The Need in Colorado
A housing crisis measured in tens of thousands of families
Behind every statistic is a Colorado family choosing between rent and groceries. The numbers below show why affordable, sustainable housing is one of the most urgent needs in our state — and why the Romeo Foundation's model matters now.
Our Progress So Far
Real numbers, straight from our own records — updated automatically as supporters give, families raise their hand, and endorsements come in. As an early-stage foundation, these figures show momentum, not completed construction.
Contributed by supporters through this site to help launch our first Colorado community.
Individual donations from neighbors and partners who believe in the mission.
Households who have raised their hand for future voucher-ready homes in our communities.
Public endorsements from Coloradans standing behind this work.
Colorado Housing, By the Numbers
Drawn from public data published by the Colorado State Demography Office, the National Low Income Housing Coalition, and HUD (2023–2024).
Colorado is short roughly 106,000 housing units statewide — a gap that keeps prices high and families squeezed.
More than half of Colorado renter households spend 30% or more of their income on housing.
Only about 26 affordable and available rental homes exist for every 100 extremely low-income renter households.
The shortage of rental homes affordable to extremely low-income Coloradans exceeds 134,000 units.
Colorado needs an estimated 34,100 new homes every year for the next decade just to keep pace with demand.
Since 2000, home prices have risen about 223% while incomes rose only 144% — the widest gap in over 20 years.
The Cost Burden Reaches Every Region
Share of renter households spending 30% or more of their income on housing, by Colorado metro area.
A household is considered “cost-burdened” when housing consumes 30% or more of income, leaving less for food, healthcare, transportation, and savings.
The Need, County by County
Housing pressure is felt in every corner of Colorado — from the Front Range metros to the rural counties where we're focusing our work, beginning in the Pueblo area.
Of all households were cost-burdened in 2024 — among the highest in the state for a renter-heavy county.
Of all households were cost-burdened in 2024, showing the strain has spread well beyond the urban core.
In each, at least half of renters were already paying 30%+ of their income on rent.
County figures reflect all households (renters and owners) unless noted; renter-only burden is typically higher. Sources: U.S. Census / ACS via FRED (2024) and Colorado county housing analyses (2020).
Section 8 Vouchers: The Waiting List Reality
Our model is built around the Housing Choice Voucher (Section 8) program — yet even families who qualify for a voucher often wait years, or never get the chance to apply at all.
Chance of being selected in Denver Housing Authority's annual voucher lottery.
Average wait for a voucher through Larimer County's housing authority.
Independent housing authorities statewide — and no central waiting list to join.
A typical waiting list may open only a few days per year — if it opens at all.
Demand for rental assistance vastly outstrips supply. Major authorities like the Denver Housing Authority run nearly all of their roughly 7,990 vouchers at full capacity — a new voucher only opens when a current household leaves the program. Most lists stay closed for the majority of the year.
For thousands of Colorado families, that means the help they qualify for simply isn't available. New affordable homes — not just new waitlists — are what close this gap.
The problem is sharpest in rural counties: even families who hold a Section 8 voucher often can't use it, because there aren't enough participating landlords or quality units to rent. That's the gap Romeo Foundation is built to close. Our communities are designed as voucher-ready housing — purpose-built homes that welcome Housing Choice Voucher families and give them a place to actually use the voucher they hold. In other words, we exist to help fill that waiting list: to move families off it and into stable homes. Beginning in the Pueblo area and expanding across rural Colorado — and, in time, nationwide.
Source: Colorado Division of Housing and public housing authority data via Affordable Housing Online (2024–2026).
What This Means for Families
For working Coloradans, these numbers translate into impossible choices. When rent climbs faster than wages, families double up, fall behind, or leave the communities where they work. Seniors on fixed incomes, people with disabilities, and parents rebuilding their lives are hit hardest — the very neighbors the Romeo Foundation exists to serve.
Among extremely low-income renters in Colorado, the overwhelming majority are cost-burdened, and most are severely cost-burdened — spending more than half of every paycheck just to keep a roof overhead. There simply are not enough affordable homes to go around, and the gap has been widening for two decades.
This is the need our model responds to: attainable, energy-efficient homes in self-sufficient communities designed to lower long-term living costs and give families a stable foundation — not just a place to live, but a place to thrive.
Lower-cost, efficient homes
Self-sufficient communities
Family stability at the core
Be Part of the Solution
The need is clear and measurable. With your partnership, we can turn these numbers into homes — starting with our first Colorado community.
Sources: Colorado State Demography Office (2023), National Low Income Housing Coalition — The Gap (2024), and U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development / USAFacts (2024). Figures are the most recent available and are cited as published.