ARTICLE
In a recent report issued by Oregon Housing and Community Services, the state affirmed the findings from 2018 that the chronic underproduction of housing has reached critical levels. According to analysis conducted by ECONorthwest, Oregon has an existing housing deficit of 140,000 units including over 60,000 in the Portland metropolitan region. This underproduction means that housing continues to act as a scarce asset in the marketplace, which in turn leads to inflated housing costs. Regionally, housing production has lagged woefully behind household formation, meaning every ten new households in the Portland region are competing for only six units of housing. The report was issued pursuant to House Bill 2003, which HBA championed in the 2019 legislative session. The bill requires the state to develop a methodology to conduct regional housing needs analysis (they are currently only conducted at the jurisdiction level), estimate existing housing stock, determine housing shortages, and establish needed housing production for next 20 years. These important steps will ensure that local jurisdictions have a better understanding of their true housing needs when conducting local housing needs analyses and building lands inventories. To learn more about how HB2003 will impact local planning efforts in the coming years, contact Ezra Hammer at ezrah@hbapdx.org.