Unaffordable housing is one of the most pressing challenges facing Denver and Colorado, affecting workers, families, young people, seniors, and communities of color. Lack of affordable housing fuels homelessness, displacement, pollution, and economic instability. We only lose if we don’t address our housing crisis, forfeiting our economic edge, national political influence, and vibrant communities and culture. As an elected representative, I will attack this crisis head-on, for both homeowners and renters, including:

• Modifying exclusionary zoning laws and implementing tax incentives to encourage the building of large-scale affordable housing, “missing middle” units, and accessory dwelling units.

• Incentivizing the conversion of vacant or under-utilized commercial spaces by rethinking residential requirements and providing appropriate financial assistance and technical support.  

• Further eliminating mandated parking minimums, freeing up more space for and reducing the cost of building new housing units.

• Reducing legal obstacles to new homeownership models such as community land trusts and real estate cooperatives, supporting local government efforts to develop housing on suitable city or state-owned lands, and allocating resources for the purchase of underutilized or vacant land for additional housing development.

• Increasing resources for transitional living programs to reduce homelessness.

• Banning the use of price-fixing algorithms in setting rental rates.  

• Facilitating renters’ strikes against slumlords and ensuring habitability of housing by increasing inspections.

• Regulating HOA fees and penalties, which have significantly increased the cost of housing in Colorado.

• Banning private equity ownership of single-family unit homes and levying taxes on homes that sit empty throughout the year.