* According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the Tampa metro area led the nation in inflation (9.6 percent) rate last month. That means 9.6 percent higher than Jan. 2021. The national rate was 7.5 percent. Second and third, respectively, behind Tampa Bay: Riverside, Calif., 8.6 percent and San Diego 8.3 percent.
* Nationwide, Tampa Bay is ranked 14th on a list of overvalued real estate markets. According to research by Florida Atlantic University real estate economist Ken Johnson and Florida International University economist Eli Beracha, the average home in Tampa Bay sold for 41 percent above the expected price in 2021.
* Hillsborough Transportation Planning Organization data show that 255 people died in traffic crashes last year. That makes 2021 the deadliest ever on local roads.
* Hillsborough County says it faces a $1.5 billion shortfall to expand and improve its transportation system over the next decade. There’s a planned November referendum on a proposed one-cent sales tax for transportation.
* Real estate currency. The first house in the U.S. to be sold as an NFT–Non-Fungible Token–was in Gulfport. BTW, the house sold for $654,000—or about 210 ethereum, a crypto-currency.