Latest news with #HouseBill25-1004
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Rent-setting software ban supporters blast Polis veto
Colorado Gov. Jared Polis speaks during a news conference about a bipartisan property tax reduction bill on May 6, 2024, at the Colorado Capitol. (Quentin Young/Colorado Newsline) Colorado Democratic lawmakers criticized Gov. Jared Polis after he vetoed a bill on Thursday afternoon that would have banned the use of computer algorithms to set rent in the state, calling the decision a failure of the state's values. 'Gov. Polis had the opportunity to save Coloradans money, but he instead aligned himself with tech companies that are engaged in practices so questionable that they're currently facing litigation from the federal government,' Sen. Julie Gonzales, a Denver Democrat and bill sponsor, said during a virtual press conference on Friday morning. House Bill 25-1004 was written as a consumer protection bill to ban software that uses private market data to suggest profit-maximizing rents to landlords. The Biden administration released a report last year that found software from companies like RealPage cost Denver renters an extra $136 per month, one of the highest monthly cost increases in the country, and is used in over 45% of multifamily rental units in the city. Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser last year also targeted the practice when he joined an antitrust lawsuit against RealPage. In his veto letter, Polis wrote that he prefers to allow 'current state and federal investigations to run their course — including those Colorado is a party to.' He wrote that he agrees with the intent of the bill, and that collusion to artificially constrain rental supply is already illegal, but he worried about its effect on the state's housing market. 'We should not inadvertently take a tool off the table that could identify vacancies and provide consumers with meaningful data to help efficiently manage residential real estate to ensure people can access housing,' he wrote. 'If signed today, this bill may have unintended consequences of creating a hostile environment for providers of rental housing and could result in further diminished supply of rental housing based on inadequate data.' A RealPage spokesperson lauded Polis' veto. 'This is the right outcome for all of us who desire a healthy housing ecosystem that benefits Colorado renters and housing providers alike,' Jennifer Bowcock of RealPage said in a statement. The bill was sponsored by Gonzales, Sen. Nick Hinrichsen of Pueblo, Rep. Steven Woodrow of Denver and Rep. Javier Mabrey of Denver, all Democrats. A similar bill died last year, but this year's version passed on party-line votes in both legislative chambers. 'During my time at the Legislature, we've been tasked by the governor to save people money,' Woodrow said. 'During special sessions, we've been called down to cut property taxes to save homeowners an average of $80. Why we couldn't find the means to save renters 200 times that with a stroke of a pen is simply beyond unfortunate. The governor has punted this to the courts.' Groups that supported the bill included the Community Economic Defense Project, The Bell Policy Center, the Colorado Fiscal Institute and United for a New Economy. Supporters hoped the Biden White House report and pending litigation would help usher it into law this year. 'Unfortunately, the veto sends this devastating message that corporate landlords can keep using secret price-fixing algorithms to take extra rent from the people who have the least,' CEDP co-founder Sam Gilman said. The veto is Polis' 11th this year. He has until June 6 to sign or veto bills passed during this year's legislative session, which concluded earlier this month. SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
Yahoo
12-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
These housing policies passed the Colorado Legislature in 2025
Colorado Gov. Jared Polis spoke alongside legislative leaders at a factory-built apartment complex in Denver on May 8, 2025. (Sara Wilson/Colorado Newsline) The Colorado Legislature had a smaller emphasis on housing policy this year following the passage of splashy land use laws in 2024, but lawmakers still advanced quite a few bills related to housing, particularly for renters and first-time homebuyers. Democrats enjoyed wide majorities in both the House of Representatives and Senate, and many of the bills passed this year had Democratic sponsorship and passed along party lines, though a few were bipartisan. The 2025 regular legislative session ended on May 7, and Gov. Jared Polis, a Democrat, has until June 6 to take action on bills. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX Senate Bill 25-20 would allow third-party takeover of rundown apartment buildings that violate state laws around maintenance and habitability. The attorney general and municipal governments could petition the district court for a building to be put into receivership — during which a third party would manage and operate the property for a period of time — if the landlord demonstrates a 'pattern of neglect,' including if the property lacks working ventilation, heating, lighting, or door locks, or has other health and safety hazards. The receiver would be in charge of fixing the property's issues and the landlord could seek to end the receivership after 90 days. 'We know there is a relationship between landlords and tenants. The landlord provides a property and the tenant pays for it,' bill sponsor Rep. Mandy Lindsay, an Aurora Democrat, said on the House floor during debate on the bill. 'But in that agreement is that the property needs to be habitable.' The bill was partially a response to a dilapidated building in Aurora owned by CBZ Management, which had longstanding safety problems and was closed by the city last year. The building also became a flashpoint in the debate over the Trump administration's effort to conduct mass deportations. 'This bill gives tools to the attorney general and to cities and counties to be able to take care of situations where there is severe neglect,' Lindsay said. The bill was sent to the governor on May 2. House Bill 25-1004 would ban the use, sale and distribution of software that uses an algorithm to set rents. That would include companies like RealPage, which is the subject of a lawsuit from Colorado and other states. Those companies use internal aggregate data from landlords around the area and then suggest rent prices based on the market. A study from the Biden administration last year found that units priced with RealPage software are about $136 more per month. The bill passed both chambers on party-line votes, and progressive lawmakers and renters' rights groups are urging Polis to sign it. Lawmakers finally passed a bill related to construction defect lawsuits after multiple years of failed attempts. House Bill 25-1272 would give construction companies the choice to opt in to a program that would limit construction defect claims, which drive up project insurance costs and are said to be the reason condominium construction has plummeted in the state. To participate in the program, builders would need to agree to inspections during the building process and provide a defect warranty to owners. The idea is that issues would be identified and addressed during construction and any errors discovered after someone moves in could be fixed quickly. The bill was heavily amended to assuage some concerns from trial lawyers, home builders and homeowners. Sponsors hope the bill will encourage builders to construct more condominiums, which are often more affordable options for first-time buyers priced out of the detached single-family home market. 'This is a problem that I believe we have a moral obligation to fix,' bill sponsor Rep. Shannon Bird, a Westminster Democrat, said during the bill's debate in the House. 'When you have the financial security that comes from owning your own home, you're no longer at the whims of changing lease terms or increasing rents. We need to do better. Our state's best answer cannot be more taxpayer-subsidized affordable housing. The market needs to work.' The bill passed both chambers with widespread bipartisan support. It was sent to Polis on May 6 and it is almost certain he will sign it. The first bill Polis signed after the legislative session was Senate Bill 25-2, which concerns factory built, or modular, housing. Those structures are built in a factory to near completion and then transported to a building site. It is a faster method of construction with lower costs. The state will set regional building codes for factory-built structures, eliminating some of the stickiest red tape for these types of builds. 'We thought one of the key housing bills that we passed provides streamlining and uniformity to make sure that this kind of housing can be built at lower cost and quicker across the state, so that we don't have 600 different versions of modular housing. The big benefit is an economy of scale,' Polis said ahead of the bill signing Thursday. Polis has also signed House Bill 25-1090, which requires disclosure of something's final cost up front. That extends to rent costs, so starting in 2026 it will prohibit a landlord from not communicating to a prospective tenant extra costs on top of base rent for items like trash service, pest control and community amenity fees. The total price would need to be advertised as one complete, accurate number, so a consumer knows what to expect to pay. Sometimes, those extra fees are revealed after a person pays an application fee or signs a lease. These so-called 'junk fees' will be deemed a deceptive practice and a person could bring legal action against a landlord who violates the law. Earlier this year, Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser and federal regulators sued one of the state's largest landlords, Greystar, over its use of junk fees. 'Hidden 'junk fees' often add up to hundreds of dollars in monthly expenses for Coloradans, and this new law cracks down on these surprise costs to save people money,' bill sponsor Rep. Emily Sirota, a Denver Democrat, said in a statement after the bill signing. 'Whatever the 'junk fee' is disguised as, the goal is to hike up prices and drain money out of the pockets of hardworking Coloradans to increase corporate profits.' Other housing bills passed this year include policies to allow some multifamily buildings to have just one staircase, ensure the return of security deposits to tenants in more circumstances and require building codes to follow accessibility standards. SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
Yahoo
10-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Colorado lawmakers trying to ban rent-setting algorithms — blamed for extra $3.8 billion cost to US renters
If you're a renter, do you know how your landlord sets the rent? In many parts of the country, it may be done using algorithms. These third party-run algorithms use proprietary and public data, and may allow landlords to indirectly collude on price or coordinate to charge higher rents. "What these companies are doing is they're replacing what used to be a smoke-filled back room with a computer algorithm,' Rep. Javier Mabrey of Colorado told ABC Denver 7. I'm 49 years old and have nothing saved for retirement — what should I do? Don't panic. Here are 5 of the easiest ways you can catch up (and fast) Nervous about the stock market in 2025? Find out how you can access this $1B private real estate fund (with as little as $10) Want an extra $1,300,000 when you retire? Dave Ramsey says this 7-step plan 'works every single time' to kill debt, get rich in America — and that 'anyone' can do it These algorithms have cost renters a lot of money, with a report released under the Biden administration estimating them to have cost U.S. renters $3.8 billion in 2023, with Denver renters in particular having paid, on average, $136 more per month. Now, lawmakers in Colorado, including Rep. Mabrey, are trying to ban them in House Bill 25-1004. So, what would the bill do? And, how would the ban affect renters and landlords? Here's what you need to know. This predictive software uses extensive market data to offer landlords profit-maximizing recommendations about rental terms, including pricing. A system, the American Economic Liberties Project says, can allow landlords to 'limit supply and drive up rents without explicitly sharing data … exploiting a loophole in laws that prohibit price-fixing.' But states have begun to take notice, and Colorado joined a lawsuit with seven other states and the Department of Justice against RealPage, a commercial revenue management software provider based in Texas. According to Economic Liberties, RealPage's clients comprise around 90% of investment-grade multifamily rental housing units in the U.S. The lawsuit, even if successful, may not be enough to fully protect consumers from all rent-setting algorithms, say some Colorado lawmakers. That's why they are trying to ban the software altogether. "We need to stand up and say, 'Enough is enough,'' Rep. Mabrey told Denver 7. 'We're not going to wait for the courts, and this is illegal in the state of Colorado.' Read more: The US stock market's 'fear gauge' has exploded — but this 1 'shockproof' asset is up 14% and helping American retirees stay calm. Here's how to own it ASAP The proposed bill would prohibit algorithmic devices if they are intended 'to set or recommend the amount of rent, level of occupancy, or other commercial term associated with the occupancy of a residential premises' by two or more landlords in the same or related markets. It would also ban algorithmic devices that recommend any of these terms 'based on data or analysis that's similar for each landlord.' Violations of the law would be considered 'an illegal restraint of trade or commerce' and would be punishable under Colorado's antitrust laws. The Colorado House of Representatives has approved the bill already, and it now heads to the state Senate. If it becomes law, unlike a similar bill that failed in 2024, Colorado would be a pioneer in passing this legislation — although other states have tried. Proposed bills prohibiting the algorithms also stalled in Illinois, New York and Rhode Island in 2024, while a similar bill did pass the Washington Senate and is now awaiting a House vote. Four cities have successfully instituted bans, though, including Minneapolis, most recently, as well as San Francisco, Philadelphia and Berkeley. Not everyone is in favor of these new laws, though. 'I just don't think we need more regulation, more legislation in this space where any time the government interferes, we distort the market, and the results are going to be unexpected," Rep. Chris Richardson told Denver 7. Richardson said many landlords are small business owners or elderly homeowners who could be hurt by the new rules. While the Colorado Apartment Association told Denver 7 that the algorithms are a 'critical tool' for assessing the market. It remains to be seen which argument will win out — and how rent prices will be affected in cities and states where bans pass. However, with housing costs already inflated in the post-pandemic era, renters would most likely appreciate any efforts to try to bring prices in check, especially if they are being artificially increased by modern methods of price collusion. Thanks to Jeff Bezos, you can now become a landlord for as little as $100 — and no, you don't have to deal with tenants or fix freezers. Here's how Rich, young Americans are ditching the stormy stock market — here are the alternative assets they're banking on instead Here are 3 'must have' items that Americans (almost) always overpay for — and very quickly regret. How many are hurting you? This article provides information only and should not be construed as advice. It is provided without warranty of any kind.
