Whether you’ve lived here your whole life or you’re new to the city — Portland has changed a lot in the last 10 years. Allow us to reintroduce the City of Roses.

Portland by the numbers:

Total population: 652,503
Total housing units: 302,034
Median Household Income: $73,159

How do we know this? Thanks to a law dating back to 1790, we participate in the census count every 10 years to survey the population.

Previous census data showed that from 2010 to 2020, Portland’s population increased by approximately 68,727. The latest batch of information tells a different story.

Let’s see what the numbers have to say.

The most recent data released shows that in 2021, Multnomah County experienced a reduction in population of about 1.5%, which is 12,494 people (or about 7,506 people shy of selling out the Moda Center).

According to U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis data, Portland is the 12th-least affordable major city in the country, largely because of housing costs.

Median single-family home prices across the Portland metro area:

Multnomah County | $519,000 median listing price | 5.5% year-over-year increase
Washington County | $575,000 median listing price | 15% year-over-year increase
Clackamas County | $625,000 median listing price | 12.3% year-over-year increase

Where are the renters at? As single-family home prices surge, more Portlanders will be forced to rent — but the rental vacancy rate is expected to shrink to 2.8% by the end of the year.

In Oregon, more than 37% of the total housing units are occupied by renters + the median rent costs are $1,173. Here’s what the majority of renters are paying:

221,276 pay $1,000-$1,499
105,866 pay $1,500-$1,999
33,945 pay $2,000-$2,499
9,415 pay $2,500-$2,999
7,283 pay $3,000+

So, can you afford to live here? Let’s look at how residents are faring with paying for the city life.

Here are the estimated median household income projections comparing 2015 to 2020 for the Portland metro area. Spoiler alert — there are increases across the board.

- Multnomah County increased from $54,000 to $71,000, or +32%.
- Washington County increased from $67,000 to $87,000, or +29.8%.
- Clackamas County increased from $66,000 to $83,000, or +25.7%.
- Columbia County increased from $53,000 to $68,000, or +28.2%.
- Yamhill County increased from $53,000 to $67,000, or +26%.
- Skamania County increased from $52,000 to $69,000, or +32.3%.
- Clark County increased from $61,000 to $77,000, or +27%.