The Pulse of East Orlando Real Estate, With a Focus on Waterford Lakes

By Don Debat, Sun-Times Media

Rental apartments are in heavy demand among young living in the suburbs of Chicago, experts say.

A new survey by Appraisal Research Counselors Ltd. noted that young people—age 25 to 34 years—prefer the flexibility of renting, instead of buying, because renting is easier if they have to relocate in today’s tough job market.

That fact is very apparent in the Appraisal Research survey of more than 75,000 units in the seven county Chicago-area suburban market covering Cook, DuPage, Kane, Kendall, McHenry, Lake and Will counties.

That fact is very apparent in the Appraisal Research survey of more than 75,000 units in the seven county Chicago-area suburban market covering Cook, DuPage, Kane, Kendall, McHenry, Lake and Will counties.

By Joseph Plambeck - NY Times, Photograph by Brian Cronin - NY Times

At first blush, it doesn’t make much sense: If you know you’ll need an apartment in New York in several months, why can’t you start a serious search now, rather than wait until your move-in date is just a few weeks away?

The short window of opportunity for an apartment hunt is a fact of life in the city. In large part, it’s a function of limited supply and high demand — landlords believe that the greater the number who see an apartment, the more rent it can command. And renters may not want to commit ahead of time, fearful of missing out on something better or cheaper.

Unfortunately, it’s not likely that renters will be able to conduct a long, leisurely search for an apartment anytime soon. Rents in the city are near historic highs, and vacancies are on the scarce side, whether in new rentals or condominium towers or prewar co-ops. The timeline is a few weeks longer for rentals in condos and co-ops. But first, the strategies for maximizing opportunities in rental-only buildings once the window is open:

By Kathryn Tuggle - FOXBusiness

Facing a down economy and uncertain housing market, many homeowners are looking to make extra cash by renting out rooms in their homes,

According to Harvard's Joint Center for Housing Studies 2011 report, “recession-induced income and job losses have forced many former homeowners to turn to renting…many more owners will become renters in the coming years, and will remain so for some time as they build savings and reestablish their credit ratings."

The study shows that from 2006 to 2010, the number of renter households rose annually by 692,000 to reach 37 million last year, an all-time high. Likewise, the number of owner households dropped by 201,000 annually during the same period.