CREJ - Property Management Quarterly - April 2017
Consistently ranked one of the country’s top economies and places to live, Denver and the metro region have long been sought-after destinations in the West. It’s where young people are moving, the culture scene is vibrant, jobs are available and business is booming. Nearly 4,500 people are moving to the Denver metro area each month. In Denver’s prospering economy, with low unemployment and high workforce participation, housing demand is quickly outpacing housing supply, especially affordable housing. For young families and single millennials with annual incomes of $44,000 to $52,000, or 80 percent of area median income, the demand for affordable starter homes has reduced the city’s homeownership and rental inventory to a record low. And as the service and construction sectors expand to support the demands of a growing population, entry-levels jobs paying entry-level wages have spiked the demand for housing affordable for people earning $24,000 to $32,000 annually, or 30 percent of the AMI, and below. What this means is many who come to this great city and our region seeking entry-level employment opportunities are unable to find housing and are instead accepting the offer of shelter from our network of providers. The demand for shelter, over recent years, has grown in numbers and in the diversity of people accessing the system. Our mission-driven shelter providers are serving the chronically homeless and people with substance abuse and mental health challenges. What you may not know is that approximately 30 percent of people served by our shelters are people who work, sometimes multiple jobs, but are unable to afford or find housing. Our providers also are sheltering our seniors on fixed incomes, our disabled and our immigrants seeking the American Dream. The diversity of individuals and families accepting shelter, coupled with the lack affordable housing options, must be met by a diversity of responses. The city remains squarely focused on taking a comprehensive and strategic approach to expanding affordable housing options and integrated support services. To address the diversity of affordable housing needs, in partnership with Denver Council President Albus Brooks and Councilwoman Robin Kniech, we established Denver’s first dedicated Affordable Housing Fund. The fund, representing a $150 million investment in housing over 10 years, will aim to create 6,000 affordable homes in the next decade. The investments will span across the scale of affordability and be strategically leveraged with funding provided by the Denver Housing Authority, the Colorado Department of Local Affairs, the Colorado Housing and Finance Corp., foundations and neighborhood development collaborators. Together, the collective investments will make lasting changes for people who need housing in Denver. Supportive housing options integrated with services will help people bridge the transition from shelter to an apartment; mixed-use housing can support our artist community; and affordable housing for our workforce of retail workers, builders, teachers and others are a few ways we will create a diversity of housing options to meet the diversity of needs. To support and focus this work, we created the Office of Housing and Opportunities for People Everywhere to bring together a diverse group of city programs across the spectrum of need for affordable housing, services and training opportunities providing options for those experiencing substance abuse and mental health challenges; those seeking training to boost job eligibility and raise their incomes; and those in search of financial literacy and support to buy their first home or seeking to remain in their homes. And we’ve brought on Erik Soliván, from the Philadelphia Housing Authority, to help lead these efforts. Soliván and the Office of HOPE currently are listening and working collaboratively with advocates, regional partners, businesses, community groups and the diverse group of city programs to identify short-term actions. The initiatives will be executed in a three- to eight-month timeframe and are small but important steps and policy considerations that will build sustainable collaborations across the diversity of city programs, and with partners and stakeholders across the scale of housing affordability. The need for affordable housing spans the economic scale, as well as city boundaries. Soliván, as one of the many new residents in this great city and region, has a keen understanding of the challenges ahead and the opportunities to work with residents and property owners to approach this issue with a diverse set of views and ideas. The diversity of need requires a diversity of responses, and I welcome your thoughts on short-term actions we can take together to address our immediate needs, and expand housing affordability and opportunities for individuals, families and people everywhere.