Key findings include:

• Greenlight predicts that the Portland region will add 100,000 jobs in the next five years.
• Portland’s gross regional product is predicted to grow 29.1 percent to $144.1 billion in the next five years, behind only that of Austin, Texas.
• The Portland region boasts the second-lowest average price for industrial space among the nine regions, at $6.34 per square foot. Only Denver's is lower. The price in several California cities is more than double that of Portland.
• Average Class A office price per square foot is $25.30, lower than all other cities except Albuquerque and Austin.
• Overall cost of living is cheaper than in Seattle and the five California cities surveyed.
• Average rent for a one-bedroom apartment is $875, third-lowest, behind only Denver and Albuquerque.
• Median housing price, at $295,300, is fourth-lowest.
• The population in the Portland-Vancouver-Beaverton area is predicted to increase 8 percent to nearly 2.4 million people in the next five years.
• The study also measured quality of life. Portland leads all 10 study cities in number of bookstores per million residents (135), wineries per million residents (69) and brewpubs per million residents (23).

The index, done in conjunction with Philadelphia-based forecasting firm Global Insight, compares the region to nine other metro areas: Seattle, Denver, Sacramento, San Francisco, San Jose, Los Angeles, San Diego, Albuquerque and Austin. The study identified several local growth sectors, including professional, financial and information services and construction and natural resources. Portland's professional and business services sector will grow 23 percent to more than 170,000 workers by 2013. More information can be found on the Greenlight Greater Portland website, www.greenlightgreaterportland.com.