Tag: Portland rental market

Portland Real Estate Appraisal Brief – Saturday, November 29, 2025: Oregon Sets 2026 Rent Cap at 9.5%

Oregon’s 2026 rent cap is set at 9.5%. See the key details and implications of this policy for Portland metro rental valuations, property owners, and investment strategies.

Portland appraisal brief graphic for Oregon 2026 9.5% rent cap official announcement.

The Oregon Department of Administrative Services (DAS) has released the official rent stabilization percentages for 2026, offering clarity for landlords, tenants, and housing professionals statewide. As a certified residential appraiser serving the Portland metro area, I track these updates closely because they influence rental market dynamics, which in turn affect property valuations for homeowners, lenders, realtors, estate planners, and attorneys.

This annual adjustment, governed by ORS 90.323 (maximum rent increase) and ORS 90.324 (calculation and publication), ensures rent increases align with inflation while offering predictability in a volatile housing market. Published on September 30, 2025, the announcement ties directly to the state’s rent control measures enacted to protect tenants from excessive hikes.

For most residential tenancies in the Portland region, the maximum allowable rent increase will be 9.5% starting January 1, 2026. This figure represents the lesser of 10% or 7% plus the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI‑U) for the West Region, All Items, based on data from the previous 12 months. The calculation reflects a measured response to rising living costs, down slightly from the 10.0% cap in 2025.

Key Details on the 2026 Rent Cap

Understanding the nuances of this cap is essential for anyone involved in residential leasing or valuation in Oregon. The 9.5% limit applies broadly to tenancies under ORS 90.323, which covers most single‑family homes, apartments, and multifamily units in the region. Landlords must provide at least 90 days’ written notice for any increase up to this threshold, and the cap applies per 12-month period and increases may only be given once in any 12-month period.

Exemptions and special cases:

  • Smaller facilities (≤30 spaces): Manufactured dwelling parks or marinas follow the same formula—10% or 7% + CPI (9.5% in 2026).
  • Larger facilities (>30 spaces): Parks or marinas face a stricter 6% maximum increase under ORS 90.600.
  • Exclusions: New tenancies in the first year, fixed‑term leases without renewal, and exempt properties (e.g., subsidized housing). Utilities and fees may rise separately from base rent.

These provisions help maintain stability in the Portland metro area’s rental landscape, where median asking rents have hovered near $1,987 for a two‑bedroom unit according to RentCafe’s Portland rental market report (Nov 2025). Zillow places the overall average asking rent across unit types at $1,772 (Zillow Portland Rental Market; snapshot date 11/28/2025). Neighborhood‑level data shows two‑bedroom rents ranging from $1,800 to $2,400, underscoring the variability across the metro.

For appraisers, knowing the precise rent cap helps model the timeline required to bring a property or multifamily project back to market rents, especially when current leases are below prevailing rates. This allows for more accurate income projections.

Implications for Portland Metro Property Owners and Professionals

  • Homeowners: Must factor the 9.5% ceiling into rental conversion ROI, especially when evaluating single‑family properties for lease. The cap limits upside potential in a demand‑heavy market and affects long‑term income projections.
  • Realtors: Benefit from being able to project realistic rental growth figures in listings, particularly for multifamily properties (2+ units). The cap provides a clear ceiling for annual rent increases, which helps set buyer expectations and avoid overpromising future income.
  • Lenders: Gain greater clarity into a property’s income potential, allowing for more accurate underwriting and valuation.
  • Investors: Stay aligned with prevailing market rates while complying with legal pacing. For multifamily portfolios, knowing the exact rent cap helps plan staggered increases and avoid underperformance due to below-market rents.

Sources & Further Reading

Thanks for reading—I hope you found a useful insight or an unexpected nugget along the way. If you enjoyed the post, please consider subscribing for future updates.

Question: Do you think the annual cap will ever drop significantly, or will persistent inflation keep the annual increase at about 10%?

CODA

Are you an agent in Portland and wonder why appraisers always do “x”?

A homeowner with questions about multifamily income properties, GRMs, or income calculations?

If so, feel free to reach out—I enjoy connecting with market participants across Portland and the surrounding counties, and am always happy to help where I can.

And if you’re in need of appraisal services in Portland or anywhere in the Portland Region, we’d be glad to assist.

Portland Real Estate Appraisal Brief – Thursday, November 27, 2025: $21M in Unspent Rental Fees Discovered

A recent city review found that Portland has accumulated approximately $21 million in rental-registry fees that were designated to support emergency rental assistance and eviction-prevention programs. During the period in which these funds remained unused, landlords in Multnomah County filed an estimated 800 to 1,200 eviction cases per month, though not all filings result in an eviction order.

Portland Oregon skyline at sunset with Mount Hood in the background and overlay text “$21 Million in Unspent Rental Assistance Funds,” illustrating the impact of housing policy and unspent rental-aid funds on the Portland metro real estate appraisal market.

The rental-registry program requires landlords to pay fees and register units, with the revenue earmarked specifically for tenant-support programs. Poor tracking and administrative delays left the money unspent, even as demand for rental aid remained elevated across the Portland metro area.

Leadership Change and Severance Package

The discovery coincided with the resignation of Portland Housing Bureau Director Helmi Hisserich. Following paid administrative leave, Hisserich received a severance package equal to her full annual salary of approximately $241,000. The city continues to examine how the funds went unused for an extended period.

Appraisal Implications in the Portland Region

Residential Properties (1–4 Units)

The unspent funds have no immediate direct effect on comparable sales selection or adjustment grids for typical single-family or small-multifamily appraisals in the Portland metro area. Broader affordability pressure and eviction volume remain relevant market-condition factors, but no abrupt shift in residential values is likely from this development alone.

Commercial Multifamily and Investor-Owned Properties

If the $21 million is successfully redeployed for rental assistance and eviction defense, occupancy stability in larger apartment properties (5+ units) could improve. Lower economic vacancy risk and reduced turnover expense represent positive influences on net operating income, which in turn support lower capitalization rates and higher valuations for income-producing assets across the region.

Appraisers working on commercial assignments in Multnomah County should monitor city council actions regarding reallocation of these funds in the coming weeks to months.

Homeowners, lenders, realtors, estate planners, and attorneys relying on accurate valuation of investment-grade multifamily residential properties will benefit from understanding how policy execution—or delays—can influence income metrics and risk adjustments in appraisal reports.

Sources & Further Reading

Thanks for reading—I hope you found a useful insight or an unexpected nugget along the way. If you enjoyed the post, please consider subscribing for future updates.

Question: Do you think the $21 million will be disbursed soon, or will it take months before the funds can be used for rental assistance?

CODA

Are you an agent in Portland and wonder why appraisers always do “x”?

A homeowner with questions about income-producing properties?

If so, feel free to reach out—I enjoy connecting with market participants across Portland and the surrounding counties, and am always happy to help where I can.

And if you’re in need of appraisal services in Portland or anywhere in the Portland Region, we’d be glad to assist.

Portland Real Estate Appraisal Brief – Tuesday, November 25, 2025: Oregon Joins $7 Million Proposed Settlement with Greystar Over RealPage Rent-Setting Practices

Oregon and eight other states filed a proposed $7M settlement with Greystar, affecting ~19,000 Portland apartments. Appraisers and buyers are watching for 2026 rent softening and cap rate shifts.

Graphic showing $7 Million dollar proposed settlement involving Oregon and 8 other states.

A coalition of nine states led by Oregon and California has filed a proposed $7 million settlement with Greystar Management Services — the nation’s largest rental housing operator — over allegations that Greystar used RealPage software to illegally coordinate rent pricing across competing properties.

The settlement, if approved by a federal court, would permanently bar Greystar from sharing non-public rent and occupancy data with competitors and from using RealPage’s hyper-local pricing recommendations. A separate DOJ consent decree filed against RealPage itself imposes similar behavioral restrictions and a three-year independent monitor.

Greystar manages approximately 19,000 apartment units in the Portland metro area — roughly 10 % of the region’s multifamily inventory. State investigators have estimated that RealPage-enabled pricing affected roughly one in five multifamily units statewide.

Image of large apartment complex with a "For Rent" sign superimposed.

For homeowners, buyers, agents, and lenders, the most immediate question is whether these enforcement actions will translate into meaningful rent relief in 2026 and beyond.

The Direct Impact on Purchasing Power

A renter currently paying a $200 “algorithm premium” (the difference between market rent and coordinated rent loses $2,400 annually that could otherwise go toward a down payment.

Even a modest 5–8 % softening in rents after these settlements would return $110–$176 per month to the typical household, equating to $4,000–$10,600 in additional savings over three to five years.

What Appraisers Are Watching in 2026

  1. Cap rate movement on institutional-grade (50+ unit) apartment buildings
  2. Total scheduled gross revenue trends at properties previously managed with revenue-management software

If rents soften and risk premiums rise, cap rates will widen first on larger assets. That pressure eventually flows through to gross rent multipliers (GRMs) on 1–4 unit residential income properties — either compressing GRMs if sale prices adjust faster than rents, or temporarily expanding them if prices lag.

We likely won’t see clear signals until mid-2026, but the direction of travel will matter for every appraisal involving the income approach in the region.

Bottom Line

Combined with new multifamily supply now entering the pipeline, these twin enforcement actions represent the strongest downward pressure on algorithmic rent growth Portland has seen since the pandemic began.

Sources & Further Reading

For broader quarterly context on inventory, pricing, and market segmentation trends in the Portland region, see our most recent Q3 2025 Market Update.

Decorative text border banner before outro and coda.

Thanks for reading—I hope you found a useful insight or an unexpected nugget along the way. If you enjoyed the post, please consider subscribing for future updates.

Question: Do you think we’ll see any meaningful slowdown in rent increases in the Portland area?

CODA

Are you an agent in Portland and wonder why appraisers always do “x”?

A homeowner with questions about appraisal contingencies, GRMs, or valuation delays?

If so, feel free to reach out—I enjoy connecting with market participants across Portland and the surrounding counties, and am always happy to help where I can.

And if you’re in need of appraisal services in Portland or anywhere in the Portland Region, we’d be glad to assist.