Is Portland Oregon SAFE? [Local Portlander's Perspective On Crime]

We talk to so many people who are moving to Portland Oregon who want to know if it is safe living in Portland Oregon. In this video, we discuss Portland Oregon crime and safety, as well as add some perspective for people who are thinking of relocating to Portland Oregon and want to know what it's really like. There are many pros and cons of living in Portland Oregon when it comes to cost of living in Portland Oregon, to crime in Portland Oregon, to things to do in Portland Oregon and much more. If you're moving to Portland or relocating to Oregon or even living in Oregon right now, tune in for an update.

Hot button issues, controversial issues - I better tread lightly here. 

I’d like to hopefully add some context here in the least political way possible - I’m not here to tell you about my opinions on crime-related issues, or talk about how I think we should solve it - there are people who get elected to address these issues, and I do not envy them at all. I’m here to tell those who are moving to or considering moving to the Portland area what it’s actually like from the perspective of someone who has lived here my whole life, has seen the changes, and to offer some helpful insight around what is and what isn’t actually going on. 

In the past couple of years in particular, Portland has been in the news for demonstrations of political activism that have often led to violence and property damage. The covid era created a spike in crime nationally, and Portland was no exception. Homelessness has been a decades-long issue in Portland that has seemed to be getting worse in the past 10-20 years and covid just exacerbated it. Put all this together and it’s no surprise me that almost everyone we speak to asks if Portland is a safe place to live, what areas to avoid, and whether or not things are as bad as they hear about. 

Something else we have to touch on - In the eyes of the country, Portland has been at the center of the “defund the police” movement. Again, I’m not here to give an opinion on these big-picture issues. I’m just a realtor trying to make a living and raise a family like anyone else here in Portland. Here’s a quick and simple picture of what’s happened with police in Portland (not surrounding suburbs), we’re talking about the Portland Police Bureau. In 2020 the city council voted to reduce the police budget by 15 million from the previous year to 225 Million. During this time from 2020 to 2021 there were, as I understand it, 229 resignations and over 80 layoffs. The budget was reduced slightly but the reduction in the police force seems to be a bigger issue. Long story short, for 2022 the police budget was 249 million, the largest on record. You may very well hear stories about police response time taking hours or police not responding at all to certain calls - and these stories very well may be true. There are issues here, but for better or for worse or for whatever your opinion may be - the police are not defunded in Portland. Phew okay, touchy subject veering into a territory far too political for my liking but people ask about this a lot - and, there are probably some gaps to fill in but this is mostly what’s transpired. 

So what do the numbers show? 

Portland has been in the news - rioting, homelessness, decriminalization of small amounts of drugs, compared to other major US cities Portland ranks 21st safest overall. Keep in mind that Portland is the 26th largest city in the country so if crime scales with population size we’re doing okay there. 

Crime is up in most 29 of the 40 major cities analyzed - but, crime has been steadily decreasing since the 80s and 90s and the uptick we’ve seen hasn’t nearly wiped out the progress that’s been made on a national level.

Now, we’re talking murders, assaults, robberies - violent crimes - Portland is just a hair below the national average when it comes to violent crimes. Portland is double the national average when it comes to property crimes - “theft or destruction of people’s property without the use of force” - oof, yeah that’s not good. There are “heat maps” you can look at through the City of Portland and other places online, but that’s as far as I can tell you as to where exactly there are higher instances of these crimes. One thing I will tell you is that it’s concentrated in certain areas and it’s not everywhere. 

In Washington County, we’re talking Beaverton, Hillsboro, Tigard, Tualatin, and Sherwood - violent crime is about half the national average and property crime is just under the national average. 

In Clackamas County, where you have Milwaukie, Happy Valley, Oregon City, Lake Oswego, West Linn, and Wilsonville - violent crime is less than half (about 40%) of the national average and property crime is also just under the national average (slightly less than Washington County). 

I’ve lived in Portland my whole life, and it does seem like perspectives have shifted over the years. When I was a kid in the 80s and 90s, there were definitely parts of town I was warned against going to. As I got older and spent more time in these areas in the 2000s and beyond it was like “okay what’s all the fuss about here?” Two things I think are at play here; the perception of crime based on media messaging as well as word of mouth will almost always exaggerate the issues and 2, crime rates have gone down in the past two decades. 70s, 80s, and into the 90s saw historic highs and we’ve been improving steadily since. 

I’m in no way trying to downplay the effects of crime, in particular in areas where it may be a day to day concern for people… but, I think it’s important to know that you can live in the Portland metro area and feel as safe as anywhere else in the country.

I would be hard pressed to think of a place I wouldn’t take my kids - not to say it doesn’t exist, but we’re not talking about war zones here. I’ve lived in and spent a ton of time in just about every corner of the Portland metro area, including living right in the city for the better part of my 20s. It’s a city, a lovely place in my opinion, with issues just like any other major US city. The question is what type of place are you and potentially your family going to feel most comfortable in? 

Like most major cities and metro areas, there is going to be less crime in suburban areas, but this does not mean that if you live in city limits that you’re going to be in constant danger. 

If you’ve decided to move to Portland; Where to live is the next big box to check and believe me, you have options. Crime and safety is and very well should be a concern for many people regardless of where they’ve moving to, and when moving to Portland, there are going to be so many options ranging from as safe as you can get to statistically less safe than average. 

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