Priciest Cities to Rent

Floto & Warner | The Image Bank | Getty Images Many factors can make a housing rental market difficult to negotiate, such as tight supply and fierce competition for the most desirable properties. But chief among potentially problematic rental factors is the cost. To get an indication of how stretched renters are in each market, the data team at John Burns Real Estate Consulting looked at the rent-to-income ratios in 40 major U.S. cities. The resulting list is particularly heavy with representatives from one state. And while it might not be the argument-ender on where it's the most difficult to find a rental, it can speak to the costliness of these 10 markets.  “This list has the underpinnings of why they are the strongest rental markets in the country,” says Peter Dennehy, Burns Consulting vice president. It’s a combination of reasonably high household income and job growth (meaning cities less-affected by recession or ones growing again), and barriers to home ownership (i.e. cost), as well as a long-term trend toward density.“We’re expecting continued rent growth, and as landlords push rents higher, we expect to see some movement of current renters into homeownership,” says Wayne Yamano, director of research at Burns. “Move-outs to own are still at historically low levels, but some REITs (real estate investment trusts) are starting to see an uptick.”Click ahead to see the countdown to the city with the highest rent-to-income ratio. The figures are for metropolitan areas.By Colleen KanePosted on 17 February 2012

David McNew | Getty Images Rent to Income Ratio: 25%Population:  4,287,600                 Median Household Income: $53,365

Nancy Nehring | Photodisc | Getty Images Rent to Income Ratio: 25%Population: 1,854,300 Median Household Income: $85,677

Don Romero | Photolibrary | Getty Images Rent to Income Ratio: 26%Population: 3,050,400 Median Household Income: $71,884

David Olsen | Getty Images Rent to Income Ratio: 28%Population: 3,138,200 Median Household Income: $60,606

John Coletti | Getty Images Rent to Income Ratio: 28%Population: 4,576,700 Median Household Income: $76,731

Ed Schipul | Flickr Rent to Income Ratio: 28%Population: 1,806,100 Median Household Income: $36,127

Maremagnum | Getty Images Rent to Income Ratio: 29%Population: 2,514,200 Median Household Income: $45,219

Jumper | Getty Images Rent to Income Ratio: 33%Population: 1,789,900 Median Household Income: $79,076

CGIBackgrounds | Getty Images Rent to Income Ratio: 36%Population:  9,932,100                 Median Household Income: $55,579

Brian Kennedy | Workstock Book | Getty Images Rent to Income Ratio: 52%Population: 11,611,400               Median Household Income: $60,161

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