Orange County remains the toughest market in Southern California to find rental housing.<\/p>\n
My trusty spreadsheet reviewed the local slice of RentCafe\u2019s mid-year study of the most competitive places<\/a> to find an apartment at larger complexes. The report tracking second-quarter data for 66 big U.S. apartment markets included six in Southern California.<\/p>\n Orange County had the region\u2019s highest competitiveness score, as calculated by RentCafe. It was also No. 1 at mid-year 2024. Among those 66 U.S. markets, Orange County was the 25th most competitive in the second quarter of 2025.<\/p>\n Orange County renters<\/a> are loyal, meaning 62% of them renewed their leases in the second quarter \u2013 the region\u2019s highest rate. Nationally, 63% renewed.<\/p>\n That low turnover helped keep vacancies tight, at 5% of supply. The U.S. vacancy rate ran at 7%.<\/p>\n Empty Orange County units sat vacant for 43 days \u2013 three days longer than the nation\u2019s norm. And Orange County vacancies got an average of 12 views from prospective tenants vs. nine nationwide.<\/p>\n And it was no help to apartment seekers that zero apartments were added to Orange County\u2019s supply in the quarter. Nationally, 84 new units were constructed for every 10,000 of existing inventory.<\/p>\n Easy Street<\/p>\n Compare those patterns with Southern California\u2019s \u201ceasiest\u201d place to find an apartment: western Los Angeles County. It was also the easiest market a year ago. Nationally, it was the third-least competitive of the 66 markets tracked.<\/p>\n Only 44% of Western L.A. tenants renewed \u2013 the region\u2019s lowest loyalty. This high turnover is a likely explanation for Western L.A.\u2019s 8% vacancy rate \u2013 the region\u2019s highest.<\/p>\n Empty units sat vacant for 44 days and got just nine looks \u2013 the region\u2019s lowest. Additionally, apartment seekers were aided by 73 new units for every 10,000 existing ones, marking the highest construction<\/a> pace in Southern California.<\/p>\n Elsewhere<\/p>\n Now ponder the other four markets, ranked hardest to easiest \u2026<\/p>\n San Diego County: 55% renew in a market with 5% vacancies that sit empty for 39 days \u2013 the region\u2019s lowest \u2013 while receiving 13 looks. Construction added 68 units per 10,000 existing apartments. Ranked No. 27 nationally.<\/p>\n Eastern Los Angeles County: 50% renew in a market with 4% vacancies \u2013 the region\u2019s lowest \u2013 that sit empty for 42 days while receiving 15 looks \u2013 the region\u2019s highest. Construction added 65 units per 10,000. Ranked No. 35 nationally.<\/p>\n North LA\/Ventura County: 54% renew in a market with 5% vacancies that sit empty for 44 days while receiving 12 looks. Construction added 33 units per 10,000. Ranked No. 42 nationally.<\/p>\n