In what may be a glimmer of hope for anyone wanting to rent an apartment in Portland, we recently found an apartment for $716 per month. Something which has not really been available since before the pandemic, is now available to rent in the old-town Chinatown neighbourhood. Whilst certainly not the best location in the city, it really isn’t that bad either.

Looking at other listings in the same building, it’s not like this is the only good deal either. There are 7-8 other studios which are all around $750 per month, which are also in the 200 sq ft range. It’s worth mentioning that most of the nearby accomodation is of a higher standard, but costs well in excess of $1000 per month.

Of course, for this price, the studio apartment is relatively basic, but certainly not run down or in bad condition. From the limited photos available, it’s clear to see that the bathroom is relatively modern, as well as having a decent number of kitchen appliances which are all in good condition. Considering this is a 1 person apartment, there is easily enough space to store food and cook a meal.

The only real drawback is having a share laundry room, but this is fairly standard for a studio apartment in Portland. This is actually a lot better than having to walk a few blocks to find a laundry shop as its far more convenient to wash and dry in your own apartment building.

In terms of public transport and accessability of biking to local areas, you really couldn’t ask for a better location. Portland Union Station is literally a 2-5 minute walk from the doorstep of this apartment and there are 7 nearby MAX stops for both green and yellow lines. So in terms of value for money given the transport network location, this is extremely good value.

So, whilst there is no concrete evidence that rental prices in Portland are dropping, its certainly a possiblity. Given that there are 8 apartments in this building all under $750 rent per month. This is a good sign for the future and other landlords may have to start dropping their prices in order to compete.