An interview with state economist Josh Lehner on Oregon's population loss, his prediction for a recession in 2023, and the state's economic inflection point
As someone who voted with our feet, I was really interested in hearing what he said. While he didn't offer much information as to who or why Oregonians are leaving, I know roughly 20 families that have left in the time period discussed. All college educated with children, homeowners, 30-50s, 6 figure incomes. He stated he thinks the primary driver of moving was housing affordability and working from home. Many of those families could have lived anywhere they wanted because they didn't have jobs that required them to be in Oregon or even on the West Coast prior to the pandemic. At least for these 20 families, his theory is incorrect. It started with the oppressive covid lockdowns coupled with the politics driving drug policies, the homeless crisis, the poor educational systems, etc. Looking forward to seeing what the official report says.
kind of frightening that "Portland is HALF the state". it just makes our natural resources that much less viable to help our economic well being. instead of goods and labor we now have bitcoin as a basis for value.
As someone who voted with our feet, I was really interested in hearing what he said. While he didn't offer much information as to who or why Oregonians are leaving, I know roughly 20 families that have left in the time period discussed. All college educated with children, homeowners, 30-50s, 6 figure incomes. He stated he thinks the primary driver of moving was housing affordability and working from home. Many of those families could have lived anywhere they wanted because they didn't have jobs that required them to be in Oregon or even on the West Coast prior to the pandemic. At least for these 20 families, his theory is incorrect. It started with the oppressive covid lockdowns coupled with the politics driving drug policies, the homeless crisis, the poor educational systems, etc. Looking forward to seeing what the official report says.
kind of frightening that "Portland is HALF the state". it just makes our natural resources that much less viable to help our economic well being. instead of goods and labor we now have bitcoin as a basis for value.