Rental Housing Crunch Hits Mountain Towns
SUMMIT COUNTY, Colo. (CBS4)- The great housing crunch isn't confined to the Denver metro area, it seems some Colorado mountain towns are also suffering in the rental market.
Experts say the last time they conducted a survey of available places for rent in Summit County they found a total of zero.
When asked to describe the housing market in the high country for rentals, Summit Combined Housing Authority spokeswoman Jennifer Kermode replied, "Crisis."
While more people are traveling and staying in mountain towns, properties for those who want to stay in the area are on the decline.
"I think we have lost a lot of the rental long-term housing for employees," said Kermode.
Property owners are taking those rental properties and turning them into short-term rental agreements instead of locking in long-term leases.
"It is easy to do and not easy to find out someone is doing it," said Kermode.
The short-term rental market is exploding with access to online businesses like Airbnb. Property owners are supposed to get a business license and pay lodging tax but Kermode said most are not.
"Building more second homes, we are trying to build more deed-restricted houses for the workforce but we need land and it takes time," said Kermode.