We Buy Houses in Hillsborough County
1,500,000+ residents. $380,000 median home price. 3rd most populous county in FL. If you need to sell fast, we pay cash and close in as little as 7 days.
Fast closing: 7-60 days • No fees: We pay all closing costs • As-is: Leave everything behind
Hillsborough County Market Snapshot
Data compiled by FL Home Buyers from public county records and MLS reporting
Why Selling in Hillsborough County Is Harder Than You Think
Hillsborough County sits in Florida's "sinkhole alley." Between geological risk, aging housing stock, and the insurance crisis, selling a home here the traditional way can take months and cost tens of thousands.
Sinkhole activity: Hillsborough is one of FL's top 3 sinkhole counties
Insurance costs doubled since 2020, with many homes losing coverage entirely
Polybutylene pipes in thousands of 1970s-1990s homes block insurance and FHA loans
Flood zones along the Hillsborough River and Alafia River driving buyers away
Aluminum wiring in older Tampa neighborhoods flagged by insurers and inspectors
I'm Max Cohen. I Buy Houses in Hillsborough County.
I'm a Licensed General Contractor (License #CGC1534000) who's been buying and renovating homes across Florida for years. When I walk through your house, I'm pricing out the roof, the pipes, the slab, everything, in my head. I don't need a bank's approval or an inspector's report to make you a number.
I know Hillsborough County. I know the sinkhole risk zones in Tampa, the polybutylene pipe problem in Brandon's 1980s subdivisions, and the flood headaches along the Alafia River in Riverview. That local knowledge is how I give sellers a fair, fast cash offer while other buyers are still waiting on due diligence.
If you've got a problem property in Hillsborough County, I'm the buyer. Simple as that.
BBB A+ Rated • Licensed General Contractor • Hundreds of deals closed across Florida
Selling to Us vs. Listing with an Agent in Hillsborough County
| Factor | Sell to Max (Us) | List with Agent |
|---|---|---|
| Agent Commission | $0 | 5-6% (~$22,800) |
| Closing Costs | We pay them | You pay (~2%) |
| Repairs Required | None. As-is. | Usually $5k-$30k+ |
| Timeline | 7-14 days | 45-60+ days avg |
| Sinkhole / Insurance Issues | We handle it | Kills most deals |
| Showings / Open Houses | Zero | Dozens of strangers |
How We Buy Your Hillsborough County House
Contact Us
Fill out the form below or call (561) 258-9405. Tell us about your Hillsborough County property: address, condition, timeline. Takes 2 minutes.
We Do a Walkthrough
We schedule a visit at the property, in person or virtual. As a licensed contractor, I assess the real condition and calculate repair costs on the spot. No waiting on third-party inspectors.
You Get a Fair Cash Offer
We present a written cash offer with no obligation. We show you exactly how we calculated the number based on comps, condition, and repair costs. No games, no pressure.
Close on Your Timeline
Accept? We close at a local title company in 7-60 days, whatever works for you. We pay all closing costs. You walk away with cash.
Zip Codes We Cover in Hillsborough County
Real Hillsborough County Problems We Solve Every Day
These are the situations we run into most often with Hillsborough sellers. Every one of them would tank a traditional sale.
Sinkholes: Hillsborough's Biggest Deal Killer
Florida Geological Survey data shows Hillsborough County has more reported sinkhole activity than nearly any other county in the state. Confirmed sinkholes destroy traditional sales instantly because conventional lenders won't finance the purchase. Even homes with completed remediation (grouting, underpinning) get rejected by most buyers' insurance carriers. We buy sinkhole properties, remediated or not.
Polybutylene Pipes and Aluminum Wiring
Tens of thousands of Hillsborough homes built between 1970 and 1995 have polybutylene plumbing, a material known for sudden failures. Most insurers won't write a policy on these homes. Re-piping costs $8,000 to $15,000. Aluminum wiring, common in the same era, adds another $5,000 to $12,000 to rewire. We buy homes with both problems, no repairs needed from you.
The Insurance Crisis
Florida homeowner insurance premiums have roughly doubled since 2020, and Hillsborough County has been hit hard. Homes near the Hillsborough River, Alafia River, and the Bayshore corridor face combined property and flood premiums exceeding $7,000 per year. Some carriers have pulled out of the county entirely. Buyers backed by conventional lenders can't close without active coverage, which means these homes sit on the market.
MacDill Air Force Base PCS Sales
MacDill AFB is home to CENTCOM, SOCOM, and the 6th Air Refueling Wing. PCS orders don't wait for your house to sell. Military families get 60 to 90 days' notice and can't afford to carry two mortgages. We've bought homes from service members who needed to close in under two weeks, and we can usually work within the military's relocation timeline.
Flood Zone Properties
FEMA has remapped large parts of Hillsborough County into AE and VE flood zones over the past five years. Homes that didn't need flood insurance a decade ago now require $3,000 to $6,000 per year in coverage. Properties in Gibsonton, Riverview along the Alafia, and parts of South Tampa are especially affected. We buy in every flood zone.
Aging Tampa Neighborhoods
Seminole Heights, Sulphur Springs, Town 'n' Country, and parts of East Tampa have housing stock from the 1950s through the 1980s. These homes often need everything at once: roof, HVAC, electrical panel, plumbing, and sometimes structural work. A full renovation can run $60,000 to $100,000, money most sellers don't have or can't justify spending.
Hillsborough's Housing Market: What It Means for Sellers in 2026
Hillsborough County's real estate market has two stories right now. The Riverview/Brandon corridor remains one of the fastest-growing areas in Florida, with new subdivisions selling briskly to young families priced out of South Tampa and St. Pete. Median prices there hover around $350,000 to $400,000. But the older neighborhoods closer to downtown Tampa and in unincorporated areas like Town 'n' Country, Seffner, and Thonotosassa are struggling. Inventory is up, days on market have stretched past 50, and buyer demand has softened as insurance costs and interest rates squeeze purchasing power.
The county's unique challenge is its overlapping risk factors. A house built in 1978 in Carrollwood might have polybutylene pipes, aluminum wiring, an aging roof, AND sit in a newly remapped flood zone. Any one of those problems extends the listing timeline. All four together? The house sits for months while agents recommend $40,000+ in repairs before a buyer will even look at it. For sellers who can't or don't want to invest that money, a cash sale to FL Home Buyers is the fastest path to resolution.
Foreclosure & Legal Overview in Hillsborough County
Florida is a judicial foreclosure state, meaning every foreclosure goes through the court system. In Hillsborough County's 13th Judicial Circuit, the process from lis pendens to sale date averages 8 to 14 months. The county has seen a steady uptick in filings since mid-2024 as pandemic-era mortgage forbearance programs expired and insurance costs forced some homeowners into default.
Under Florida Statute 45.031, homeowners have the right to sell their property right up until the clerk files the certificate of sale. That means even if you've received a lis pendens or have a sale date set, a cash sale can stop the process and let you walk away with equity instead of a foreclosure on your credit for 7 years. We work with Hillsborough County title companies daily and can close before your next court date in many cases.
Time Is Your Most Valuable Asset
Every day you wait in the foreclosure process costs you equity and options. A cash sale can close before your next court date. Call us at (561) 258-9405 to discuss your situation confidentially.
The Real Cost of Repairs vs. Selling As-Is in Hillsborough County
Tampa Bay's construction market runs hot. Labor and materials costs have jumped 20 to 30% since 2021 and haven't come back down. Here's what a typical renovation looks like in Hillsborough County right now:
| Repair | Typical Cost |
|---|---|
| Roof replacement (shingle) | $12,000 - $22,000 |
| Whole-home re-pipe (poly to PEX/copper) | $8,000 - $15,000 |
| Aluminum wiring remediation | $5,000 - $12,000 |
| Sinkhole remediation (grouting) | $10,000 - $50,000+ |
| HVAC replacement | $6,000 - $12,000 |
| Kitchen remodel | $25,000 - $50,000 |
Stack those repairs on top of 5-6% agent commissions on a $380K sale ($19,000 to $23,000) plus 45 to 60 days of carrying costs (mortgage, insurance, taxes, utilities), and the total cost of the traditional route can exceed $40,000 before you get a single buyer through the door. For a home that needs multiple systems replaced, selling as-is to a cash buyer often puts more money in your pocket than spending months on repairs and waiting for a financed buyer.
What Hillsborough County Homeowners Say About Working With Us
"Our rental in Seffner had polybutylene pipes, an old roof, and a tenant who trashed the place. Two agents told us to put $30K into it before listing. Max bought it in 10 days, as-is, no cleanup required."
Robert K.
Seffner, FL
"PCS orders came through and we had 45 days to leave MacDill. Couldn't wait 3 months for a traditional sale. FL Home Buyers closed in 12 days and wired the money to our new bank account in Virginia. No stress."
SGT Martinez Family
Tampa (MacDill), FL
"Mom's house in Riverview had sinkhole history from 2015. It was remediated but no buyer would touch it. Max didn't care. He gave us a fair number and closed in 3 weeks."
Diana T.
Riverview, FL
Facing a Tough Situation in Hillsborough? We Can Help.
Whatever brought you here, we've handled it before. Click any situation below to learn how we help Hillsborough County homeowners:
Helpful Resources for Hillsborough Sellers
Every Hillsborough Neighborhood, Covered
We buy houses from Lutz and Carrollwood in the north to Ruskin and Apollo Beach in the south, and every community in between: Tampa, Brandon, Riverview, Valrico, Plant City, Temple Terrace, Seffner, Town 'n' Country, and Gibsonton.
Nearby counties we also serve: Pinellas County, Pasco County, Polk County, Hernando County
We Buy Houses in Tampa
Tampa's gentrification wave is pushing through Seminole Heights and Tampa Heights at a pace that punishes owners of unrenovated homes. Investors and young buyers want the walkability and the craftsman charm, but they want it move-in ready. If your house needs $50,000 or more in updates, and most pre-war stock in 33603 does, you're competing against flipped homes on the same block that already have new kitchens and impact windows. Listing as-is means price cuts, long days on market, and lowball offers with inspection contingencies a mile long. We skip all of that. We buy as-is, no contingencies, and close on your schedule.
South Tampa has a different problem. Homes along Bayshore Boulevard and throughout Hyde Park (33606) sit in FEMA flood zones that now carry $4,000 to $7,000 per year in mandatory flood insurance. Buyers with conventional loans can't absorb that cost on top of a mortgage, so properties with older roofs or dated interiors just sit. West Tampa's 1920s and 1940s bungalows, many still running knob-and-tube wiring, face the same dead end from a different direction: no insurer will write a policy until the wiring is replaced, and a full rewire runs $8,000 to $15,000 before you touch anything else.
Tampa's Sinkhole Problem
Hillsborough County reports more sinkhole activity than any other county in Florida. Getting a definitive answer on whether your property is affected requires geological testing that costs $5,000 to $20,000 and takes weeks. Under FL Statute 627.706, insurers can deny sinkhole claims or drop coverage if testing reveals certain subsurface conditions. Even after remediation, a sinkhole disclosure on the seller's report scares off nearly every retail buyer. We've bought dozens of sinkhole-affected homes in Tampa, both remediated and unresolved, because we don't need a lender's approval to close.
In New Tampa and the Wesley Chapel corridor, the pressure comes from builders. New construction communities are offering $5,000 to $15,000 in incentives, rate buydowns, and upgraded finishes that a 15-year-old resale home can't match. Owners trying to sell a 2008 or 2012 build in these areas are watching buyers drive past their listing to the model home down the road. When your competition can offer a brand-new roof, a builder warranty, and a subsidized interest rate, an aging resale needs to be priced aggressively or it won't move.
Tampa ZIP Codes We Buy In
Downtown/Channel District (33602), Seminole Heights (33603), South Tampa/Hyde Park (33606), Westshore (33609), East Tampa (33610), Town N Country (33615)
Brandon and Plant City
Brandon's housing stock is hitting replacement age. Most of the subdivisions east of the Crosstown Expressway went up in the 1980s and 1990s, which means polybutylene pipes, aging roofs on their second or third layer of shingles, and original HVAC systems running on borrowed time. A house that needs a re-pipe ($8,000 to $15,000), a roof ($12,000 to $20,000), and an HVAC swap ($6,000 to $10,000) is looking at $30,000 to $45,000 in deferred maintenance before an agent can list it competitively. Sellers who don't have that kind of cash sitting around come to us instead.
Plant City is a different market entirely. Properties here often sit on well and septic systems rather than city water and sewer, which limits the buyer pool because FHA and VA loans have stricter requirements for well and septic inspections. Failed septic systems cost $10,000 to $25,000 to replace. Rural lots with old agricultural use, former strawberry farm land being the most common, can carry environmental and zoning complications that slow down traditional closings by months. We buy these properties with cash and handle the permitting and remediation ourselves after closing.
Frequently Asked Questions About Selling in Hillsborough County
As of 2026, the median home price in Hillsborough County is approximately $380,000. Prices vary widely, from under $250,000 in parts of East Tampa and Plant City to $600,000+ in South Tampa and Westchase. We factor actual condition, comparable sales, and needed repairs into every offer.
If the title is clear, as little as 7 days. Most Hillsborough County sellers choose 14 to 30 days to get organized. Compare that to 45-60 days on market for MLS-listed homes in this county, and that's before the buyer's lender adds another 30-45 day closing process on top.
Yes. Hillsborough County sits in Florida's sinkhole corridor, and we buy sinkhole-affected homes regularly. Whether the damage has been remediated or not, we can make a fair cash offer. Most traditional buyers and their lenders won't touch sinkhole properties, which is exactly why sellers come to us. Learn more about selling a sinkhole property
I am the buyer. My name is Max Cohen. I'm a Licensed General Contractor (CGC1534000) and the founder of FL Home Buyers LLC. I buy houses with my own funds, renovate them myself, and either sell or rent them. We close at a standard Florida title company. I don't assign contracts to other investors. Learn how to spot "we buy houses" scams
Absolutely. Thousands of Hillsborough County homes built in the 1970s through 1990s have polybutylene plumbing. Most insurers won't write a policy until it's replaced ($8,000-$15,000 for a full re-pipe). We buy these homes as-is, no re-pipe required from you. Learn more about selling a home needing repairs
Official Municipal Resources
Before selling your property, it's always wise to verify ownership details and active tax statuses through the local municipal office:
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