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Wilsonville presents 2024 housing report showing slow production, rising prices and groundwork for future projects
Summary
City planning staff presented the 2024 annual housing report June 11, showing 58 permitted homes in 2024, steady population growth, a median home price of about $643,000, median rent of $1,784, and preparations for larger developments including the transit-oriented Voila project.
City planning staff presented Wilsonville’s 2024 annual housing report to the Planning Commission on June 11, highlighting recent permit activity, affordability indicators and groundwork for future housing projects including the transit‑oriented Voila development.
“My name is Sarah Pearlman, assistant planner. I have the honor tonight to present you with the 2024 housing report,” Pearlman said as she opened the presentation, which the staff described as the city’s tenth annual housing report tracing development and affordability trends since 2014.
The report summarized last year’s activity and trends: staff recorded 58 homes issued certificates of occupancy in 2024; the development-review board approved a 121‑unit apartment project called Voila that is under construction and expected to complete in 2026, and two Frog Pond West subdivisions (one 17‑lot subdivision with an anticipated 34 units including middle housing, and one 28‑lot subdivision with an anticipated 52 units). Pearlman said population grew by 0.8% in the revised Portland State University estimates and housing units increased by 0.5%.
On affordability, staff reported a 2024 median single‑family sale price just over $643,000, a 3% increase over 2023. The median rent in 2024 was $1,784 per month. Pearlman summarized the gap between incomes and housing costs: “The median home costs 74% more than what a household making the median income could reasonably afford,” and the report found roughly 27.2% of renters experienced severe rent burden (paying more than 50% of income to rent) in 2024.
The report also highlighted housing mix and supply: about 44.7% of housing in the city is apartments and about 44.5% is detached single‑family housing; roughly 66% of households are one‑ or two‑person households while studio and one‑bedroom units represent about 18% of the housing stock. Pearlman and staff noted the city is between production cycles but is laying infrastructure and entitlements that could produce larger numbers of units in coming years.
The presentation touched on houselessness responses implemented under recent state law changes: the city designated portions of the City Hall parking lot for vehicle camping and a city‑owned parcel north of City Hall for tent camping; over the past year staff observed about 10 vehicles and one to two tent campers using those spaces, and an approximate 106 people staying in local hotels or motels on a regular or long‑term basis (staff characterized those as rough, high‑level observations that may include contractors or short‑term stays and are not an exclusive count of houselessness).
Commission discussion focused on causes and data. Commissioner Andrew Carr asked what caused the 2021–2022 spike in prices and population and noted uncertainty about pandemic impacts. Vice Chair Jennifer Willard praised the report’s clarity and suggested adding a timing metric showing the duration from urban-growth-boundary inclusion to approvals and permitting so staff can track how long it takes an allocation to become completed housing. Commissioner Sam Skoll asked whether rental statistics included single‑family rentals; staff said the rent data come from Eco Northwest’s extraction of CoStar data that primarily covers multifamily buildings and that staff would follow up to clarify whether single‑family rentals are included.
The report compared Wilsonville with cohort cities and noted the city’s median sale price and rent-burden shares are broadly comparable to similar communities; staff also emphasized the city has converted much of the 2014 residential land inventory into approved plans and that hundreds of units have been entitled though financing and market conditions have delayed some groundbreakings.
Action (informational): No council action requested at the meeting; item provided for commission review and comment. Staff committed to follow up on data-source questions (whether CoStar/Eco Northwest rent statistics include single‑family rentals) and to continue tracking permit and entitlement progress as part of annual reporting.
Why it matters: The report provides a baseline for tracking affordability, production and supply over time and highlights both short‑term pressures — rising prices and rent burden — and mid‑term opportunities as entitled multifamily projects and infrastructure move toward construction.
