I used to say rents would rise in the beginning of the bubble burst, but drop as we worked our way through the inventory.
Right now, a lot of inventory is being held off the market — abandoned homes in the foreclosure process or homes that are not being paid for with technical squatters (people who stopped paying their mortgages, but the banks refuse to foreclose for whatever reason).
I’m definitely noticing more “for rent” signs now in the south Carlsbad/Encinitas. Lots of FBs renting out their homes as they “wait for the market to improve.”
Lots of money has disappeared over the past year. Many people are literally on the edge WRT their jobs. There is little chance we’ll see rents rise like they have over the past few years. We are about to see the downside of that “rent bubble” as well, IMHO.
