"In most markets, renting is considered a stage of life, like the toddler's Terrible Twos or the teenager's acne breakouts. It is assumed that in due time, renters will get married, start families, and move into the stage of making mortgage payments and worrying about the hot water heater. The study seems to suggest that about two thirds of all renters in California will stay in apartments, eventually using the money they were saving for a down payment to pay for the kids' music lessons and then their college tuition," said Caroline S. Latham, CEO of RealFacts, which, along with Marcus & Millichap, just released reports showing that California's renters, already barely getting by, are about to lose any negotiating edge they may have had.

The National Multi Housing Council's (NMHC) January 2004 quarterly "Survey of Apartment Market Conditions" also reported the best three-month improvement in five years for the nation.

Those market "improvements" may be great for investors, landlords, property managers and others on the owning side of real estate, but not tenants -- especially in California.

"Where are the highest rent levels in the Western Region? California. Where is the highest rent growth in the region? California. Where is the highest apartment occupancy rate in the region? California," Latham said.

For example, in San Jose, considered the Capital of Silicon Valley, the average monthly rent of all properties RealFacts tracks -- a combined average of studios to three-bedroom townhomes in complexes of 100 units or more -- peaked at $1,746 in 2001 in San Jose, but by the end of 2003 that had dropped to $1,319 per month. Renters are not cheering prospects that market conditions could be about to reverse that trend.

Two years ago, a similar CBP report concluded there weren't enough work hours in the week for many households to earn enough to pay the rent. Matters have worsened.

While incomes haven't kept pace with the rising cost of housing, housing inventories also haven't kept pace with demand, further exacerbating the cost of rent, according to CBP.

From 1990 to 2002 an average 120,833 building permits were issued each year. During the 1980s the number was more than 203,000 and during the 1970s it was even higher, more than 215,000 per year.

Multifamily housing production has been especially hard hit. During the 1980s, building permits were issued for an average 91,682 multifamily housing permits each year, representing 45 percent of total housing permits. Since 1990 the average has been 31,502 permits, just 26 percent of the total.

"According to a study released this month by the California Association of Realtors, only 25 percent of the state's residents can afford the cost of (a median priced home). In many California markets, such as Silicon Valley and Orange County, that average cost is (more than) a half a million dollars. That means (at least a) typical down payment of $100,000, well beyond most people's ability to save. And even at today's low interest rates, it means a monthly mortgage payment of around $2,400. In the most expensive areas of California, such as San Francisco and Los Angeles, the average monthly rent for an apartment is under $1,600 --- which makes it easy to understand why the study concluded that California's high home prices are creating a permanent class of renters," Latham said.