Davis Islands

What the market looks like here

Zillow Home Value Index for ZIP 33606, updated 2026-09-01. This is area context, not a valuation. In South Tampa a single block can swing the number substantially, and this ZIP covers several other neighborhoods too. For what your specific street is doing, ask Kevin for a CMA.

About Davis Islands

Cross the bridge from Bayshore and the pace shifts. Davis Islands was dredged and platted in the 1920s as a self-contained resort development, and it still reads that way: a grid of short blocks, Mediterranean Revival stucco with barrel tile roofs, a real business district on East Davis Boulevard, and water at the end of most streets. Residents walk to dinner, to coffee, to the dog beach, to the tennis complex. Downtown is minutes away over the Davis Boulevard bridge, but the island does not feel like an extension of it.

The housing is a genuine mix. Original 1920s and 1930s Spanish-style homes and courtyard cottages sit near mid-century ranches, canal-front houses with private docks on the outer streets, and a growing number of tall elevated new builds replacing ground-level stock. It suits boaters, downtown and Tampa General commuters, and buyers who want walkability with a quieter, more residential feel than Hyde Park Village or SoHo. Marjorie Park Marina, the seaplane basin, the yacht club and Picnic Island-style shoreline access give the neighborhood an outdoor orientation that most inland South Tampa streets cannot match.

The honest tradeoff is access and exposure. There is essentially one way on and off the islands, so a stalled car or a shift change at Tampa General backs up the bridge approach. Being surrounded by water is the appeal and also the risk, and that shows up in insurance, in construction decisions, and in how a hurricane season is experienced here.

What to expect

Nearly all of the islands sit low and were built on fill, and like most of South Tampa the area falls within a FEMA Special Flood Hazard Area, which makes flood insurance mandatory with a mortgage. Tampa's CRS Class 5 rating earns a 25% NFIP discount inside flood zones, which helps, but insurance remains the line item that surprises people, particularly on older ground-level houses and on canal-front parcels where the zone designation can be more restrictive. The FEMA 50% rule matters here more than in most neighborhoods: once improvements or repairs exceed half the structure's value within a rolling 12 months, the home has to be brought up to current floodplain code, including elevation. That math is why so many original cottages come down instead of getting renovated in stages.

Lots are modest by South Tampa standards, with short setbacks, alleys behind some blocks, and driveways that hold fewer cars than a family typically owns. Street parking in the village fills up on weekend evenings. Expect small aircraft traffic from Peter O. Knight, seaplane activity in the basin, and medical helicopters serving Tampa General at the north end, all of which are normal background noise rather than occasional events. New construction is steady and visible; South Tampa averages roughly 231 permitted residential demolitions a year and, with Central Tampa, accounts for about 88% of the City's residential teardowns, and the elevated replacement homes going up between older bungalows are the local version of that trend.

The investment angle

Within ZIP 33606, which also covers Hyde Park, Harbour Island and SoHo, values sit around the middle of the broader South Tampa range, but the spread inside the islands themselves is wide. An interior block of original cottages and a canal-front street with deep water and a dock are different markets. Waterfront and dockable parcels price well above the neighborhood norm, and much of the older low-lying inventory trades closer to land value than to house value, because the practical path for a buyer is a full rebuild rather than a partial remodel.

Due diligence should start with the elevation certificate, the specific flood zone designation, and a current insurance quote rather than the seller's expiring policy. On waterfront, seawall condition, dock and lift permitting, and canal depth at low tide are worth verifying independently. Buyers planning to renovate should ask what permitted work has already been done and how it counts against the 50% threshold, and anyone planning a tall rebuild should confirm height and setback constraints given proximity to the airport and the neighborhood's historic-era platting. School zoning should be confirmed directly with Hillsborough County Public Schools rather than assumed from a listing.

Nearby in Hyde Park & Northeast South Tampa