21 November 2014

Affordable housing should not be filled with defects

Prime Time for Condos: Today's Denver Business Journal presents a feature on Colorado's hot market for condominiums and other forms of affordable housing. In several stories, reporter Molly Armbrister discusses how high demand for apartments and low construction of new condominium projects have put a premium on existing property.

Addressing the argument that lawsuits have made builders reluctant to develop multifamily housing, she quotes The Witt Law Firm's Jesse Witt, who said that both homeowner and builder advocates would like to see changes to Colorado's existing statutes. Current laws do little to prevent defective work and often leave consumers no choice but to pursue claims in court or binding arbitration if they want a builder to correct code violations and other mistakes.

Witt explained that lawsuits are often lengthy and inconvenient for homeowners, and that the gap in affordable housing is not something that anyone wants. "We want more affordable housing, but we don't want affordable housing filled with defects," Witt said in the article.

The Journal also quoted Witt in a second article that summarized Colorado's existing statutes and anticipated legislation in 2015.

Subscribers can read the full articles by clicking here, and printed copies are available at local newsstands.