Common-Sense Solutions to Our Housing Crisis

Last Wednesday Vincent Carroll in The Denver Post wrote a great opinion piece titled, “The Common Sense, Unpopular Ways to Ease Colorado’s Housing Crisis.” Vincent wrote his column after the release of a new study by the Common Sense Institute with solutions to our affordable housing crisis. Vincent also referred often to a study from early 2018 completed by the Piton Foundation that was written by 2 CSU professors, Jennifer Newcomer and Phyllis Resnick. I cited this study often in my Bubble Class back 3 years ago. Here is a summary of what Vincent shared—
· Carroll said, “That’s the basis of the affordable housing crisis in metro Denver; lack of sufficient new housing across the board.”
· The Common Sense Institute said the issue is simply “We are not building enough housing.”
· Three years ago Resnick and Newcomer wrote, “Colorado’s housing affordability challenge is first and foremost one of supply.”
· Carroll writes that economic development officials celebrate every win in which they attract new companies with hundreds of new great paying jobs for our metro area, “It’s as if they were oblivious to the fact that we are not providing enough housing to offset this influx of well-paid professionals.”
· Carroll continues, “Meanwhile, there is growing political support for policies that will only exacerbate the housing shortfall, such as rent control or the sort of cap on new construction that Lakewood passed a couple of years ago.”
· Carroll wrote that he talked with Resnick and Newcomer and they told him earlier this year “it’s unlikely the situation has improved since their study was published.”
· Resnick also said one part of the problem is cities are much more dependent on sales taxes for revenue then they are property taxes. Thus, “residential development takes a back seat to commercial development.” I hadn’t thought of this before; but is a great point.
· Tom Ragonetti, a longtime Denver land-use attorney said, “Part of the miracle of America after WWII is that we allowed people to live middle-class lives with a wide spectrum of incomes” because housing was plentiful and relatively affordable. This is so darn true!
· Carroll adds, “But as growth management policies took hold and opposition to sprawl hardened, that dynamic slowed or stalled.
So, what are some solutions?
· First increase the density of housing units, but Ragonetti told Carroll, But, I don’t think people will tolerate it.” In fact some cities are eliminating or considering eliminating single-family zoning such as Minneapolis, Portland, Berkley, Seattle, and L.A.
· Both the Common Sense Institute and the Piton Foundation agree with the following 4 solutions—
· Need to reduce the regulatory costs of land entitlement.
· Expand the supply of developable land
· Reduce minimum parking requirements
· Boosting greater productivity in construction through modular and prefabricated options.
· The Common Sense Institute also cited the adoption of a statewide building code and for cities to encourage the construction of ADU’s or accessory dwelling units.