The Colorado Apartment Association Expresses Concern Regarding Denver City Council’s Proposed Procla

DENVER (April 13, 2020) – The Colorado Apartment Association has concerns about the Denver City
Council’s Proclamation No. 20-0350, set to be considered during tonight’s Denver City Council meeting.

“Colorado Apartment Association’s top concerns are the health and safety of our members and their
residents and employees, and we believe Proclamation No. 20-0350 could be positively modified to
ensure this shared objective,” said Mark Williams, executive vice president of CAA. “We are grateful that
members of the City Council took our input under advisement, but we worry the resolution as written
could further harm the rental housing industry. We understand this is a really challenging time for
everyone. For those residents who are able to pay rent, we ask that they do to ensure that financial
assistance is prioritized to help those in dire financial situations. It’s important to know that rent
payments go beyond just the mortgage payment, rent payments also are used for payroll, maintenance,
taxes, insurance, and continue operation of their rental facilities.”

To that end, CAA believes the proposed Denver City Council Proclamation No. 20-0350 could be
improved by addressing these specific issues:

• First, the Proclamation directs suggested relief to a broader group of people rather than
those directly suffering from income loss or disruption due to COVID-19 related closures. CAA
believes relief must be narrowly tailored to people who are in dire financial situations due to
coronavirus.

• Second, it calls for a waiver of obligations rather than a delay of those obligations. While the
Proclamation calls for mortgage relief as well, CAA wants to ensure those working in the
multifamily housing industry such as property managers, building engineers, janitors, among
others can continue to be employed.

• Third, this proposed proclamation puts the needs of one group over the needs of another. It
protects banks and renters while leaving rental housing providers, their employees, and their
suppliers vulnerable to property foreclosures.

• Finally, CAA is concerned with the lack of any specifics for the applicable effective timeframe,
such as the pendency of the Governor's Stay at Home order.

“The Denver City Council and CAA share a commitment to keeping Denver’s residents in their homes
and we hope to find future ways to collaborate to meet this critical objective,” continued Williams.
“Denver’s rental housing community is an important thread in the fabric of our neighborhoods.”
CAA represents over 3,100 members including housing providers who own and/or manage both small
and large properties. The CAA members own and manage over 506,000 rental units, including
approximately 75% of the rental units in Denver. Since its members are critical partners in providing
housing during the current COVID-19-related closures and economic upheaval, in late March, CAA
released the following recommendations for members to follow through April 30, 2020:

• Halt evictions
• Create payment plans for residents unable to pay rent
• Waive all late fees
• Refrain from engaging local sheriff departments for move-outs
• Avoid rent increases
• Shorten notice requirements and reduce lease break fees for residents needing to terminate
   leases due to coronavirus related job loss
• Incorporate language into rent demands informing residents of opportunities to defer rent
• Share the Colorado Housing Financial Assistance Programs and Apartment Association of Metro
   Denver’s list of resources for renters

Additional resources for both residents and housing providers can be found at the CAA/AAMD COVID-19
Resource Center: https://www.aamdhq.org/news/coronavirus.

About the Colorado Apartment Association
The Colorado Apartment Association (CAA) is a non-profit trade association representing owners,
developers, management companies, and vendors of the multifamily rental housing industry. CAA is
comprised of four local affiliates from across the state. The association represents over 3,100 members
who own and manage over 282,000 apartment homes, which totals more than $60 billion in assets.
Together with the local affiliates, the National Multifamily Housing Council, and the National Apartment
Association (NAA), CAA offers a strong network of information, education and representation of the
multifamily housing industry