Rents continue to rise in housing slump

[flashl]

The average asking rent for U.S. apartments rose 1% in the first three months of 2008, the 24th consecutive quarterly gain, as the U.S. housing slump deterred people from buying homes, according to real estate research firm Reis Inc.

San Francisco had the most rapid rent growth at 11.1%, followed by San Jose at 8.9%, New York at 8.8% and Seattle at 7.8%, New York-based Reis said.

The U.S. housing slump has entered its third year with plunging sales and prices and rising foreclosures. Prices fell in 21 cities in January, real estate data company Radar Logic Inc. reported this week, and foreclosures rose to a record at the end of 2007, the Mortgage Bankers Assn. said last month.

...

New York had the highest average rent at $2,790 a month, followed by San Francisco at $1,801, Fairfield County, Conn., at $1,759 and Boston at $1,620, Reis said. In the Los Angeles apartment market, the average asking rent was $1,425, compared with $1,036 in the top 79 markets.

LAT

[no_hypocrisy]

1. Mine went up b/c the federal government reduced state aid.

And state aid got cut. And property taxes rose. And my landlord passed along the cost.

[whistle]

2. Hello! This is big banks and fascism taking over and the result of

...the Federal Reserve policies feeding hundreds of billions of new money ALL of which has gone straight to the large central banks and millions of homeowners being thrown out of their homes.

[fed-up]

3. son's shared 3BR apt-$900 Chico, CA 1 year later new tenants $995- renewing leases $935 nt

[DaveJ]

4. Not so much a "housing slump"....

It's the revival of the American Dream! Now it is a dream, inasmuch as it is now a dream that most people will ever own a home from this point forward. The rich have discovered they can take from us what is most precious and essential. Homes for people, something that mankind has worked so hard for thousands of years to afford for future generations through their achievements, being STOLEN by the privileged few. And we can count on the stupidest among us, as long as they are at least 50% of us, to let it happen. How do we fight for what is ours, when THEY are US?

[Speck Tater]

5. Yikes! Those are some scary prices!

I checked the classifieds in my area. Most 2-bdr apartments are between $525 and $575 with a few as low as $400 and a few as high as $700. Remind me not to move to a big city!!!

[Lucky Luciano]

7. no kidding...my 500 s.f. STUDIO is $3,000 per month...and

in two months it is being raised to $3,200....

[sugerdady87]

6. This is completely natural

This is natural and every economist would of told you this. It will continue to do so for the next 1-3 years. From 2001-2005, home ownership jump significantly; This was follow by a decrease in rent as there were less people to fill the void. As home foreclosers goes up, there's an increase in home renters to the limited amount of spaces available. As demand out-paces supply, prices rise.