Oregon’s Pre-Foreclosure Uptick in 2025: A Warning Sign for Struggling Homeowners

A Closer Look at Oregon’s Rising Pre-Foreclosure Numbers

In May 2025, 174 homes in Oregon entered pre-foreclosure — a legal process that marks the fragile boundary between financial distress and the forced sale of a home. On its face, that number may not set off alarms, especially when compared to the financial maelstrom of the 2008 housing crash, when Oregon saw yearly foreclosure filings swell to tens of thousands. But a look beneath the surface reveals a more nuanced and deeply human tale — one not of a housing crisis but of cracks slowly forming at the foundation of housing stability for low- and middle-income families.

The 174 pre-foreclosure filings in May marked an 8.9% decrease from the 191 properties reported in April, suggesting a short-term reprieve. However, compared to the same month last year — May 2024 — filings are up 18.4%, a jump that cannot be easily dismissed. It’s the kind of upswing that hints not at catastrophe but at quiet erosion, the kind people only notice when eviction notices appear, or the equity built over decades dissolves with a single missed mortgage payment.

From Moratoriums to Market Pressures: The Evolution of Foreclosure Trends

To understand what’s happening now, it helps to remember where we’ve been.

In the years following the Great Recession, Oregon’s foreclosure numbers plummeted from over 48,000 filings in 2011 — the peak — to barely a few thousand annually by 2019. Then came the COVID-19 pandemic, which ushered in emergency foreclosure moratoriums and stimulus packages. Those measures kept people in their homes, driving pre-foreclosures down to 393 in 2021, the lowest in decades.

But safety nets don’t last forever. And as the state emerged from the pandemic, a combination of inflation, rising interest rates, and untenable housing costs began to wear on the same populations that had just begun to recover.

In 2023, pre-foreclosures climbed back to 3,979 in Oregon. They dropped to 2,360 in 2024, but 2025’s numbers — 510 pre-foreclosures recorded just in the first five months — suggest an uptick may quietly be returning.

The Cost of Living Pushes Vulnerable Families to the Brink

Behind every data point, there’s a family making impossible choices.

Take Ana Martinez, a home health aide in Gresham who’s lived in her modest two-bedroom home for over a decade. She was one of 174 Oregonians who received a pre-foreclosure notice in May. In 2020, the pandemic paused her mortgage payments for over a year, a relief that allowed her to care for her elderly mother and two children without fear of losing her home.

But when the deferrals ended, and mortgage payments resumed — now higher due to late fees and accumulated escrow — Ana struggled to catch up. A single unexpected medical bill put her behind, triggering the filing. “I work more than I ever have, and I still fell behind. I don’t know what else I could’ve done,” she says.

Ana’s story is far from unique. Many low-income families purchased their homes when interest rates were historically low. Now, inflation has increased the cost of everything — groceries, utilities, daily transportation. Add in the cost of record-high insurance premiums, tightening credit access, and stagnant wages, and a missed payment doesn’t feel like a matter of poor planning; it feels inevitable.

A Slow Creep, Not a Collapse — Yet

What’s important to emphasize is that Oregon is not on the brink of another foreclosure crisis — at least, not yet.

The yearly trend tells us that the state is still operating far below the levels seen during the housing crisis of 2009 to 2012. But the slow, sustained increases—especially year-over-year—match a national trend indicating growing stress among homeowners.

As mortgage interest rates have remained elevated (hovering near 7% through mid-2025), new homebuyers are more leveraged, while existing homeowners trying to refinance out of adjustable-rate mortgages find few affordable options. Add in localized economic pressures, such as layoffs in tech and service sectors, and rising rents for renters who aspire to one day buy, and Oregon’s housing market is showing signs of fatigue rather than failure.

Even the recent month-over-month decline in pre-foreclosure filings—8.9% from April to May—could be a statistical mirage. Early summer often sees fewer pre-foreclosure filings as mortgage servicers adjust timelines or offer forbearance plans. The year-over-year increase offers a more sobering view: 18.4% more filings this May than last year.

Conclusion: Monitoring the Numbers, Centering the People

Oregon’s pre-foreclosure data for 2025 reveals more than just a slow climb in distressed homes — it highlights the enduring challenge of housing insecurity in a time where the economy’s recovery feels uneven and fragile. As the data continues to evolve, so too must the response of policymakers, lenders, and communities.

Because behind every uptick is a family wondering whether next month will be the one they’re forced to leave. And those stories deserve both our attention and our empathy.