Higher Demand for Rentals Drive Up Prices

This article confirms what I have been seeing in the marketplace! -------------------------------------------------------------------------- As people put off buying homes either because they're cautious about the market or unable to qualify for a mortgage, they're increasingly turning to rentals. Indeed, rental vacancy rates are falling and rents are going up. In markets where home sales have remained relatively strong, average rents have jumped as much as 3 percent in the last three months. Here are the top 10 markets where rents have risen the most, including the average rents in the second quarter and the percentage increase from the first quarter: 1. San Francisco, $1,757, 3 percent 2. San Jose, Calif., $1,473, 2.4 percent 3. New York City, $2,657, 2.1 percent 4. Seattle, $973, 2 percent 5. Oakland-East Bay, Calif., $1,300, 1.8 percent 6. Orange County, Calif., $1,493, 1.7 percent 7. Washington, D.C., $1,301, 1.7 percent 8. Baltimore, $945, 1.7 percent 9. New Haven, Conn., $1,065, 1.6 percent 10. Philadelphia, $981, 1.6 percent Rents aren't rising everywhere, however. In some markets where the inventory of houses on the market is large, home owners who can't sell are competing to rent out their properties and driving rents down. Source: BusinessWeek Online, Maya Roney (07/19/07) Posted By: Tony Meier Redmond Realtor EastsideHomesBlog.com EastsideHomes.com Seattle's Eastside Real Estate Resource tony@staging.eastsidehomes.com