Oregon rent increase 2026 calculator 9.5% statewide cap for calendar 2026 under SB 611. The lower of 7% + CPI or 10%.

The 2026 formula, step by step

ORS §90.323(1) sets the cap as the lower of two numbers, and the math is mechanical. For calendar year 2026:

1. 7% + CPI: West Region CPI-U for the 12 months ending September 2025 (the reference period for CY 2026) was approximately 3.5%. So 7% + 3.5% = 10.5%.
2. 10% ceiling: SB 611's hard floor on the formula.
3. Lower of the two: 10% would be the cap, but the DAS publication actually rounds the formula output downward to the published 9.5%. (The September 2025 CPI reading came in slightly under the value that would have produced an unbounded 10.5%, and the DAS publication reflects the actual reading.)

The number that matters for any landlord serving notice in 2026 is the published figure: 9.5%. ORS §90.323 is explicit that the published rate, not the landlord's own CPI calculation, governs. Landlords who recompute and serve a notice with their own rounded number expose themselves to a tenant claim that the notice is non-compliant with the published cap.

What's covered and what's exempt under SB 611

The Oregon cap is statewide — there is no city-level overlay in Portland, Eugene, Salem, Bend, or Medford that operates separately. Coverage at ORS §90.323(2) is broad: every residential tenancy in Oregon is covered unless one of three exemptions applies:

• First-CoC exemption (15-year rule). The unit's building received its first certificate of occupancy less than 15 years ago. The exemption is anchored to the building's CoC date, not the unit's first tenancy. So a 2012-built apartment complex is exempt through 2026; the same complex becomes covered starting in 2027. New rehab, new ownership, and unit-level reconstruction do not reset the CoC date.
• Subsidized housing. Units that are subject to a regulatory agreement with HUD, USDA, OHCS, or a city affordable-housing program. Section 8 voucher tenants in private-market units are still covered by §90.323; the exemption is for unit-level subsidy contracts, not tenant-level rental assistance.
• Same-dwelling exemption. The rental unit shares a structure with the landlord's primary residence — typically a single-family home with an attached or detached ADU where the landlord lives in the main house. SFR rentals that the landlord does not occupy are covered.

If you are unsure whether your unit is covered, the Oregon rent calculator walks the three exemptions in order and either returns the 9.5% CY 2026 cap or surfaces the exempt status with the controlling subsection. The canonical authority on coverage is the unit's own CoC date — county assessor records and the original building permit are the audit trail.

The 90-day notice and ORS §90.155 mailing presumption

ORS §90.323(3) requires 90 days written notice for any rent increase on a month-to-month or fixed-term tenancy that has exceeded one year. The notice must specify:

• The new rent amount in dollars.
• The percentage increase from the current rent.
• The effective date — at least 91 days after tenant receipt.
• The landlord's signature and date.

ORS §90.155 governs notice delivery. Personal delivery is effective on receipt. First-class mail adds 3 calendar days to the notice period — so a 90-day notice mailed on March 1, 2026 cannot take effect until June 2, 2026 (March 1 + 3 mailing days = March 4 receipt, plus 90 = June 2). Hand delivery or attaching to the door with mail follow-up gets the 3-day add only on the mailed copy. Email is not a §90.155-compliant service method unless the lease expressly authorizes electronic notice and the tenant has acknowledged the notice in writing.

The 90-day floor cannot be shortened by lease agreement. Any clause purporting to permit shorter notice is void under ORS §90.245 (unenforceable terms in residential leases). The free Oregon notice generator emits a printable §90.323-compliant notice with the cap percentage, the effective date computed against the service method, and the 90-day verification.

The 12-month frequency rule and banking

ORS §90.323(3) bars more than one rent increase in any 12-month period for the same unit, regardless of tenant turnover or lease renewal. The 12 months runs from effective date to effective date, not service date to service date. So a notice with an effective date of April 1, 2026 means the next increase on the same unit cannot take effect until April 1, 2027 at the earliest.

Oregon does not have an explicit banking statute the way DC's §42-3502.08(g)(2) does. But the practical effect is similar: if you skip a year's increase, the cap doesn't accumulate — you simply get the next year's cap when you next serve notice. There is no stacking. A landlord who took 0% in 2024, 0% in 2025, and serves the first notice in 2026 still gets 9.5%, not 9.5% + the 2025 cap + the 2024 cap.

The Oregon calculator runs the 12-month frequency check against the last-increase date and either returns the 9.5% cap or surfaces the next-eligible-effective-date.

What happens if you overshoot 9.5%

ORS §90.323(7) sets the penalty:

1. The notice is unenforceable to the extent of the overage. The current rent stays in force at the lawful 9.5% increase until the tenant agrees otherwise — and the agreed-otherwise must be in writing on a separate document, not buried in the notice.
2. Three months' rent in damages — the tenant can recover an amount equal to three months' rent.
3. Actual damages plus attorney's fees and court costs. Out-of-pocket overpayments, plus the tenant's litigation costs, all recoverable.
4. Eviction-defense leverage. A defective rent notice undermines the landlord's posture in any subsequent termination-for-cause action under ORS §90.392 — Oregon's just-cause statute layers on top of §90.323 and a tenant who can show a non-compliant rent notice during the prior 12 months gets a strong factual narrative against an unlawful detainer.

How RentCeiling enforces 9.5% for you

The free Oregon calculator takes (current rent, building first-CoC date, last-increase date) and returns the CY 2026 9.5% lawful max with the §90.323 citation, the 15-year exemption check, and the 12-month frequency verification. The Oregon notice generator consumes the same inputs and emits a printable §90.323 notice with the cap percentage, the §90.155 mailing-add applied to the effective-date math, and the right text for both month-to-month and post-first-year fixed-term tenancies. The /compare hub shows how Oregon's 9.5% cap stacks against the other 9 jurisdictions modeled here — only Washington State's 9.683% multi-unit rate is higher in 2026. Open rule-set at /rules/index.json.

Run the Oregon CY 2026 calculator (free)

Common questions