Orlando is a beautiful place to live, but according to a new study, that's only for those who have enough money. The City Beautiful has some of the highest rent in the country, some experts say. Amanda Ober investigates.

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Orlando is a beautiful place to live, but according to a new study, that's only for those who have enough money.The City Beautiful has some of the highest rent in the country, some experts say.According to a new study, Orlando ranked second in the country for increase in rent prices for one-bedroom apartments. Many people say they feel blocked out of the rental market.More than 1,000 new apartments have been built or are under construction in downtown Orlando, but it's tough to find one that's affordable. Christie McLennan is having to share an apartment with her mother. McLennan's boyfriend is still searching for something he can afford."It's pretty expensive. You compare it to other cities, like my friends living in New York spend less than I do," McLennan said.According to a study by the Harvard Joint Center for Housing, the median income for renters in metro Orlando is $35,000 and the midpoint rent price is $1,000. That means Orlando area renters are considered "rent burdened" because they spend more than 30 percent of their income on household costs."Honestly, it's much cheaper to be a homeowner than to be a renter at this moment," said Luisa Clark, a local housing director at a nonprofit in Sanford.Clark helps people find housing. She said if they qualify, many of her clients are better off buying than renting because a mortgage on a starter house can be as low as $800 a month. That's less than the average current rent."We have seen that a one-bedroom unit that used to be $500 to $600 is now at $900 to $1,200," Clark said.Clark and others wonder when the rent prices will level off. Until then, they said many renters have no choice but to live "rent burdened."Local real-estate agents said the rapid rise in rental costs is not translating into an increase in home sales, even though buying may be more affordable. They said one reason is the majority of renting households don't have the savings or credit scores necessary to qualify for a mortgage.14277264