Move over New York City - Washington D.
C.
seems to be making a serious run for the title of most expensive rental city in the nation, much to the chagrin of cash-strapped renters.
The median rent in D.
C.
is now a whopping $1,190, the third highest among major metropolitan cities in the United States.
And that's not all; rental rates in the region soared 22% in 2009 from a decade earlier, according to inflation-adjusted Census data.
In 2009 alone rental prices in the city jumped 8.
2% as reasonably priced apartments became nothing but a distant memory.
One reason for the astronomical increase in rental rates is the fact that D.
C.
's population has increased substantially over the past decade, with around 600,000 people currently calling the city home (for more cool Census tidbits, see ourposton the latest Census data).
With so many vying for rentals, vacant apartment spaces are few and far between; only New York City has fewer vacancies.
The jump in rental rates has left people scrambling for bargains, with some renters even stooping to bidding wars for the most desirable apartments.
Others have moved out to the suburbs in search of more reasonable rents.
With home ownership rates down across the nation, due to stiff credit qualifications and increased down payment requirements, it seems as though D.
C.
's rental woes are here to stay.
Which begs the question: should our nation's capital get its own "rent is too damn high" guy, or can they just borrow New York's?