If it seems like finding a place to rent in Los Angeles right now is harder than ever, you aren’t imagining it.
New data released from RentCafe shows that L.A. is now the most competitive city in the state for renters and among the top 10 most competitive markets in the nation.
The driver, according to RentCafe, is the ongoing and lasting ramifications from January’s deadly and devastating wildfires, which destroyed hundreds of homes and businesses across the county.
The fires have displaced thousands of Angelenos and impacted the overall housing supply, and other residents who were not directly affected are opting to re-up their leases rather than venture into the uncertainty of the rental market.
The rental market most affected by the fires is the east Los Angeles region, RentCafe says, which includes parts of L.A., Long Beach, Pasadena, Pomona and Downey. Renters are having to compete, on average, with 17 other renters for each new home that hits the rental market in that region.
The percentage of renters choosing to renew their leases rose from 52.7% this time last year to 57.8% this year. The share of new apartments in east L.A. County increased by less than one-third of a percentage point since last year, further exacerbating the housing scarcity crisis.
Homes that do end up on the market in the eastern L.A. region get filled faster, remaining vacant for only 42 days on average, down from 45 in 2024.
Those combined factors have raised eastern L.A. County to No. 1 in RentCafe’s Rental Competitiveness Index (RCI) for California, surpassing the likes of Silicon Valley and Orange County, and landing it in the top 5 most competitive rental markets in the U.S.
“As expected following the devastating wildfires in early 2025, the apartment market in Los Angeles became noticeably tighter at the start of the moving season,” RentCafe wrote in its latest rental market report. “With many residents displaced and demand for housing on the rise, competition for available rentals intensified, leading to increases across all metrics analyzed.”
While not as pronounced of a challenge for prospective renters in western Los Angeles County, the effects of the January wildfires are also being felt.
Western L.A. County includes Santa Monica, Marina Del Rey, Culver City and Inglewood, among other neighborhoods.
For the western L.A. region, RentCafe’s RCI score rose slightly from 2024 to 2025, with renters re-upping their leases a bit more than the previous year. But occupancy rates remain mostly static year-over-year, and the number of prospective renters per unit remains unchanged at nine. A higher rate of new apartments being built has eased some of the rental pressure also, RentCafe said.
Western L.A. County still remains one of the more friendly and steady markets for renters among California’s major metropolitan areas.
Eastern L.A. County landed at No. 4 in the most competitive rental markets at the start of the 2025 rental season. RentCafe lists Miami, suburban Chicago, and Broward County, Florida as the only markets with a higher RCI score.
The full listing of the 20 most competitive rental markets is below:
| Rank | Market | Competitive Score | Avg Vacant Days | Occupied Apts | Prospective Renters | Lease Renewal Rate | Share of New Units |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Miami, FL | 96.7 | 36 | 96.6% | 21 | 74.7% | 0.40% |
| 2 | Suburban Chicago, IL | 85.1 | 44 | 95.6% | 14 | 70.6% | 0.14% |
| 3 | Broward County, FL | 85.0 | 41 | 95.2% | 14 | 70.7% | 0.82% |
| 4 | Eastern Los Angeles County, CA | 83.9 | 42 | 96.1% | 18 | 57.8% | 0.30% |
| 5 | Suburban Philadelphia, PA | 81.7 | 49 | 94.9% | 11 | 77.9% | 0.10% |
| 5 | Manhattan, NY | 81.7 | 45 | 95.9% | 11 | 70.0% | 0.15% |
| 7 | Chicago, IL | 81.1 | 44 | 95.0% | 13 | 62.6% | 0.23% |
| 8 | Lansing – Ann Arbor, MI | 80.6 | 43 | 95.3% | 9 | 69.4% | 0.32% |
| 8 | Bridgeport – New Haven, CT | 80.6 | 45 | 94.7% | 12 | 65.8% | 0.05% |
| 8 | Brooklyn, NY | 80.6 | 46 | 96.7% | 12 | 69.4% | 0.61% |
| 11 | North Jersey, NJ | 79.6 | 45 | 95.0% | 10 | 72.7% | 0.93% |
| 12 | Kansas City, MO | 79.4 | 46 | 93.6% | 10 | 68.9% | 0.12% |
| 13 | Silicon Valley, CA | 79.3 | 39 | 95.3% | 12 | 56.8% | 1.02% |
| 14 | Orlando, FL | 78.8 | 41 | 94.4% | 11 | 69.0% | 1.80% |
| 15 | Milwaukee, WI | 78.5 | 49 | 94.0% | 11 | 71.0% | 0.46% |
| 15 | Tampa, FL | 78.5 | 42 | 92.9% | 9 | 69.7% | 1.39% |
| 17 | Grand Rapids, MI | 78.1 | 45 | 95.3% | 9 | 71.3% | 1.09% |
| 17 | Cincinnati, OH | 78.1 | 48 | 94.1% | 12 | 65.8% | 0.31% |
| 19 | Greater Boston, MA | 78.0 | 47 | 94.8% | 11 | 66.1% | 0.47% |
| 20 | San Diego, CA | 77.9 | 43 | 94.7% | 12 | 56.3% | 0.39% |
| 20 | Pittsburgh, PA | 77.9 | 47 | 94.0% | 7 | 70.1% | 0.00% |
As the market continues heating up, renters are finding themselves with fewer options than in previous years. For those who want to forego monthly rents and instead invest in a home they actually own, that hurdle is even further out of reach than ever for most people.
For the complete list and more about the methodology in RentCafe’s data, click here.