Portland, OR

Portland's 2021 heat dome produced temperatures reaching 116°F—the all-time record for a city whose housing stock had roughly 45 percent air conditioning penetration at the time. That event was not a data point supporting a gradual trend; it was a system failure—infrastructure, policy, and housing built for a climate that the event showed no longer reliably describes Portland's summer range. The heat score of 62, at the 72nd national percentile, is the city's primary ranked hazard. The 2020 regional wildfire smoke emergency compounded the exposure: severe smoke disrupted daily life and air quality across weeks without any urban fireline within city limits. Our read: Portland's risk story is a mismatch between brand and reality. The temperate, rain-forward reputation that draws buyers from hotter markets is accurate for roughly nine months of the year. The 2021 event demonstrated what the other window looks like when the atmospheric pattern shifts. Inner east side housing in 97214 and Pearl District density in 97209 face heat-island exposure that older, uninsulated construction amplifies. Southwest hills in 97201 add slope stability and drainage concerns that fire and heat headlines routinely overshadow. Annual premiums range from $1,200 to $2,900—among the lower ranges in this dataset. Wildfire at the 47th national percentile is low for direct fire risk; smoke exposure is a separate livability variable that does not appear in insurance metrics. Flood at the 43rd national percentile is low. The practical Portland buyer diligence question is not about insurance premiums. It is about whether the housing stock can provide safe and comfortable occupancy during the heat events that will recur—and whether the buyer has priced the retrofits required to ensure it does.

— Open Data Collective