“They’re building apartments no one can afford” is a frequently heard complaint about the affordable housing crisis.
Those making the complaint — including affordable housing advocates and some local elected officials — mean that most of the new apartments being built in the greater Portland region are too expensive for even median-income renters. They are priced far higher than the relatively few publicly subsidized ones that help prevent homelessness.
That is true — but it is not the fault of those behind the new upscale apartments. Their developers are responding to well-understood market trends. A recent study says an increasing percentage of renters want and can afford such apartments, both here and nationwide.
