ISSUE #205: Baby Steps Toward a Housing Overhaul (10/26/21)

"Progress is impossible without change, and those who cannot change their minds cannot change anything. " -- George Bernard Shaw

ASPEN TIMES COLUMN

Sunday's column presented several wise steps being taken by the APCHA board, including the establishment of "standards" that must be met by sellers before listing their units for sale AND a reduction in the age of qualified dependents from 24 to 19.

"Seller standards" are the first - and obvious - step toward mandating that owners care for their property. (It's not like these are free market units that anyone can simply trash and bear the consequences of the market upon sale. Sadly, in Aspen's housing environment, to-date, owners have been able to sell abject pig-sties to a pool of desperate buyers. That ends. But questions remain about who pays....)

By lowering the dependent age, APCHA is taking its first step toward a desperately needed "right-sizing" initiative, given that recent data has shown that the majority of larger units have less than one person per bedroom.

There's still a VERY LONG way to go, but baby steps in the right direction still constitute progress....

Read it HERE.