As the city of Eugene continues to grow, housing opportunities will remain a challenge for prospective residents in 2025. These challenges are part of a larger trend affecting housing markets nationwide, with rising mortgage rates and increasing demand for homes putting pressure on buyers and renters alike.
According to Houzeo, home prices in Eugene and Portland are expected to rise to 3.1% by the end of March. Over the past five years, Eugene’s housing prices have steadily increased as prices remain relatively high compared to historical costs. According to Redfin, July 2023 marked a peak in home sales, with the average home selling for $523,000. By November 2024, the median sale price was $510,000.
According to Realtor, national mortgage rates are expected to average at 6.3% throughout 2025. Home prices across the nation are expected to
rise 3.7% following last year’s rise of 4%.
Rising home and rental prices reflect broader national trends, but local factors in Eugene such as high demand and limited inventory may challenge potential homeowners and renters.
Daniel Gandee, a realtor with the Operative Group, believes that affordability will decline in 2025 due to multiple factors, including overpriced homes and a lack of opportunity for first-time buyers.
“What I’m seeing in the market right now is a higher level of people going to their family members and asking for assistance,” Gandee said. “There’s definitely a subgroup of people that are not that fortunate. They don’t have that opportunity and that’s a sad reality of where we are.”
Gandee’s advice to hopeful buyers in 2025 would be to follow through on their planning process before setting out to buy a home. He said that the first thing is making sure to sit down with a financial advisor or mortgage broker to lay everything out.
“Planning is key,” Gandee said. “So many people call me when they’re ready to see a home, but they’ve never had that planning phase or conversation upfront. So what happens is, they get the bad news while they’re looking at houses.”
For renters, many of which are college students, the cost of housing is no different than buying a home. According to Zillow Rentals, prices rose by $205 from December 2024 with a median rental price of $1,800. With 479 rental properties currently available in Eugene, potential renters may have difficulties finding affordable living accommodations.
Caitlin Eby, a sophomore at the University of Oregon, currently lives on campus and has been looking for affordable rental units for the next academic year.
“I’m from a low-income family so I need to look for the cheapest apartment possible,” Eby said. “I think (Eugene) is trying to make (apartment complexes) student-friendly, but not student budget-friendly. They’re trying to get university students to live with them, but they’re still pricing it really high.”
Eby hopes to own her own home one day but admits that Eugene is not the ideal place to live.
“I don’t think it’s a Eugene-specific issue but it’s an Oregon in general issue,” Eby said. “Eugene is not a place I want to raise children in. It’s very dangerous and we have a lot of issues with wage disparity and a lot of people who are houseless. Everything is incredibly expensive.”
With limited housing and rising costs, Eugene residents may have to make difficult decisions on where and how they can afford to live. The unanswered question remains whether current efforts to address affordability and the housing supply will be enough to meet the growing demands.
