A “For Rent” sign in Southwest Portland, May 10. 2023.
Kristyna Wentz-Graff / OPB
People living in Oregon and Washington are making more money than the average American.
But it may come at the cost of housing affordability.
The Pacific Northwest is outpacing the country in housing costs, with higher median gross rents in Oregon and Washington than the rest of the U.S.
That’s just some of the findings of the latest American Community Survey from the U.S. Census Bureau covering the five-year period from 2020 through 2024.
The wide ranging survey is one of the most comprehensive datasets on the U.S. population. The information collected by the federal government is frequently used by policymakers, journalists, companies and many researchers and organizations seeking demographic data.
Population and demographic figures help gauge the health of an economy. A growing population often means a growing economy, which can lift incomes and reduce the poverty rate. Separate from the Bureau’s annual population estimates, the American Community Survey offers more detailed information about income, housing, and other subjects.
For the five-year survey from 2020 through 2024, the median household income in the U.S. was $80,734. Oregonians experienced a slightly higher median at $83,011, while Washington state was substantially higher at $98,141.
Over the five-year period, the U.S. poverty rate came in at 12.5%. The poverty threshold varies depending on household size and number of children.
In 2024, the Bureau set the threshold at about $25,000 for the average three-person household. At 11.9%, Oregon had a smaller share of people in poverty than the rest of the country, and Washington’s was smaller still at 9.9%.
But while Pacific Northwesterners are earning more, and are less likely to live in poverty, people in Oregon and Washington pay more for housing on average.
Median gross rent in the U.S. was $1,413 per month. In Oregon it’s $1,525, and in Washington it was $1,760 according to the latest survey. Still, the percentage of income spent on housing is in line with the rest of the country.
The survey found that a major chunk of renters are spending more than a third of their income on housing — across the country, and in the Pacific Northwest. Just over half of the 43 million households that pay rent in the U.S. spend more than a third of their income on housing costs.
In Oregon, of the nearly 595,000 occupied units paying rent, around 52% are paying a third or more of their income on rent. Washington has a little over 1 million households renting, and about half pay more than a third of their income on monthly rent.
This specific five-year survey has been anticipated among economists because it allows comparison to the five-year dataset from 2014 through 2019, before the COVID-19 pandemic.
In Oregon, like in other states, Census numbers help guide federal funding for specific programs. The data also determines whether states get additional congressional seats — such as when Oregon added a 6th congressional district after the 2020 census. Oregon policymakers also use data from Portland State University’s Population Research Center when drafting legislation and other state business.
Earlier this week the Census released another anticipated set of data: population estimates for July 2024 through June 2025. It found that Washington state’s population increased by 73,000 — clearing 8 million people for the first time — even as population growth slowed across the country.
Meanwhile, Oregon had one of the slowest growth rates in the country from July 2024 through June 2025 with a relatively small increase of 8,200 people for a total population of 4.27 million.
