With a year left, OHCS has surpassed all three affordable housing goals.
“Congratulations to OHCS and affordable housing partners across the state for successfully tripling the supply of affordable rental housing up to 25,000 units,” said Oregon U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden. “This is a historic achievement for us today. Housing is a human right. Every Oregonian should have a safe, dry, stable place to call home. Because of your work today, more and more Oregonians can have roofs over their heads and fresh starts for their families. I’ll keep working for every lever of the federal government to continue to tackle incredible questions of housing so we can meet the needs in Oregon and nationwide.”
“Oregon is facing a historic housing shortage. Lack of housing supply is driving up home prices and rents, pushing people onto our streets,” said Oregon U.S. Rep. Suzanne Bonamici. “Today’s announcement that Oregon has surpassed our housing goal is welcome news, and proof that we can solve the current affordable housing crisis. This is a sure sign of progress and there’s more to be done. I appreciate Governor Kotek and Director Bell’s dedication to meet this challenge, and I am committed to partnering with them to secure needed investments to empower people experiencing homelessness with stable housing and wraparound services. By continuing to work together with governments, businesses, and local partners, we can build a world where everyone has a safe place to call home.”
A new report, “Reaching 25,000” and Statewide Housing Plan dashboard released today helps showcase key data points and affordable housing development progress across the state. In 2016, OHCS funded nearly 800 affordable rental housing units. In 2022, the agency increased that rate by six-fold, funding 5,000 affordable rental housing units.
Despite historic production levels the pressing need for affordable housing continues to outpace production. Recently, Governor Tina Kotek, through Executive Order 2023-04, set a new goal for the state to produce 36,000 housing units annually over the next ten years. Of these, 18,000 units are mandated to be affordable for individuals earning at or below 80% of the area median income.
“OHCS stands fully supportive of this audacious goal and pledges to enhance its capacity, foster learning, and collaborate with partners across the state to realize this vision,” said Bell. “This accomplishment would not have been possible without the unwavering support and dedication of the agency’s partners throughout the state. We are grateful to developers, community-based organizations, culturally specific partners, legislators, property owners, property managers, non-profits, educational institutions, Tribal Nations, architects, contractors, and local, state, and federal agencies for their invaluable contributions.”
