Colorado lawmakers tap $400 million in ARPA to address ‘housing crisis’ in Colorado

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KRDO)-- It may have already been obvious to many, but living in Colorado is expensive, and the housing options are dwindling, according to a recent statehouse report. The report was prepared by Colorado's Affordable Housing Transformational Task Force and Subpanel.

Members of the task force proposed spending $400 million in American Rescue Plan dollars to try to fix the state housing crisis. That report says that naturally occurring affordable housing is rapidly becoming non-existent.

Affordable housing units are what people making $45,000 or less can afford without spending more than 30% of their income.

Over the past two years, the median price of a single-family home sold in Colorado has risen by nearly a third.

In El Paso County, home prices in the last two years are up 37.9%, and in Pueblo County, it's even worse, 40.4%, according to the Colorado Association of Realtors.

The report blames the housing crisis primarily on supply and demand issues.

It reads, "Colorado saw a dramatic decrease [40%] in the number of homes built across the housing continuum between 2010 and 2020. This significant decrease has coincided with a population increase of 14.8% in the state, creating a situation where low supply and high demand have greatly driven up prices."

In a press conference at the capitol Monday, District 26 representative and chair of the task force, Dylan Roberts, outlined where the funds will go.

"We're proposing to create a revolving loan fund in our state government that will leverage local and private funds to build a sustainable source of funding for affordable housing projects across the state for years to come," he continued. "We're also proposing grants to local governments and nonprofits so they can build and maintain affordable housing for homeownership and rental for many years to come."

The task force hopes that will help renters too. Rent prices are up 8.5% in the last year in Colorado Springs, according to Rentdata.org. Right now, the median price for a one-bedroom apartment in Colorado Springs is over $1,100.