Orlando: Rentals are in demand.

Orlando apartment market one of the tightest in the countryAccording to the National Association of Realtors, condo conversions have left some markets, including Orlando with very low vacancy rates of 2.2 percent or less.NAR reports that areas with the lowest apartment vacancies are Los Angeles; Orlando; Newark, N.J.; Ft. Lauderdale, and West Palm Beach.Condo converters continue to influence multifamily investment across the country, with conversion of apartments into condos accounting for more than half of the dollar volume in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeast, and more than 40 percent of volume in the Northeast and Midwest. In the last year, approximately 120,000 rental apartments have been removed from the inventory due to conversions.Overall, the apartment rental market – multifamily housing – should see vacancy rates drop to 5.0 percent by the end of 2006, down from 6.2 percent last year. Average rent is projected to increase 3.0 percent in 2006, compared with a 1.5 percent rise in 2004.