Posted inBusiness, Housing, News

Aspen City Council limits short-term rentals, imposes fees on home construction and eases path for affordable housing

The Aspen City Council this week approved strict regulations limiting short-term rentals and easing the process for developing affordable housing, concluding seven months of work to rein in a real estate market frenzy that has homes selling for as much as $6,000 a square foot. “Are we a community or a commodity?” Aspen councilor Rachel […]

Posted inEconomy, Housing, News

In Colorado’s heated real estate market, is it better to be a renter right now?

What’s Working: This is a segment of our weekly What’s Working column. Read the full column. >> Sign up for the newsletter Feel like there’s no chance you can buy a house? You may be better off renting anyway. With national average mortgage payments of $2,576.39, that’s above average rent of $1,589 in Colorado, according […]

Posted inEconomy, Housing, News

In Colorado’s current real estate market, is it better to be a renter right now?

What’s Working: This is a segment of our weekly What’s Working column. Read the full column. >> Sign up for the newsletter Feel like there’s no chance you can buy a house? You may be better off renting anyway. With national average mortgage payments of $2,576.39, that’s above average rent of $1,589 in Colorado, according […]

Posted inBusiness, Growth, News

The life sciences industry is booming. Here’s how it affects the Denver metro.

The life science industry has thrived in Colorado for decades. But in the last year or two, more people are moving in and around Denver to research everything from diseases and medical devices to pharmaceuticals and drug discovery. That means there’s less space equipped with proper ventilation and technology and fewer labs available for research […]

Posted inOpinion, Opinion Columns

Nicolais: My stepdaughter won in the housing lottery that is the Colorado real estate market

Earlier this month my stepdaughter and her boyfriend bought their first home. They ended up in a three-bedroom, two-bathroom house near Columbine. It has a two-car garage and decent size yards in front and back. Feel free to gasp at their accomplishment in the current market. They are both in their mid 20s, recently completed […]

Posted inBusiness, Economy, Housing, News, Politics and Government

Colorado Democrats aim to quickly pass property tax relief to head off ballot measure from business group, conservatives

The debate over how to tackle rising property taxes is poised to dominate the final days of Colorado’s 2022 legislative session, as Gov. Jared Polis, Democratic lawmakers and Colorado Concern, a deep-pocketed business organization, hastily negotiate a plan to provide relief that’s sufficient but that doesn’t also deny local governments billions in future funding.  With […]

Posted inBusiness, News, Outsider

The source of Colorado’s high country housing crisis: a doubling of home prices and sales

The rules are changing in the high country. As the labor crisis lingers, community leaders are beginning to address the root cause of the challenges that are strangling mountain valleys. They are cracking down on short-term rentals. Redirecting the flow of tax dollars toward affordable housing. Adjusting economies anchored in tourism to focus on residents, […]

Posted inBusiness, Economy, Housing, News, Wildfire

Rebuilding after disaster takes a community — and a streamlined process — say Coloradans who lost homes in Waldo Canyon fire

Within 24 hours of the devastating Waldo Canyon fire on a hot June day in 2012, a unique recovery team began to form that included the mayor, builders, contractors, insurers, private businesses, the utility company and residents whose homes were damaged or destroyed. The nonprofit known as Colorado Springs Together worked through recovery from a […]