Residential Building Permits on Track to Reach Levels Not Seen Since 2006

The City of Portland plans more housing than the next 13 cities in the region combined, led by historically strong apartment construction. When adjusted for population, only Lake Oswego and Hillsboro are building more housing per capita. Cities with relatively little new housing planned include Milwaukie, Tualatin, West Linn, Beaverton, Gresham and Forest Grove.

Even with building permits and housing construction on the upswing, Portland economist Christian Kaylor notes, "Given our low unemployment rate, if our economy continues to add 30,000 or more jobs every year, the majority of those jobs will need to be filled with new migrants to the region. Until the region is able to create new housing at the same impressive rate we create jobs, expect housing to remain scarce and expensive."

(Source: State of Oregon Employment Department, July, 2016 Economic Indicators report, by Christian Kaylor)