The news for investors has shifted from complete doom and gloom to pockets of optimism.  Many of us felt the shift as early as last April and the statistics backed up our intuition. 

Rents are rising in the Miami market. In fact, some economists believe that rising monthly rentals foreshadow a tail end to the housing crisis. “Significant increases in rents at upper-class properties will raise market wide rental rates modestly,” a fourth-quarter market report from real estate firm Marcus & Millichap. In the high-end sector, vacancy has fallen in 2010.

South Florida’s rental occupancy is nearly 95% and that number is expected to continue to increase as the economy improves. Rental rates which fell significantly during the housing crisis are expected to increase 2.3% this year in Miami Dade County.

Failed condo projects continue to renters for relief and young professionals are flooding the submarkets like Brickell and downtown Miami.  Leasing activity is up about 11.5% in the last year according to the Downtown Development Association.

Across Miami-Dade, occupancy was up slightly in 2010, with rent prices increasing about 2 percent according to the Marcus & Millichap report. Miami Beach occupancy rate is about 96%.