That's the consensus of a second quarter report by Hendricks& Partners, a brokerage firm specializing in sellingmulti-family properties. The report shows apartment rents average$748 per month, making them "much more affordable and desirable toDenver's general populace" in light of record home prices.

According to analysts, Denver falls second in the nation for its48.6% increase in housing prices in metro areas. From March 1999 tothis March, average home prices have jumped 13.8%.The reportconcludes new building restrictions and moratoriums continue todrive up home prices, making apartments even more attractive. "Forinstance Aurora (east of Denver) is requiring the use of brick onall homes, while Longmont (northeast of Boulder) has issued atemporary moratorium on reviewing new projects. Hence, home pricesare being pushed upward and construction time lines are delayed,"according to the report.

In the first half of this year, three apartment buildings -built in the last five years - have sold for an average price of$95,150 per unit, while one apartment complex built between 1990and 1994 went for $104,000 per unit. The past year also hasresulted in an average monthly rental hike of 8.3%. The largestgain has been experienced by Boulder County, where the average rentis 10% higher - $897 per month - this year in comparison to 1999'ssecond quarter of $872.