They worried that rising gas and food prices would make it harder for them to cover a mortgage payment. And they feared paying too much, if indeed the housing market worsened.

"We did not feel we would want to put ourselves into a financial hole," said Steven Warnock, a 34-year-old volunteer organizer for a nonprofit organization.

So the Warnocks decided to renew their lease at Woods Edge apartments in southern Durham -- even if it meant having to swallow a $100-a-month rent increase.

As more renters stayed put, and as newcomers who couldn't sell their homes elsewhere rented, rather than take on a second mortgage, landlords took advantage of the demand.

Rents are now at record highs, with the average being $811 per unit, Triangle Apartment Association data show. But there are indications that rents could start to drop.

The slow economy is starting to produce fewer renters. There's also competition from new apartments and unsold homes that have become available for rent.

And more renters, increasingly pinched by higher expenses and stagnant incomes, are balking at rent increases. "People have less cash in their pockets," said Jim Scofield, a Sperry Van Ness broker who represents apartment investors. "So they're unwilling to absorb the rent increases that landlords would like to have."

As a result rents are growing at a slower rate than in previous years. They were up 1.4 percent this year, compared with a 3 percent jump in 2007.

But they're still high enough for renters to make new decisions about where -- and with whom -- they live.

Jessie Schaffner, 30, gave up the luxury of sharing a two-bedroom apartment with only her rat terrier Bean and miniature Pinscher Lily.

In September, when her $820-a-month lease was about to expire, she learned that her rent would jump by at least $100 a month. That was too much to take, especially given that she didn't get the annual raise she was expecting.

Schaffner, a paralegal, started looking for new digs. She learned that she'd have to downsize if she wanted to come close to the cost of her old lease. "I couldn't find anything I could afford by myself," she said.

So she got in touch with an old friend in a similar predicament. They moved into a bigger apartment in the same Raleigh complex, Atria at Crabtree Valley, where her part of the rent is $455 a month. "Together, I could stay in my really nice apartment complex," she said. "But it's definitely an adjustment."

Late last year, Kate Catlin was living alone in The Apartments at Stonehenge in North Raleigh, when she was notified by her landlord that her rent would go up $25 to $620.

"Paying that, plus all the utilities was too much," said Catlin, a 24-year-old account executive at a Raleigh public relations firm.

So she ended up moving in with a co-worker in an apartment closer to work. Catlin surrendered privacy, but she's now saving at least $200 each month. "I was hesitant to get a roommate after living by myself," Catlin said. "But it's been worth it saving money."

Doubling up may be one of the reasons the region's apartment vacancy rate climbed to 8.7 percent from 8.2 percent a year ago. "It's one of those hidden indicators," said Brian Reece, a partner at Karnes Research, the Raleigh company that conducts research for the apartment association.

Evictions are another.

"It doesn't take long for somebody who goes from 40 to 30 hours a week [of employment] to get behind and have to make some real changes," said Jere Buch, executive director of multifamily management at Drucker & Falk, the Triangle's biggest apartment management company. " ... Sometimes they reach the breaking point," he added. "And, to them, the breaking point is, 'I'm just moving out in the middle of the night.' "

Vacancies also could go up as more apartments are built, and another 2,840 units were going up at the end of September. To fill those spaces, landlords may cut rents and offer concessions.

Already, some communities are beginning to offer perks to get tenants to renew early, rather than flee to a competitor. Tenants at Autumn Ridge in northwest Raleigh were recently offered $200 gas cards if they renew early.