
multiple office projects in the suburbs and a slew
of industrial development along I-4, we are seeing
the most active construction pipeline in decades.
Tampa Bay |Ten Things to Know 6

7. 6. Riding the coworking wave
Flexible space (coworking) is making waves
globally, nationally and even locally. Last year
alone, Tampa saw a handful of new-to-market
flexible space operators absorb nearly 100,000
square feet downtown. Now, the new year is
bringing in the entrance of WeWork, which will
be leasing 50,000 square feet at a new office
complex north of downtown.
Tampa Bay |Ten Things to Know 7

8. 7. Younger than you think
No, Tampa Bay is not just for retirees. In fact,
Hillsborough County has a median age of 37, and
our population of 15- to 39-year-olds is expected
to grow by nearly 5 percent over the next five
years. What’s more, the quality of life in Tampa has
continued to attract people from across the United
States, with Bloomberg recently reporting that
nearly 150 people migrate to Tampa every day.
Tampa Bay |Ten Things to Know 8

9. 8. As seamless as Bayshore Blvd
As Tampa Bay and Polk County have distinguished
themselves as logistics and distribution hubs, the I-4
corridor is growing increasingly active, thanks to its
ability to service last-mile deliveries and centralized
location for statewide distribution. In these markets
combined, we have seen over 7 million square feet of
industrial space delivered over the past three years and
over 10 million square feet absorbed.
Tampa Bay |Ten Things to Know 9

10. 9. Going stronger than Gasparilla
SmartAsset again ranked Tampa Bay and
its surrounding towns in the top 10 biggest
‘boomtowns’ out of 581 cities. Based on metrics
such as migration, housing growth, unemployment
and GDP, Tampa Bay continues to shine as a
place where professional success and personal
satisfaction meet.
Tampa Bay |Ten Things to Know 10

11. 10. Elevating equality
Move over ‘The Big Apple’, because ‘The Big
Guava’ ranked as the No.1 city for women-
owned businesses in 2018 by Business.
org. Tampa Bay came out on top based on
metrics that measured the percentage of
women-owned businesses, women-to-men
pay difference and women’s unemployment
rate. That makes the city inviting for women
entrepreneurs — and just plain smart.
Tampa Bay |Ten Things to Know 11

12. Want to learn more about these trends and others? Contact us to be in the know.
Kyle Koller
Senior Research Analyst
Kyle.Koller@am.jll.com