Portland Relocation Assistance 2026: Speak Before the 10% Trigger Moves
Updated: 9 hours ago
On September 15, 2026, Portland’s Housing and Permitting Committee did not vote to change relocation assistance. However, it did something that could lead to a vote if owners choose to stay home.
The committee took an hour-long informational briefing from the Portland Housing Bureau on Mandatory Renter Relocation Assistance. They also held a renter feedback forum. Written testimony submitted under documents 2026-321 and 2026-323 urged the City to lower the rent-increase trigger from 10 percent to 5 percent. Every item on that agenda was placed on file. This does not mean that “nothing happened.”
If you own or manage a rental within Portland city limits, Portland relocation assistance 2026 is no longer just a letter you attach to a 90-day notice. It is back in front of the committee that writes recommendations for the Council.
What the September 15 Briefing Actually Said
Interim Housing Bureau Director Quisha A. Light and Policy and Planning Director Josh Roper walked the committee through the existing ordinance. They did not propose a 5 percent draft.
The policy dates back to 2017, was made permanent in 2018, and is still found in Portland City Code 30.01.085. This code is a city rule that exists alongside Oregon Chapter 90. It applies to residential rentals within Portland city limits. However, it does not apply to week-to-week tenancies, tenants living with the landlord, or for-cause terminations.
Payments are generally required when the landlord:
Serves a no-cause termination,
Declines to renew a fixed-term lease on substantially the same terms,
Terminates for a qualifying landlord reason (such as an immediate family member moving in),
Raises rent by 10 percent or more over a rolling 12-month period, or
Makes a substantial change to the lease terms.
For a no-cause termination, the payment is due at least 45 days before the termination date. If the tenant accepts the money, they must move or return it. Landlords must also notify the Rental Services Office within 30 days of payment. You can find more information on the current public page for Mandatory Renter Relocation Assistance.
What Portland Relocation Assistance 2026 Still Costs Today
The payment table has not changed since 2018.
Studio or SRO: $2,900
One-bedroom: $3,300
Two-bedroom: $4,200
Three-bedroom or larger: $4,500
The Portland Housing Bureau (PHB) informed the committee that these amounts are intended to cover overlapping rent, new deposits, application fees, childcare, storage, and moving supplies. Only one payment is required per rental agreement, not per roommate.
When you compare these amounts to Oregon’s 2026 statewide cap, you’ll notice that the Department of Administrative Services (DAS) set the 2026 cap at 9.5 percent. A clean 9.5 percent increase on a Portland unit remains below the city’s 10 percent trigger. This is why most owners who follow the Oregon rent-increase checklist avoid the relocation letter. Stacked increases, associated costs, and a “substantial change of lease terms” are still traps that catch many landlords. If the city trigger drops to 5 percent, the math changes dramatically. An ordinary, state-legal increase could lead to a four-figure city check if the tenant decides to leave.
The State Already Changed the Rent-Increase Volume
This is the slide owners should reference back to the committee.
PHB reminded members that SB 608 (2019) established the statewide cap at 7 percent plus inflation. After COVID inflation, that cap surged as high as 14.6 percent. SB 611 (2023) reduced it to the lesser of 10 percent or 7 percent plus CPI.
PHB also displayed its own filing numbers on the screen. Here are the notices of relocation payment tied to a rent increase:
FY 2022–23: 27
FY 2024–25: 4
This is not just a theory. After the state tightened the cap, the city’s rent-increase trigger nearly stopped firing. The Rental Services Office still received 728 MRRA contacts in FY25 and FY26. Tenants inquired whether a specific increase triggered the ordinance, whether habitability issues counted (they do not), and what to do if the landlord claims an exemption. Landlords asked when an increase triggers the check, what must be included in the notice, how to file an exemption, and why an exemption was denied.
If the policy problem is that “10 percent rent increases are expected every year,” the state’s cap already serves as the main brake. A 5 percent city trigger would not be a minor adjustment. It would link relocation money to increases that the state still permits.
Exemptions Are Already the Fight Inside the Fight
PHB identified twelve exemption categories. Some apply without a filing, while most of the owner-occupied ones do not. You must file, wait two to three weeks, and obtain an acknowledgment letter — usually before entering the rental agreement. The current rule is HOU-3.05. The application page for exemptions is Apply for a Relocation Assistance Exemption.
Here are the exemptions that small owners in Portland typically use:
Sharing the same dwelling unit with the tenant (no filing required),
Occupying a duplex as your principal residence while renting the other unit (filing required),
Living on-site with an ADU (filing required),
Temporarily renting your own home for no more than three years (filing required),
Immediate family occupancy (filing required),
A regulated affordable unit that experiences a rent increase (no filing required).
Written testimony on September 15 aimed at the family-occupancy exemption. One renter asked the committee to implement a mechanism to verify whether a landlord “really” moved a family member in. PHB, on the same afternoon, informed the committee that it would use the new evaluation to ask new questions, such as, “Should we reconsider the design and administration of MRRA exemptions?”
This is the other half of this file. Even if the 10 percent threshold does not change, the exemption path may become narrower.
What the Written Record from That Meeting Actually Contains
Documents 2026-321 and 2026-323 are public records. They are not a scientific sample. However, they will be reviewed by the committee when staff begins drafting.
Ashley Peck and Henry Scheffer both urged the committee to lower the rent-increase trigger to 5 percent and keep mandatory relocation attached to it. Peck described a 10 percent increase as an expected annual event. Scheffer stated that a 5 percent jump, combined with first, last, and deposit, would price him out. He requested that the City close the family-occupancy loophole. Brianna Turville supported caps on rent, rent increases, parking, and mandatory relocation, stating that her household would request relocation after a non-renewal. Other letters addressed code enforcement, buildings on the dangerous buildings list, smoke in a “non-smoking” building, inadequate heating, and the fear that helping a neighbor with a repair request is not protected the same way as asking for your own.
Terri McBride attached a Community Navigator proposal for affordable housing properties. While this differs from private 1–4 rentals, it is included in the same packet.
You may not agree with the tone of those letters, but you can still see a pattern. The individuals who showed up want a lower trigger, stricter exemptions, and increased city enforcement. Almost none of them operate a duplex.
The Importance of Engagement
This is exactly the type of city-code battle that the Portland Area Rental Owners Association (PAROA) exists to address. Members gain access to landlord forms, a helpline, and a community of owners who have already navigated relocation checks or fought exemption denials. If Portland's relocation assistance 2026 is about to be rewritten, do not wait to read the ordinance after it passes. Join at www.paroa.org.
If you own property in the Portland Metro or Central Oregon and want to avoid missing a 90-day letter, a city-limits check, or an exemption filing window, Northwest Real Estate and Property Management (NWRPM) specializes in managing that calendar. Visit www.nwrpm.com for more information.
What PHB Said Comes Next
The Bureau is not waiting for a slogan from the forum. They have already hired an evaluator.
In December 2025, PHB issued a Request for Proposals (RFP) for a landlord-tenant policy evaluation. Proposals were due in January 2026. A consultant was selected in April 2026, with the contract scheduled to execute in September 2026. The work aims to assess whether existing policy — including MRRA — aligns with its intent, what changes should be made, and what unintended consequences affect tenants and landlords. A final report is expected in 2026.
PHB also stated that it will not remain idle until the last page. Over the coming year, they will gather insights as the work progresses, build on MRRA data, run the 2022 Rental Services Commission recommendations through current market conditions, and openly discuss exemption questions.
Remember what the Rental Services Commission (RSC) recommended in November 2022. They voted to raise payment amounts and to index them to inflation and observed rents. However, they did not vote to reduce the trigger to 5 percent. If the committee now combines a lower trigger with a higher check, you will be paying more money, more frequently.
How to Put Your Name in the File
The Housing and Permitting Committee meets the first and third Tuesday of each month from 2:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. in Council Chambers, located at 1221 SW Fourth Avenue, second floor. Hybrid meetings are the default. The agenda is posted by 9:00 a.m. the Friday before the meeting. Upcoming committee dates on the Clerk’s calendar include October 20, November 17, December 1, and December 15, 2026. Always confirm on the live page, as meetings may be canceled.
Start here:
Committee agenda and “Testify on this item” button: Housing and Permitting Committee
How testimony works: Engage with Council
Subscribe to agenda alerts from the Clerk’s page
Verbal testimony typically lasts three minutes. You must sign up for the agenda item. Virtual sign-up closes one hour before the meeting. In-person sign-up must occur before the item is heard. The Chair can shorten the list when time runs out, which is why written testimony is crucial.
Written testimony can be submitted on the agenda item itself or by mail to Council Clerk, 1221 SW 4th Avenue, Room 130, Portland, OR 97204. Email submissions are not accepted. For questions about the meeting, contact councilclerk@portlandoregon.gov. The policy staff for this committee is Claire Adamsick at claire.adamsick@portlandoregon.gov.
The five committee members are:
Chair Candace Avalos (District 1) — councilor.avalos@portlandoregon.gov — portland.gov/Avalos
Vice Chair Mitch Green (District 4) — councilor.green@portlandoregon.gov — portland.gov page
Tiffany Koyama Lane (District 3) — councilor.koyamalane@portlandoregon.gov
Elana Pirtle-Guiney (District 2) — councilor.pirtle-guiney@portlandoregon.gov
Steve Novick (District 3) — councilor.novick@portlandoregon.gov
An office email is not considered written testimony. Use it to inquire about when the next MRRA item will be posted. Ensure that your actual comments are submitted on the agenda item to be included in the official record.
If you choose to write, keep it operational. Consider the city limits, the number of doors, and how a 5 percent trigger would impact your rent roll compared to the state cap. Assess whether you use a duplex or ADU exemption. If you have already paid a relocation check after a non-renewal, mention that as well. The committee has received numerous letters about slumlords, but very few from owners who live in one side of a 1924 duplex and rent out the other.
For clarification on the current rule before you testify, contact the Rental Services Office at 503-823-1303, RentalServices@portlandoregon.gov, or visit the RSO help desk.
Do Not Wait for the Ordinance Title
September 15 marked the beginning of a file, not its conclusion. PHB is already funding a consultant to revisit landlord-tenant policy. Tenant testimony is already included in the packet, requesting a 5 percent trigger and a stricter exemption process. The payment table has not been updated in fourteen years, and the last official advisory body that reviewed it wanted to increase the checks.
Owners who remain passive will find the consequences reflected in a 90-day notice.
Stay alert for the Friday agenda. Sign up when an MRRA item is posted. Submit your written testimony even if you cannot attend a Tuesday afternoon meeting downtown. If you operate outside city limits, it’s still important to stay engaged. Portland’s code often serves as a model for other cities.
Sources
Christian Bryant
President of both the Portland Area Rental Owners Association (PAROA) and Northwest Real Estate and Property Management (NWRPM).
If Portland is about to reopen the relocation ordinance, PAROA is where owners compare notices and come prepared with the same facts. Join at www.paroa.org.
If you want the 90-day calendar, the city-limits check, and the exemption filing managed for a property in the Portland Metro or Central Oregon, use NWRPM at www.nwrpm.com.
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