The 234 Apartment

David Engberg wheels through the third apartment he’s had in two years. PHOTO BY KARLOS RENE AYALA David Engberg and James Clark cling to their independence by a thread. Both men were born with cerebral palsy and live off Supplemental Security Income , or SSI—a stipend that puts them under the federal poverty line . So far, they’ve managed to keep a roof over their heads by splitting the cost of rent. But since the affordable housing crisis hit , the roommates have been priced out of two apartments in just two years. The stressful shuffling was witnessed by Jennifer Schmidt, their case manager at InAlliance, a nonprofit that provides employment and living services for people with disabilities. Advocates such as Schmidt are becoming increasingly alarmed by the way skyrocketing rents are affecting Sacramento County ’s 14, 000 disabled residents . Several independent surveys suggest Sacramento is experiencing some of the largest rent increases in the nation. Few feel those tectonic ma...

Five Broward County cities rank as the priciest rental markets in Florida — and, no, Fort Lauderdale doesn ’t top the list. Miramar leads with a July average rent of $1,800 a month, up 3.2 percent from a year ago, according to RENTCafé, a nationwide apartment search website . Adrian Rosenberg, a representative for the website, noted that Miramar rents have increased steadily in recent years and that more than half of Miramar’s apartment stock is made up of high-end buildings, which includes 1,500 new units delivered since 2013. Despite the recent building boom of luxury apartments in Fort Lauderdale , Broward’s county seat comes in only at No. 2 at $1,751 a month. Davie is third at $1,739. Coral Springs and Pembroke Pines are tied at No. 4 at $1,653 a month. In another upset, Miami came in at only No. 6 ($1,587) because lower- priced neighborhoods drove down the average rent, Rosenberg said. West Palm Beach was No. 7 at $1,344. No other Palm Beach County community made the top 1...