Governor Polis recently signed into law three bills directly aimed at addressing the metro area’s housing affordability challenges.
Noticeably absent from the bills that became law was SB19-225
It would have allowed local governments to institute rent control measures. Even with Colorado’s democratically controlled legislature, SB19-225 faced considerable opposition. Colorado was one of several states considering rent-control this past legislative session – a sign that home affordability among rising rents and home prices are major issues.
Learn More about Rent Control
If you want to delve deep into this topic — the good, bad and ugly of rent control — you may want to check out the recent podcast episode “Why Rent Control Doesn’t Work” by Freakonomics Radio. The title of the episode is a bit misleading, as the podcast doesn’t merely slam rent control. Instead, the podcast provides some historical perspectives on rent control and the costs as well as benefits when cities institute, or remove, rent control measures. They also discuss certain characteristics of “new and improved” rent control ideas.
Below are the three bills Polis signed into law:
HB 1228: increases tax credits over the next five years to help fund low-income housing construction.
HB 1322: transfers significant funding from the Unclaimed Property Trust Fund in the Treasurer’s Office to fund new housing grants.
HB 1319: requires state agencies to create lists of vacant buildings and undeveloped land that could be put to use as low income housing.