In January, I wrote about how the economic slump was bringing down average apartment rents in the United States, along with a slight increase in the vacancy rate, which was good news for renters.

A new report from real estate research firm Reis Inc. shows a continuation of this trend. According to yesterday's report, the national vacancy rate rose to a near-record 7.5%, a 1.4% climb over last year's figure. Plus, effective rent (which includes concessions) fell nearly 2% from last year.

Not surprisingly, many landlords are reportedly boosting concessions to maintain occupancy, according to Reuters.

Are you finding your apartment search to be easier than you had expected because you're encountering many vacancies? If you already live in an apartment, have you been able to negotiate any rental concessions with your landlord, such as enjoying a free month's rent in return for renewing your lease?

If you split rent with roommates, you might think your tenancy is protected as long as you pay your landlord your own share of the rent each month. But roommates who don't pay their full share put you at risk, too.

After diligently paying your rent each month, the last thing you want is to be threatened with eviction because a roommate comes up short.

Read what you can do to prevent this situation from happening to you.

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A recent report from the National Apartment Association (NAA) estimates that homeownership in the United States could decline up to 8% or more by 2030, aligning homeownership rates with those of several European countries. This would mean apartment renters would make up around 40% -- rather than just above 30% -- of the population.

The NAA report attributes the decline in homeownership and rise in apartment living to several factors, including a growing immigrant population, the lack of affordability for many households, the emergence of Generation-Y households, and a growing nationwide trend toward urban living.

Highlights of the report and an executive summary are both available on the NAA's Web site.

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The answer is finding an apartment -- according to 17% of 1,000 American adults surveyed recently by Rent.com.

The Rent.com survey also revealed apartment hunters' gripes with finding the right rental. Topping the list are apartment ads that lack important information such as pet policies (50%), not having enough worthwhile apartments to check out (29%), finding difficulty with taking time off from work to visit apartments (36%), and having to devote to much time to an apartment search (49%), or experience too much frustration (39%).

Interestingly, the survey also showed that many apartment hunters would sacrifice time and comfort in return for the perfect apartment. For instance, 9% of those surveyed said they would live two hours from their job, if needed.

What are your main gripes with apartment hunting? Have you changed your lifestyle or made any sacrifices to find the perfect rental? Would you?

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If you're one of the many apartment dwellers who choose to live alone, advertising that fact on your outgoing answering machine or voicemail message could open the door to crime. Stalkers and other criminals may be quicker to break into an apartment if they learn that it has only one occupant.

Here are some helpful suggestions on what to say in your outgoing message to make yourself less vulnerable to crime.

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In November, I told you about a Georgia tenant who set off as many as 14 fumigators before leaving her apartment for work. She was trying to combat a cockroach problem, but the fumigators' ingredients interacted with a pilot light, causing a loud explosion.

This story has played out again, this time in Citrus Heights, California. On Monday, a tenant in an apartment building there set off 10 fumigators in a similar attempt to get a roach infestation under control. The explosion blew out some of the building's load-bearing walls, according to the Associated Press, leading officials to condemn the entire building. Fortunately, as with the Georgia incident, no one was injured, but the tenants in the building's three apartments have been placed in temporary housing.

Read how you can prevent explosions when using fumigators to combat roach problems.

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) recently announced that more than $58 million is available for housing counseling programs this year. This figure is $11 million, or 23%, above the amount of last year's funding. The money will be awarded as grants to hundreds of HUD-approved counseling agencies and state housing finance agencies that offer guidance on several aspects of renting an apartment, as well as other topics.

Read how to get free or low-cost advice from a HUD-sponsored housing counselor near you.

Imagine returning home from work and finding your apartment wrecked... by a deer! That's what happened to tenants in Saint John, New Brunswick this past Thursday.

According to the Telegraph-Journal, a deer gained access to a first-floor apartment by jumping through a window. Afraid and confused, the deer tore through the apartment, injuring itself and causing extensive damage to the tenants' belongings, which included some reportedly irreplaceable collector's items.

Fortunately, the deer couldn't access the tenants' bedrooms because the doors were closed, and none of the tenants was hurt. But the tenants will need to replace their belongings using their own money, because neither one had purchased renter's insurance, according to the Telegraph-Journal.

Do you have renter's insurance? If not, a good policy may cost much less than you think. Read all about renter's insurance and be prepared for the unexpected!

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The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) recently released its annual report for Congress on the state of housing discrimination. The report reveals that 4,675 (or 44%) of the complaints lodged in 2008 were based on disability discrimination.

This is the fourth year in a row in which disability-based discrimination has proven to be the most common type of fair housing complaint, and its numbers have been climbing, according to HUD's data.

Do you know what kind of disability is protected under the Fair Housing Act? Also, read how the law's ban on disability-based discrimination may protect you -- even if you don't have a disability.

(© John Rowley / Getty Images)

Since it first became popular over a half-century ago, the television set has been blamed for many things, from fostering laziness and ignorance to spreading propaganda and misinformation. Now, it appears a TV set is the likely culprit in igniting a blaze Monday night that destroyed a two-story apartment in Welland, Ontario.

Fortunately, the building's other apartment was spared and, although paramedics treated one tenant for smoke inhalation after attempting to return to the building to rescue a pet, there were no reports of serious injuries, according to the Welland Tribune.

While authorities point the finger at the tenants' TV set, the exact cause of the incident may remain a mystery because the appliance was reportedly destroyed -- along with any evidence of its faultiness.

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(© Steve Woods / SXC)