According to university admissions, Corvallis is one of America’s top 10 college towns and the #1 college town in the Pacific Northwest, so it’s no surprise that the city is seeing a rush of migration and a race to find suitable housing.

Corvallis is home to OSU’s main campus and has a population of around 58,000 people. The town is located within the traditional homelands of the Mary’s River or Ampinefu Band of Kalapuya, about 50 miles northwest of Eugene. 

With lots to do in Corvallis, the town has been getting busier and busier. The college campus only makes up a portion of the city’s population.

In moveBuddha’s Sept.16 report on “Thriving College Towns Americans want to move to”, we see that Corvallis has a move ratio of 1.79 and an unemployment rate of 3.8%.

MoveBuddha used their moving cost calculator to curate a move ratio which is based on the number of searches into a town versus out of a town.

Nearly twice as many people are interested in moving into Corvallis as they are moving out. Additionally, Corvallis has the 6th highest average home prices of all the 55 in moveBuddha’s study of thriving college towns. 

However, the monthly mortgage payment for a median-priced home in the Corvallis metro in 2024 stands at only $2,806, according to a study by Construction Coverage titled “Cities Where Construction Workers Would Have To Work the Longest Hours To Afford a Home”.

The town proudly claims to be “Safe, Smart, and Green.” Farmers Insurance Group has repeatedly ranked Corvallis very high for being secure. This accounts for crime statistics, extreme weather, risk of natural disasters, housing depreciation, foreclosures, life expectancy and job loss numbers.

OSU Undergraduate Admissions also asserts that the “community values sustainable and environmentally responsible choices, whether it be how we power our university, what we put in our bodies, or how we choose to commute. We are committed to keeping Oregon green.”

In 2023, OSU main campus enrollment was 24,200 students, and the Corvallis population was 61,700, according to The City of Corvallis’ population polls. 

OSU requires freshmen students to live on campus, which diverts some residents away from local real estate. From the same City of Corvallis polls, we see that “OSU houses between 19-23% of its students on campus in any given year”, which has stayed fairly stable for the past two decades. 

Brian Stroup, director of Operations and Facilities for UHDS said in an email, “We firmly believe that living on campus is a critical component for an incoming new student’s success.”

“Living on campus helps a student get connected with the Oregon State community and aids in their retention and persistence at OSU,” Stroup said. 

Due to the university’s on-campus living policy, freshmen hunt for the best dorms each fall. Sammy Gibson is a freshman from Camas, Ore., and is housed in Bloss Hall for this year. 

“(Dorm selection) was pretty easy. I wish we could have done it sooner,” Gibson said. “It’s very spread out so they tell you to get ready and then you don’t pick for a few weeks, which was a little frustrating, and then you don’t find out (assignments) for a while, but it was pretty easy online.” 

University Housing and Dining Services manage on-campus living and help freshmen and upperclassmen find housing. For incoming students, UHDS “(encourages) students that are living on campus to be mindful of their room type and the dining plan that they are on to make sure they are both the best fit for their room and board budget.” 

Brian Stroup, director of Operations and Facilities for UHDS said, “We are in the early stages of implementing the first steps of a Corvallis Campus Housing and Dining Vision that will expand housing capacity on campus significantly in the years to come.” 

“The biggest challenge we have is not having enough second-year and above housing on campus to meet the demand of students. This will be addressed through our Corvallis Campus Housing and Dining Vision with future new buildings”, Stroup said

For students who are seeking off-campus living, whether their first year or later in school, Stroup directs them to city resources such as the Housing and Neighborhood Services Division.