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Panel urges lawmakers to adopt statewide homeownership goal and dashboard to track progress
Summary
Supporters including Habitat for Humanity, Realtors and credit unions urged the Senate Committee on Housing and Development to pass House Bill 2698, which would establish a statewide homeownership goal and require a publicly available dashboard tracking progress. Testimony emphasized homeownership as a pathway to household stability and wealth
The Senate Committee on Housing and Development heard public testimony on Aug. 30 in support of House Bill 2698, which would establish a statewide homeownership goal and require a publicly available dashboard to track progress.
Supporters' arguments: Shannon Vilhauer, executive director of Habitat for Humanity of Oregon and convener of the Unlocking Homeownership Coalition, said the coalition — composed of more than 40 organizations — supports HB 2698 and "urge[s] your strong support for House Bill 2,698." Vilhauer cited Oregon Housing and Community Services data saying that between 2013 and 2022, for every $1 in wage growth home prices rose $7.10, and she noted a 15 percentage-point homeownership gap between white households and households of color.
Representative Ricky Ruiz (House District 50) gave personal testimony describing homeownership as "the way I see it" for his family as "the American dream" and said the bill provides a tool to measure state progress toward expanding homeownership opportunities for future generations.
Industry and finance backing: Brock Nation, policy director at Oregon Realtors, and Pam Levitt of the Oregon Credit Unions association and credit unions testified in support, citing state metrics that place Oregon low in homeownership and housing affordability rankings and urging measurement and long-term targets.
Committee action: The hearing was a public comment session; committee staff provided the bill summary and no formal committee vote was taken on Aug. 30. Staff described the bill as having minimal fiscal impact and no revenue impact because Oregon Housing and Community Services can use existing datasets to populate the dashboard.
Ending: Supporters said the measure would help the state track progress, target interventions and work with partners to expand homeownership; the committee closed the hearing with no immediate action recorded.
