WEA Newsletter
Housing our region.
There are few issues that have captured the zeitgeist of our regional imagination as much as housing affordability in the 2020s.
We know that, historically, population growth, limited housing supply and strong demand lead to a rise in housing costs. We also know that the last few years of the Feds’ interest rate increases, as they work to control inflation, have also played a role. However, what we are learning is that not all of these factors are at play. For example, data tells us that we have seen a regional decline in population (though recent reporting tells us the decline has “slowed to a trickle”) most notably in Multnomah and Washington counties. And so, what other forces may be influencing the cost (and availability) of housing?