The Southern California apartment market will continue to move forward at a healthy pace this year with occupancy rates averaging 96 percent across Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside and San Bernardino counties and rents rising an average of three to five percent, according to the Casden Real Estate Economics Forecast released today by the University of Southern California Lusk Center for Real Estate (www.usc.edu/lusk). "Stricter lending standards following the subprime mortgage meltdown are causing many potential homebuyers, who now face a larger down payment and higher monthly payments, to find renting more affordable," explained Delores Conway, Ph.D., director of the Casden Forecast. "As economic activity expands across the region, steady job growth and high home prices bode well for landlords," Conway added. "Strong investor interest and favorable long-term interest rates should help sustain sales activity of apartment buildings in all markets even as more units are being built." Apartment demand continued to increase across Southern California last year, with monthly rents averaging $1,470 in LA County, $1,472 in Orange County and $1,036 in the Inland Empire. The Casden Forecast analyzes apartment transactions, new building permits, leasing activity and employment data using information from MP/F YieldStar and other sources.
