(The Center Square) – Colorado needs 106,000 housing units to address its housing needs, according to a recent report conducted by the State Demography Office.
While significant, this is down from the state’s 2019 peak of 140,000 units.
Colorado Gov. Jared Polis said more can be done, especially to address the rising cost of housing.
“We are fighting to lower housing costs and ensure that every Coloradan can realize the dream of becoming a homeowner, but more work needs to be done,” he said. “By expanding housing options, we can lower costs and provide more options for Coloradans to live where we want to live.”
The report found that to prevent the shortfall from growing, approximately 34,100 new homes need to be built each year over the next decade.
That is based on the latest estimates on population growth, while the housing shortage data was for 2023 (the most recent year data is available for).
“The State Demography Office’s analysis compares existing housing shortage estimates and offers an estimate with a transparent methodology,” said Kate Watkins, Colorado state demographer. “By providing objective, reliable data, the analysis aims to support state and local governments, housing providers, and community organizations in understanding the evolution of Colorado’s housing needs and how to better target resources so that they can be most effective.”
This comes as Colorado faces an ongoing housing crisis, especially for low-income and affordable housing.
The state has many programs in place in an attempt to address the issue, including a recent commitment to build more homes.
This collaborative effort must continue, the report stated.
“Between 2020 and 2023, Colorado built an average of 43,000 housing units each year, significantly higher than the pace of the previous decade. This surge helped reduce the shortfall by nearly 25 percent in just four years,” it said. “Continued collaboration among state and local governments, developers and community organizations will be essential to ensuring that every Coloradan has access to safe, secure and stable housing.”
A recent report from Pew Research Center found increasing supply in low-income neighborhoods has a direct correlation with decreasing rent prices, as previously reported by The Center Square.
“It is not rocket science that by increasing housing supply we can decrease rent spikes, and help more Coloradans realize the dream of home ownership,” Polis said in August.
While Colorado is one of just 12 states that has reached pre-COVID housing inventory levels, home ownership remains financially inaccessible for many in the state.
Currently the state has one of the most expensive housing markets in the nation, with the median sale price for a home estimated at nearly $600,000.
In contrast to the state’s report, a 2025 report from the National Low Income Housing Coalition found that Colorado needs upward of 134,000 more affordable homes just for extremely low-income households.
