COLORADO SPRINGS, COLO. -- Finding a place to call home for Colorado Springs renters is like finding into a needle in a hay stack.

"Since March I've probably spent 10-12 hours a week just looking for a place," Patrick Hinchliffe, a local looking to rent said.

Hinchliffe has been looking for a place to rent since March and with an end of July deadline, he's getting desperate.

The folks over at Walker Asset Management run 200 properties and have a 98-99 percent occupancy rate.

They have so many people fighting for their listings they no longer take them off the market during the application process.

"If the individual said I'll be in on Monday we let them know we're not taking the property off the market because that Monday may never come," Jon Walker, of Walker Asset Mgmt. said.

The high occupancy rate also means rental properties are going for more than usual.

Walker said the rule of thumb is once occupancy hits 95 percent landlords can raise the rent 2.5 percent in between tenants.