THE SOUTHLAND FIRESTORM: WEEK TWO : O.C. Victims Find Ample Rentals Supply : Housing: There are no signs of price-gouging and many landlords are fixing rents at pre-fire levels for six months.

LAGUNA BEACH —  Residents displaced by last week’s fire are finding an adequate supply of rental units in southern Orange County, real estate experts said Tuesday, and are not being further victimized by the price-gouging that followed the 1991 fire that devastated parts of Oakland.

Orange County’s relatively high vacancy rate--5.7% in October, according to the Apartment Assn. of Orange County--translates into hundreds of available homes, apartments and condominiums within a relatively short drive of Laguna Beach. That ample supply, observers said, should stay ahead of demand.

Rent gouging did occur in Oakland, prompting the California Apartment Assn. to create a referral service that set strict guidelines for members who lease to disaster victims.

That situation, however, was different “because something in the neighborhood of 2,500 homes were lost,” said Richard J. Lambros, spokesman for the Orange County association. “They had a sudden, big rush of people in need of housing . . . and some folks did start to gouge.”

Last week’s Laguna Beach fire burned 16,682 acres and destroyed 366 homes, with damage estimated at $270 million.

The referral program is making rent listings available to fire victims at disaster centers across Southern California. “These are people who have agreed to ethically and responsibly help folks who need assistance,” Lambros said.

“We’ll be able to find folks housing at market rates or below, and gouging shouldn’t be a problem,” he said. “If anything, the trend we’re seeing is in the opposite direction . . . as a number of owners offer significant discounts for fire victims.”

In Orange County, he said, there are “an enormous number of other people who are truly trying to assist victims.”

Many of the county’s landlords have agreed to help by fixing rents at pre-fire levels for the next six months. Landlords also are expediting applications and cutting some lease costs.

Irvine Co., one of the county’s largest landlords, is eliminating credit-check fees, reducing security deposit amounts and helping victims secure home furnishings and telephone service.

The company has several hundred units available to rent, spokeswoman Dawn McCormick said. “To date, we’ve rented about 10 apartments to fire victims.”

The local apartment association, whose members control 150,000 units, is distributing lists of owners who agree to lease units to fire victims at prices equal to those advertised in recent weeks. Apartment owners also have agreed to forestall rent increases for six months and offer open-end leases to fire victims.

On Tuesday, the Laguna Board of Realtors’ computerized listing service, which includes homes, apartments and condominiums, showed nearly 600 properties available for rent in or near Laguna Beach.

“There’s plenty of rental space available,” said Mary Harris, executive vice president of the 900-member Laguna Board of Realtors. “We’ve been swamped with offers of emergency properties. . . . The general public is coming forth with listings, and our agents are providing information.”

Realtors began building a rental database on Friday, shortly after community leaders met in downtown Laguna Beach to assess damage. “At that meeting, they identified all the services fire victims would need and housing was at the top of the list,” Harris said.

Laguna Beach’s limited supply of rental units is almost filled, real estate agents said, as residents who fled to hotels and the homes of family members and friends start the arduous process of finding more permanent lodging.

“The rental market in Laguna Beach got swooped up pretty quickly,” said Mike Watson, office manager of Coldwell Banker Residential Real Estate in Laguna Beach. “But we have also leased homes in Corona del Mar, Laguna Niguel, Newport Beach and Dana Point. It’s still possible to find a place in town, but the rental inventory is getting scarcer.”

The Laguna Board of Realtors’ listing showed a wide price range for rentals that remain: A tiny apartment in Laguna Beach was offered for $790 a month, while large homes with ocean views were going for $5,000 or more.

Price gouging hasn’t been a problem, said Red Cross of Orange County spokeswoman Judy Iannaccone: “We have no verified reports of anything like that.”

Also, availability of affordable housing “hasn’t been an issue,” said Kelly Mulcrone, a spokeswoman for State Farm. The company, one of the state’s largest insurers, covered dozens of homes that were destroyed in Laguna Beach.

“We’ve got a couple renting a condo in Newport, people in Dana Point and Laguna Niguel,” Mulcrone said. “But I quickly get the feeling that most want to stay in Laguna.”

Needing New Space

When Laguna Beach victims of last week’s fire go looking for temporary housing, they are likely to have more luck looking out of town. Rentals listed Tuesday on realtors’ Multiple Listing Service:

Newport Beach*: 234

Irvine: 199

Laguna Niguel: 88

Dana Point/Monarch Beach: 79

Laguna Beach: 75

* Includes Corona del Mar and Balboa Island

Source: Laguna Board of Realtors