Rent prices may be set to rise

With many people looking to rent homes and apartments across the country, analysts told CNNMoney rent prices could rise 10 percent in some areas.

Analysts told the site that rental vacancy rates have begin to fall in recent months, dropping below 10 percent, a mark that has rarely been crossed over the past few years. Even greater demand in the near future could drive that vacancy rate to 5 percent.

"The demand for rental housing has already started to increase," Peggy Alford, president of Rent.com, told the source. "Young people are starting to get rid of their roommates and move out of their parent's basements."

Alford predicts a national rent spike of 7 percent over the next two years, driving the national average to more than $800 per month.

Rising rent prices may drive many to homeownership. The National Association of Home Builders says more than 70 percent of Houston homes sold during the final quarter of last year should have been "affordable" for someone with the local median income.