[maccoinnich]

I'm getting worried about this trend. While I welcome the influx of rental units, at some point there needs to be new housing supply available for people to buy (and I think we might have passed that point a while back).

Nearly all new Portland-area housing units are rentals, data shows



Virtually all of the 47,500-plus housing units added since the recession in the four-county Portland area are rentals rather than owner-occupied homes, according to new numbers released by the U.S. Census Bureau.

The trend is consistent across Multnomah, Washington, Clackamas and Clark counties: While the number of apartments or rental homes has surged over the last five years, the number of new homeowners has barely budged. The result is a decline in the regional homeownership rate overall, from 63 percent to 60.

"Well, no wonder it's so hard to find houses to sell," said Leslie Jones, principal broker with Re/Max Equity Group. "Our inventory is so low because so many things are being held as rentals instead."

...continues at the Oregonian.