"The recent run-up in home prices makes apartment living more desirable," Conway said in a prepared statement. "And the tight supply of land coupled with more condo conversions means fewer available units. That translates into higher rents and occupancy rates for the next couple of years."
"The vacancy is really low and people have to search hard and wide to find an apartment they can afford," she said.
Conway said apartment projects planned at the Irvine Business Center and the Anaheim Platinum Triangle will take some pressure off renters searching for homes in coastal Orange County, but Newport Beach will likely feel a crunch for some time to come.
Ongoing efforts to convert apartments into condominiums as individual units are also driving up apartment rentals. The process increases the overall value of the units, but tends to deplete the rental market, Conway said.