Do this today
- Photograph the condition. Include anything that makes the unit unsafe to occupy.
- Write the landlord. Date it. Keep a copy.
- Ask the city about a housing or health complaint process.
- If you cannot stay in the unit tonight, 211 can help with shelter and local services.
What does 'uninhabitable' mean in ${n}?
There is no national checklist for private rentals. Oregon Residential Landlord and Tenant Act is where Oregon describes the landlord's duty to keep the place fit to live in. Heat, water, sanitation, and structural safety are the usual core — the exact list is in the chapter, not here.
What if I have to leave tonight?
Safety first. 911 if someone is in danger. 211 for shelter and local services. A condition complaint and a repair request can wait until you are somewhere safe. Legal aid can talk through whether Oregon allows you to treat the unit as unlivable and what that does to the tenancy.
Oregon CAT, oregonrentersrights.org, or 211info?
Community Alliance of Tenants is a tenants union. oregonrentersrights.org is a self-help handbook hub and a pointer to the Eviction Defense Project. 211info.org is regional 211. Oregon Law Help is legal aid. Four different doors. ORS Chapter 90 is the statute.
Where do Oregon sample renter letters actually live?
Community Alliance of Tenants publishes repair, move-out, and deposit samples on oregoncat.org/know-your-rights. oregonrentersrights.org publishes handbooks and letters. This classroom points at those files. It does not host a copy that will go stale.
Is the Fair Housing Council of Oregon the same as CAT?
No. The Fair Housing Council of Oregon takes discrimination. Community Alliance of Tenants is a tenants union. Oregon Law Help takes an FED. HUD is the federal floor. Three local doors plus the Act.
The Oregon chapter
Oregon Residential Landlord and Tenant Act (Or. Rev. Stat. §§ 90.100 to 90.875) is the starting point. We name it. We do not paraphrase a day-count or a dollar cap out of it.
Oregon's Residential Landlord and Tenant Act is Chapter 90 of the Oregon Revised Statutes. Oregon is unusual in that some rent and termination rules operate statewide rather than city by city — which makes reading the current statute text especially important, because the Legislature has amended this chapter repeatedly.
Portland has a Rental Services Office and additional local renter-protection requirements. Use the Portland desk on this site for the city offices. Other Oregon cities may have local screening or relocation rules. Community Alliance of Tenants and oregonrentersrights.org remain statewide education doors — they are not the court.
Official sources
- StatuteORS Chapter 90 — Residential Landlord and TenantOregon Legislative Assembly, the state's official statute publisher.
- Free legal helpOregon Law HelpStatewide legal-aid guides for Oregon renters, in several languages.
- Self-help hubOregon Renters RightsHandbooks, sample letters, and a pointer to the Eviction Defense Project. Not the statute.
- Tenants unionCommunity Alliance of Tenants — Know Your RightsOregon tenants-union education, organizing, and the renter hotline they publish.
- 211211infoRegional 211 for Oregon and southwest Washington — rent, shelter, food, utilities.
- Statute indexCornell LII landlord-tenant tableOr. Rev. Stat. §§ 90.100 to 90.875
- FederalHUD — Oregon
- Free legal helpLawHelp.org — Oregon
Common questions
Is 'uninhabitable' the same in every Oregon city?
The state chapter is the floor. City housing codes can add more. Confirm both. Oregon Residential Landlord and Tenant Act is the starting point.
Can I stop paying rent if the unit in Oregon is unsafe?
Only if Oregon provides a process, and only if you follow it. Ask legal aid first. A wrong withhold can become an eviction case on top of the condition problem.
Oregon CAT, oregonrentersrights.org, or 211info?
Community Alliance of Tenants is a tenants union. oregonrentersrights.org is a self-help handbook hub and a pointer to the Eviction Defense Project. 211info.org is regional 211. Oregon Law Help is legal aid. Four different doors. ORS Chapter 90 is the statute.
Where do Oregon sample renter letters actually live?
Community Alliance of Tenants publishes repair, move-out, and deposit samples on oregoncat.org/know-your-rights. oregonrentersrights.org publishes handbooks and letters. This classroom points at those files. It does not host a copy that will go stale.
Is the Fair Housing Council of Oregon the same as CAT?
No. The Fair Housing Council of Oregon takes discrimination. Community Alliance of Tenants is a tenants union. Oregon Law Help takes an FED. HUD is the federal floor. Three local doors plus the Act.
The national habitability guide has the full sequence. Open the habitability guide
People also ask
Last reviewed 8 September 2026. Legal information, not legal advice. Not a law firm. hello@renterprotection.org