Affordable Housing

The struggle for affordable housing is playing out in Vail, Colorado, where the owners of a ski resort are trying to create an affordable housing complex for the chefs, bus drivers, ski lift operators and other workers who keep the resort humming.

Colorado residents have voted to rewrite the state’s tax law to direct an estimated $300 million a year to affordable housing projects. The ballot initiative funnels a fraction of Colorado’s taxable income into programs that include helping essential workers buy homes and supporting local governments to increase affordable housing stock.

Home prices increased significantly during the pandemic, and markets in the Mountain West saw some of the country's biggest hikes. But now, some cities in the region might see those prices come back to earth.

Earlier this month, Denver City Council approved a contribution of $2 million to the Denver Basic Income Project, a community collaboration that's studying the effect of cash payments to those experiencing homelessness.

If passed, the measure, Proposition 123, would provide an estimated $300 million annually to various affordable housing programs across the state. Voters will decide whether to pass the initiative in the November election.

The Colorado ski resort Steamboat Springs has passed regulations for short-term rentals, such as those booked on Airbnb, amid a severe housing crisis. The ordinances prohibit new short-term rentals in most of the city and require landlords to obtain a license to operate.

A "David and Goliath story" ends with residents of the Westside mobile home park in Durango, Colorado, keeping their homes, with a lot of help from their neighbors.

A housing crunch in the West has some looking to public lands as a solution… and a place to live.

The affordable housing crisis is usually understood as a problem in the Mountain West’s cities and resort towns. But it’s also happening in rural areas with booming economies.

Building new affordable housing takes time, but knocking it down can happen practically overnight.