Tenant advocates are planning to ask the Oregon Legislature to limit rent increases when the 2023 session begins Jan. 17.

Oregon’s annual cap in rent increases increased from 9.9% in 2022 to 14.6% on Jan. 1 because of inflationary adjustments. In Portland, landlords have to pay relocation expenses if a tenant moves because they raise rents by 10% or more.

“To be clear — these hikes are not mandated. The previous rent cap kept rents from being raised more than 9.9%, but these latest adjustments as by the state economist came as a blow to us all. The new cap adjusts for inflation and allows rent to be raised by 14.6%, which too many landlords will likely do,” the Portland-based Community Alliance of Tenants said in a Dec. 26 email.

According to the email, the alliance is working with Fair Shot for All and Stable Homes for Oregon Families to change state laws governing rent increases and evictions. To prevent what the groups call an “unprecedented crisis,” the email said the 2023 Legislature must do the following:

• Strengthen eviction laws to avoid unnecessary evictions using the lessons we learned from the pandemic protections.

• Address the looming increase in rent by amending current law that could allow rent to increase more than 15% next year.

• Ensure that we have accurate data about Oregon’s housing providers through a landlord registration program.

Landlord Renee Larsen said most tenants are unlikely to see such large rent increases, however. On her properties, Larsen said she hasn’t had to raise rents near the state rent cap, or Portland’s 9.9% limit.

“For a majority of Portland renters, this isn’t really going to be a factor,” said Larsen, a Multifamily Northwest board member.

Ron Garcia at the Rental Housing Alliance said if an apartment is already leased at market rate, there is likely not going to be an increase in rent near 14.6%. Though for rents “grandfathered” in by the rent stabilization law in 2018, he said an increase at that level is “more than justified” because of the increase property owners have felt in costs as well.

The formula for determining the rent cap takes a 7% base and adds the 12-month average of inflation in the Pacific Northwest. Inflation stood at 7.6% over the last 12 months, according to state Economist Josh Lehner.

“We have a very low vacancy rate in Oregon. We have a historical underproduction of housing. That’s contributing to increases in the cost of housing because there are not other places to move to if you want to live in Oregon. There are very few vacant units,” Lehner said.

The increase marks the highest seen in the five years rent stabilization has been law in Oregon, with the next highest being 10.3% in 2019, the first year of the regulation.