Census Reports: Portland & Seattle Rental Vacancy Rates Remain Below U.S. Average

Seattle's vacancy rate increased from 3.3 to 3.8% in Q2, ranking #15 lowest in the country, while  and Portland's vacancy rate declined slightly from 5.6% to 5.4%, a ranking of 24th lowest. Both have vacancy rates below the national average of 6.3%

Of the top 75 metro areas, Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro's vacancy rate of 5.4%, was up from 3.3% year-over year. Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue's vacancy rate of 3.8% was up slightly from 3.4% a year earlier.

U.S. Rental Vacancies Increase
The average national rental vacancy rate for Q2 2023 was 6.3 percent for multifamily dwellings of five or more units, up from 5.6% a year earlier. 

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Year-over-year vacancy rates in the Western U.S. increased from 4.3% in Q2 2022 to 5.0% in Q2 2023.

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U.S. Homeownership Rates
After falling to a 26-year low in 2016, the national homeownership rate now stands at 65.9%, unchanged from Q1 2023. Homeownership in the West has increased in the past year from 60.2% to 61.9%.