In an effort to address the legacy of displacement caused by urban renewal in North and Northeast Portland, the Portland Housing Bureau (PHB) developed the N/NE Affordable Housing Preference Policy to prioritize impacted households and their descendants for new affordable rental and homeownership opportunities in the Interstate Corridor Urban Renewal Area. Leasing of rental units developed within the Interstate Corridor URA with funding from PHB will be done in accordance with this policy.

The preference policy is used to determine the order in which families and individuals applying for housing are selected from the applicant pool. Households that apply to receive preference are given a number of points based on current or historic residency in North/Northeast Portland: up to three points are possible if their current or former address falls within one of three zones identified as areas where a high concentration of urban renewal activity and City plans have had a destabilizing effect on longtime community residents; up to three points are also possible if a parent/guardian or grandparent has lived in one of these areas, for a maximum of six total points possible. PHB will manage the preference application process (including address verification) and provide landlords with a list of applicants sorted in order of their points from highest to lowest during lease-up and when units become available.

Preference does not guarantee applicants housing. The policy only determines the order in which applicants are considered for a housing opportunity, not their eligibility for that housing. Preference households must still meet income requirements and other qualifying criteria in order to lease a unit, regardless of the number of preference points they have or their position on the waitlist. Landlords and property managers are responsible for performing all the standard income verification and eligibility screening normally required to lease a unit, drawing prospective tenants in order from the list of applicants provided by PHB.