The Rogue Valley is the first region to deploy the platform, bringing communities a real-time picture of workforce housing instability that has long gone unseen.
MEDFORD, Ore., May 29, 2026 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- Annum Housing today announced its public launch, introducing a community-wide housing navigator app that listens to residents through an AI-powered assistant called Dorothy, matches them with housing programs and aid they qualify for, and gives community leaders real-time data to act on what they're hearing. Deploying first in Southern Oregon in partnership with the Southern Oregon Regional Economic Development, Inc. (SOREDI), Annum is bringing a new infrastructure layer to a housing system that has remained fragmented, reactive, and difficult for workers to navigate.
The platform arrives as Oregon faces a worsening housing affordability crisis that has moved beyond a personal finance issue and into a regional economic one. Oregon currently ranks 47th out of 50 states in housing affordability, and in the Rogue Valley, 56% of workers report unaffordable rent or mortgage costs. The consequences have become visible to employers across the region: open roles going unfilled, skilled workers relocating to less expensive markets, and staffing shortages in healthcare, education, and other sectors where physical presence is required.
"Housing has become one of the most significant barriers to workforce development, and it's been difficult for our region to address without real data," said Blair Sundell, Executive Director at SOREDI. "One developer at our public forum could hardly believe the survey results showing how many workers want to own homes rather than rent, because it contradicted everything he'd been planning for. That's the problem Annum solves. For the first time, housing instability can be viewed in real time and more effective solutions can be developed to solve the crisis."
The gap between the stress workers are privately managing and the support that exists but remains out of reach is what Annum solves in three steps:
- Listen: Residents start with Dorothy, Annum's mobile-friendly AI housing navigator, which has ongoing conversations with workers about their housing situation, including rent burden, goals, and the early warning signs of housing fragility.
- Match: From there, Annum identifies the programs, available homes, and financial aid each resident may qualify for, walks them through eligibility, helps prepare documents, and stacks multiple sources of support to bring housing within reach.
- Act: Annum gives employers, municipalities, and community based organizations real-time data on what residents are telling us, so leaders can target resources, design better programs, and measure what's actually working.
What has historically been difficult to see and measure is what happens before displacement. A workforce housing survey conducted by Annum in Southern Oregon reveals that housing stress is widespread among workers who, on the surface, appear stable. Only 11% of Rogue Valley workers reported an unexpected move in the last two years, yet 55% relied on credit card debt to manage housing costs, 54% took on a second job or extra hours to stay housed, 47% delayed moving into more appropriate housing, and 43% were forced to share housing when they did not want to. These are behaviors of an unstable workforce and warning signs of a community absorbing compounding risk in ways that traditional data systems are not built to see. When workers were asked what would help them cross the threshold into homeownership, 94% said a rate buy-down program would make a meaningful difference; a finding that points directly to where targeted policy investment would have outsized impact.
"We've spent years making decisions based exclusively on backwards-looking data; eviction filings, vacancy rates, displacement numbers," Jerryck Murrey, CEO and Founder, Annum Housing. "By the time those numbers move, families have already been failed by a system that was supposed to help them. Annum is built to see what the data misses: the worker who is still showing up every day, still paying rent, but one medical bill away from a crisis no one saw coming. Southern Oregon is proving that communities don't have to wait for displacement to act. They can put a housing navigator in every worker's pocket, connect them to the aid they already qualify for, and give local leaders the data to act on it."
That third step, Act, is already live in Southern Oregon through SOREDI, giving Annum a coordinating role across a regional ecosystem that includes employers, community-based organizations, and local agencies. SOREDI built a public-facing data dashboard that incorporates Annum's survey data alongside national sources, giving policymakers, employers, and economic developers continuous access to regional housing data in one place. Annum already has more than eight employers engaged, including Goodwill, Worksharp, and Rogue Community College, and is approving residents for affordable housing options in the community, a leading indicator of the demand Annum was designed to meet. SOREDI and Annum are now planning a second phase that will track program utilization and outcomes over time, shifting the dashboard from a snapshot into a living record of what is working and where resources should follow.
Jen Trumm, Director of Human Resources at Southern Oregon Goodwill, added, "Our employees show up every day committed to our mission, but we know that for many of them, housing is a constant source of stress. We look forward to working with Annum to actually solve that problem and relieve that stressor. For the first time, we can connect our workforce to real housing solutions, not just point them somewhere and hope for the best."
The Annum Housing app is now available to download for free in the various app stores. Annum has more launches planned in various cities around the United States in the coming months.
About Annum Housing
Annum Housing is a community-wide housing navigator that helps working families find and access housing support before financial strain turns into displacement. By identifying early signs of housing instability and connecting people to personalized resources, Annum enables communities to understand and respond to real housing needs in real time. The platform is being deployed with partners including economic development organizations and employers across Southern Oregon, Aspen, and more. Learn more at www.annumhousing.com.
Media Contact
Jonathan Murray, Annum Housing, 1 7143395749, [email protected], www.annumhousing.com
SOURCE Annum Housing
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