The Family Tree Program in Wheat Ridge that helps fund programs aimed at helping low income families find affordable housing has run out of funds.  Linda Barringer, program director says that "according to federal guidelines, affordable rental housing at that income level is about $480 in monthly rent, and there are no rental units in this county for that amount,"

photo credit: slurv

A Denver Post article reports that "the lack of affordable housing is repeated metro wide - Arapahoe County needs 12,500 units, while Adams County is short about 3,500 units - and ripples through counties across Colorado."

The vacancy shortage in Colorado has resulted in increased rents which mean low income families are paying more than half their income for rent. This leaves little money left over for essentials like food and transportation.  

"If you add any catastrophe, like having sick children where you're not able to work for four days, and that can put families over the edge," said Barringer. "We meet a lot of them living in hotels."

Colorado Division of Housing director Pat Coyle predicts that for Colorado housing, three factors make for "a perfect storm."

• The vacancy rate in affordable housing rentals is dropping.
• Incomes are dropping.
• And rents are steadily increasing.

Colorado has been building affordable new housing, even during the recession, but it's not enough to cover the demand.

According to a study by the Colorado Division of Housing in March of 2010, "nearly 216,000 households in Colorado with an income of $20,000 or less, which is about a $10-an-hour job, are looking for affordable housing."

The Denver Post reports that "the largest mismatches - the number of households at a certain income level, and the amount of affordable housing available to them - are in El Paso County and the Denver metro area, where there were at least 2.9 households for every unit affordable to households making $15,000 or less."

Read more: Affordable housing overwhelmed - The Denver Post http://www.denverpost.com/news/ci_17375036#ixzz1E9lIKMpp

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Posted in Press Room, Real Estate Market Conditions, Headlines

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