Portland-area population growth slows to lowest level since 2013, Census Bureau says
New Census numbers suggests the Portland area’s population boom could be losing steam.
The metro area grew by just over 30,000 residents in the year that ended July 1, according to the Census Bureau. That’s a population increase of about 1.2 percent, or 578 people a week — the region’s slowest growth since 2013.
That put the metro population at 2.45 million as of July 1. Portland remains the nation’s 25th largest metro area, a position it has held since 2012.
The slowdown isn’t unexpected. In fact, demographers say it was inevitable after three years of exceptionally strong population growth.
“It’s still growing very fast, just not as fast as it was in 2015 and 2016,” said Nick Chun, who coordinates forecasts at Portland State University’s Population Research Center. “It’s really difficult to describe how abnormal a lot of the growth is that these areas saw in those years.”
The Portland metro added nearly 40,000 people each year in 2015 and 2016, according to the Census Bureau.