The Denver housing boom in residential construction may be related to a recovery in that section of Colorado’s construction industry. However, some sources speculate that the significant uptick in home construction in the city may be in response to Colorado’s recently passed recreational marijuana laws.
McGraw Hill Construction, a leading news and data provider for the construction industry, reports that the value of residential construction starts in Colorado nearly doubled in the period between 2009 and 2013. New construction represents an increase from $7.9 billion in 2009 to $14.2 billion in 2013, reported Howard Pankratz in a March 5, 2014, article in the Denver Post.
In the Denver metropolitan area itself, residential starts increased a substantial 146 percent in the same period, from $2.8 billion in 2009 to $6.9 billion in 2013, Pankratz reported.
Multifamily housing was the most plentiful of the new starts, with single-family housing coming in second in the residential market, Pankratz noted.
Some of Pankratz’s sources suggested that the construction on the city’s RTD light-rail system is a major factor in the housing increase. Others, however, think the freer lifestyle allowed by Colorado’s recreational marijuana laws may be responsible for the apparent rush toward new housing in Denver.
In a January 8, 2014, article on the CBS4 Denver website, Denver area realtor Bob Costello said he’s noticed a significant increase in inquiries and new customer leads in Denver. Residential inquiries are coming in from as far away as the East Coast, with other contacts originating in the Midwest.
Both people who want to enjoy a lifestyle unafraid of the stricter marijuana laws in other parts of the country, as well as individuals who are looking for a way to make money off the easier access to marijuana, are looking to take up residence in Denver, Costello suggested.
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