Vulnerability risk analysis is a tool that helps to identify census tracts within the City of Portland that have higher-than-citywide average populations with characteristics that make resisting displacement more difficult: they are renters rather than homeowners, belong to communities of color, lack college degrees, and have lower incomes. As part of efforts to evaluate potential gentrification impacts, the Bureau of Planning and Sustainability (BPS) contracted with Dr. Lisa Bates to prepare a paper on how to assess vulnerability of different neighborhoods to increased gentrification pressure. Although gentrification can also have impacts on businesses or commercial space, this research focused on the risks for residential displacement. The study titled, Gentrification and Displacement Study: implementing an equitable inclusive development strategy in the context of gentrification is available at online.

Vulnerability analysis is one of the three components of an assessment tool that operationalize a conceptual definition of gentrification and displacement risk. Demographic changes and housing market appreciation are the two other components. The vulnerability score, demographic change and the status of housing market in various combinations determine specific stages of gentrification and displacement risk.