Driver and Motor Vehicle Services Division

If you like waiting no less than 1 hour just to get to the counter, this place is for you! This location, which is temporarily at mall 205 employs the most incompetent team I’ve ever experienced in several states. I’m pretty sure people have died just waiting to be seen. This place makes the Department of Veterans Affairs look like a well oiled engine.
«ABANDON ALL HOPE, YE WHO ENTER HERE!»

Easy to get to and close t the freeway. Staff here seems lazy (yes more than a typically at a DMV). Why have a clerk (s) for vehicle dealers here if you’re just going to look over to the consumer side and say «it’s not too busy there they can help you. »

This location is currently being renovated so their temporary location is inside Mall 205. Since I am not able to write a review for the temporary location, this will have to do.
I am sure I can speak for everyone that we all dread the visit to the DMV and it really is a chore. I arrived 20 minutes prior to opening and there was already a few people there. The frustrating part is that grown adults do not have manners and cut in line just to get through the doors!
When my number was called, this young blonde was helping me. She obviously looked like she didn’t want to be there or help me. While she was checking my ID and paperwork, her phone rang and she answered. The converstation went into how her weekend was and blah blah blah. I mean, REALLY?! She then gets up without saying anything to go to back office, says something to a man sitting a desk and when she comes back, a guy approaches her work station and starts flirting with her.
Next, I stopped to get my photo taken and that wasn’t as painful. The whole process took me about 20 minutes. Thank goodness I don’t need to back here anytime soon.

What can I say, every DMV is slow, because they are busy! It’s the truth. I went in there knowing this truth so my wait was not too bad. I made a name change on my license. The bummer part was I had gone in the week before to inquire about what I needed to make this change (post divorce) & was told just bring in your legal document and well print you a new label for your license. Oh sweet, that sounded awesome.
Well, when I went in today it took 1 hour! I had the fill out an application and pay $ 26.50. And of course they don’t do plastic, you can use your plastic at the handy ATM inside.

They warn people not to go to DMVs on Fridays, but I was in the area and needed to renew my license. WTH. I got there a little after 2:30. Lot of people sitting there waiting but only one person in front of me in the «triage» line. Wasn’t sure how long it was going to take. Incidentally, within 5 minutes, the triage line filled in behind me. So timing and luck matter.
After reviewing my renewal app, the triage clerk put me in the express line. I guess is standard procedure for generic license renewal. It turned out I was also the 2^nd person in the express line. There were 2 clerks handling express clients. When I was next up, one of the clerks went on break! It worked out alright, probably only added an extra 5 minutes to my wait.
The actual renewal process. The triage clerk had reviewed all my documents and said they were all in order, but the woman in the express line did not want to accept my proof of citizenship — even though the triage clerk said it was okay. In addition, it was a perfectly legal document issued by the Feds. Ultimately, it was accepted but it seems like they need to get things in better order here. I read other reviews having problems with them accepting their documents.
I then waited to get my picture taken. I expected a long wait, but it only took 5 minutes!
In total, I think that it only took me a total of 30 minutes in the DMV office — including time in the line! That isn’t bad for a Friday.
FYI, to insure that things go smoothly. I would recommend that you bring more than one item to prove both your identity and citizenship. if you extra items, it wouldn’t hurt to bring them along. If you don’t have documents that they are willing to accept, you might end up in the waiting area — not the express line — assuming that they don’t send you home completely.

O.M.G to the O.D.M.V.
So I had a renewal notice for my ODL and on it was a list of acceptable I.D. On the bottom of that list it said in blue bold. My Valid ODL would work as proof.
Things to bring:
1.Valid I.D.
2. Proof Of Address (as in DMV Renewal Notice)
I get there and as always, it’s a zoo! I go to the counter. Pink Lady asked what I needed. I told her ODL Renewal. She said, without missing a beat, or any questions. I didn’t bring proof of who I was because I didn’t have my Birth Certificate! I show her the Renewal Notice and point to the Bold letters and get out my ODL. She in a snarky voice reads out loud all the list till the bottom and skips the bold. Again saying, I needed my Birth Certificate. This time, I read Out Loud the bold letters. Show her my ODL and wait. She takes my ODL and say’s (not even joking) You must have gotten this in the last few years and we already saw your Birth Certificate.
(In my head I said, Correct. An ODL is only good for a few years. So yes, I did get this ODL a few years ago) So having passed the gauntlet of DMV. I got my form and within 10 minutes had a new O. D. L.
PS. I wish we could give — stars!
O.D.M.V. — 2 STAR

The express line is rarely an express line. Keep your ticket and exit the express line if your number comes up.

As far as DMVs go, this one isn’t too shabby. The clerks range from stern and business like, to kind, and hilarious. The line really does move, and provided you come prepared (look up things online beforeheand), you will get in and out pretty quickly. Oregon is one of the only states requiring you to take a written test for a license, even if you are licensed out of state. Word to the wise, when taking the touch screen computer test, use the «skip» button liberally if you don’t know the answer. The goal is just to accumulate the minimum required number of correct answers, and then the test stops and you pass. This seems far better than not using the skip button, guessing a lot and failing. A quick glance through the pdf manual online and common sense will get you through ok.
You can register to vote while getting your license, and also get your plates the same day if you are the title holder. Not bad at all.
The problem is, they are only open business hours, no weekends, no late nights. You need to arrive before 4 p.m. if you want to take the written exam. For my work schedule, this is IMPOSSIBLE. It is very inconvenient to the conventionally employed people of Portland (we make up about 15% of the population, no?). I’ve had to go on sick days when I was a groggy, ill zombie who should have been in bed recuperating.
I sure hope that most of the rest of my DMV business can be done online or via mail!

The Division of Motor Vehicles turned me into a «fat man» with hair plugs!!! After waiting for 1 and a half hours to renew my license, they add insult to injury and ruin my social life. I know that the last pic was about 10 years ago, but come on! I am not a «fat man» with hair plugs! Now I must look forward skeptical police officers and bouncers who might question the validity of my picture against me in the flesh. Embarrassing.

The first thing you’ll notice upon arriving at the DMV is the lack of parking spaces, the second is the line of people waiting to get a number just to wait in line again, & the third is the unpleasant odors hovering around the room.
The easiest way to get through the DMV, if you’re the one renewing your driver’s license & are short on time, is to have someone else get in line for you.
Seth needed to renew his license but he wasn’t off work until 3:30pm. I had the day off so I headed to the DMV when he got off work to wait in line for him. When I reached the information desk #375 was called & I was given ticket #410. By the time Seth got to his car, fought through Friday traffic (Powell & 87^th is the worst location for a DMV), & entered the building #403 was called. He waited only 10 min from the time he arrived to the time he got his picture taken & interim license handed to him. Me? I waited an hour.
The DMV hours are very inconvenient for the working person; closed by 5pm during the week & not open on the weekends. This is why you should find someone who has patience & is willing to wait on your behalf. There are only 13 DMV counters/​clerks to help the hundreds of clientele. The help desk right up front controls the ticket number machine instead of you grabbing a ticket yourself. She/​he will also provide everything you need before handing over a ticket & letting you move forward. Be sure to have all your documents before even stepping foot into the DMV otherwise you’re wasting yours & everybody else’s time.
Overall the process was fast for Seth & since I had nothing else to do I didn’t mind the wait. We had friendly customer service from the clerks we dealt with & overall the experience was A-​OK.

Greeter was friendly enough, but the clerk who assisted us was a sad specimen of a human.
No hello, how can I help you? Nobody wants to be here, but you try to be pleasant and make the most of it. I barely received a grunt to be exact.
Gave him the completed form that the greeter had us complete. Told us we needed to complete another form. (Seemed a bit annoyed) Advised that our request required two separate transactions. And how were we suppose to know this?!?
I guess you can say they were efficient because there was no small talk. Not saying that CA DMV is any better, but at least we have the option to make an appointment. I consider us fortunate, we only had to wait 45 minutes, but then we arrived at 8A when they opened. The line was already out the door.

shockingly fast… however. Do bring cash or a check. They do not accept credit cards or debit but they do have an ATM. BUT… it only forks out 200 at a time. Since my visit cost me $ 257 I had to pay for (2) atm charges plus the charges from whatever wells fargo will bend me over for.
This was a pleasant experience as far as service and quickness.

Went in and was greeted by a nice lady at the front desk that gave us a number. We sat for 3 minutes and were out of there in 10 minutes. One of the better experiences I have had at a DMV office. The employee was curt but I’ve never had one that wasn’t.

It’s the DMV, what can one really say? They enjoyed being there? That everything went totally as planned and it was amazing? You were greeted with bubbly and cavier?
But, as far as DMV’s go this one always seems to get me in and out of there as quickly as possible and I’ve never irrately screamed at any of their people. So that’s A-​ok in my book.

Sitting at the DMV with that little ticket, waiting to get your number called among… interesting company always reminds me of that scene in Beetle Juice in the waiting room where he gets his head shrunk.
It’s the DMV, how many stars could you possible give it? It costs a lot, it’s a hassle, they don’t take credit cards, the lines are long, and everyone there is miserable.
I gave this location one extra star than I’d give the other DMV’s I’ve been to, just because the lines never seem as long.

I’ve been here several times as a Washingtonian transplant trying to get my shit together, including title transfer, licensing, etc. I’ve found this branch to be expedient, efficient and friendly.
Also, if you have your title in hand (no lienholder) you get plates (regular plates, not vanity) & stickers IMMEDIATELY. I would have thought I would have to wait for them in the mail. I did have to wait for my title to come in the mail.

DMV Photo-​Taking Man: Remove your glasses, please.
Me: WHAT?! No! My glasses are ME. I look funny without them, and certainly not like myself.
DMVPTM: Sorry. New rule, it’s for the face-​recognition software.
Fast forward a few moments, and Photo-​Taking Man had to go get a supervisor to override something in the computer, as it was not recognizing my face. Why? Because I have glasses on in the photo on file. A few clicks and a swipe of an ID card later, we were just about set, until this:
Supervisor: You want a man’s opinion?
Me: Nope.
Supervisor: You look waaaay better without glasses, you really need to look into contacts or LASIK.
Me: I’m good, thanks. I like the glasses.
Supervisor: No, really, I’m being serious.
Me: Me, too. Are we done here?
Aside from that weird little interaction/​unsolicited facial accessories advice, this trip to the DMV was actually quite fine. It’s crowded, but there are about 14 windows, so it moves along nicely. There is a concierge of sorts at the front to get you any paperwork, answer questions, and keep the flow going. I’ve definitely experienced worse.
I was in and out in less than 30 minutes, with my new temporary license, on which a truly awful photo of my glasses-​less face remains. I’ll bet that Supervisor guy gets like… tons of chicks, man.

The most uncomfortable lounge to get cozy with your fellow man, woman, and in between. And that’s saying a lot, given this place’s proximity to 82^nd.
On the other hand, the parking situation is fine.
On the other other hand, the food they give you for the prices? Why don’t you just tell me to bend over and cough, too, while we’re at it? Plus, I can’t eat my license. There’s more nutritional value in a Happy Meal.
But it could be worse. Have you ever been to a DMV office anywhere in California? And native Oregonians wonder why all the degenerates from down south make the big migration up here. I have a four-​word explanation for you: Suck it, San Mateo.
Best to get here very early in the day or less than an hour before they close. Also, don’t look at the animated atrocity they show on the single TV screen, unless you dislike your brain. You’d probably blow those few cells somewhere down the street, anyway, right?

Two stars means «Meh, I’ve experienced better». So maybe I’m not using the star system justly, as I’ve yet to truly experience more to this DMV than its parking lot.
One of the codes of Unilocaling is to be fair to a business by rating it on your personal experiences, which would generally include having experienced such a business during their open hours.
Recently, I seem to be crossing paths with a lot more businesses who aren’t keeping true to any sort of posted schedule. Apparently, if you put a measly sign on your door, that justifies your unforeseen closure and scratches out your newly found status as «unreliable».
Sadly for the DMV, this happened to be the straw that broke the Jodi-camel’s back.
I drove up on a Friday, the only week day that I don’t work, the only week day I can take care of business without completely depriving myself of sleep: The parking lot was empty. Ominous. Especially since automobiles are their business.
So I got out of the car to see what their hours are and make sure that I wasn’t tripping, that the DMV SHOULD be open on Fridays. And I was correct. They should’ve been open. But they weren’t.
The reason why the DMV is the business that gets the branding for Flake of the Week is because they actually went so far as to put a note up on the front door that states, in more or less words, they were closing the business down on Friday due to cutbacks, and that they’d sent all employees home without pay for the day. Way to go, arseholes.
Hopefully, next time I try to visit the DMV, they will be open as is scheduled and EXPECTED by this community, as well as treating their employees with a bit more appreciation.

Oh the HUMANITY!
Yeah, that’s what this is. A mass of unwashed humanity. If you ever want to experience the true America, go to a DMV.
Why?
Everyone needs a driver’s license, so the average crowd at the DMV on any given day ranges from old to young, educated to non, clean to dirty, black to white, healthy to sick, beautiful to fugly, American to foreign national, and all in between. It’s not just the folks you’d see hanging at the places you frequent (and therefore who would fit into a similar demographic as you), this is everyone. This is «People of Whole Foods» meets «People of Wal Mart» but in a small, enclosed space with a long wait.
It’s a little rough around the edges, and it seems to me that everyone is uncomfortable being in such close quarters with people they’re not used to hanging out with.
Needless to say, things don’t move too fast at the DMV. Everyone erroneously blames the DMV workers, but not me. I observe closely. It’s not the DMV workers that are slow, it’s 90% of the clientele, most of whom simply stand there, staring dumbfounded at the DMV clerk when asked a simple question or given a simple instruction. I feel sympathy for these folks. They deal with the lowest common denominator all day long, and in doing so they have to enforce arcane, and often asinine regulations, and so when they get to me, I’m not surprised that they’re exasperated, frustrated, tired, and grumpy. I’m always thankful when I get a smile out of them.
This DMV is run a tad differently from other’s I’ve been to in PDX. When you first walk in, there’s a «receptionist» (aka gatekeeper) who controls the number ticket machine. Instead of just taking a number, you tell her what you’re there for. Now, it sounds frustrating («I just wanna take my number and start my wait!»), but it can save you a ton of time. I walked in to get that stupid ass sticker on my license (the one they give you when you change addresses) replaced because it’s all worn off, and after waiting 10 minutes in line behind some people who had no clue why they were on this planet, let alone at the DMV, I was simply told «you don’t need a number, just grab that form, fill it out, and mail it in… it’s just as fast as going to the counter, they’ll do the same thing there.» YES! Saved from what looked like a gigantic wait («Now serving #342!») and not subjected to the awkward imposition of sitting amongst my fellow Americans for upwards of an hour. Sweet.
But hey, I had my lappy and my broadband 3G and plenty of work to do, why wouldn’t I want to just hang out at this DMV? Well, if you’ve ever been to any place that a huge cross-​section of America hangs out at, you’ll know this: It’s dirty, it’s loud, it’s full of all sorts of germs, it smells, it’s tepid, it’s sticky… It’s the Powell DMV!
Believe me, I came prepared to do some hard DMV time in order to get my new address sticker on my license, but thanks to the gatekeeper lady (no, I’m not the key master… stop asking), I was in and out in 10 minutes with the info I needed.