Eagle County relaunches its ‘Lease to Locals’ program, using a private firm to administer it

The Eagle County Housing and Development Authority has contracted with Truckee, California-based Placemate to market and administer the revamped “Lease to Locals” program, which has over $310,000 in funding in 2023 for grants to homeowners who participate. 

“Eagle County has been a leader in confronting the workforce housing challenge,” said Eagle County Commissioner Kathy Chandler-Henry. “Our Bold Housing Moves programs, along with partnerships with other entities, have started to move the scales in favor of affordable housing. We seek creative solutions and our Housing Department’s program that converts vacant homes to new rentals for locals is another innovative way Eagle County is confronting the housing crisis.” 

To qualify, properties must be located in Eagle County, and must not already have been rented long-term in the past 12 months. Additionally, properties are subject to an inspection and rent cap, which cannot exceed 100% of the area median income for Eagle County.   

Property owners have the opportunity to rent their properties to eligible households for seasonal leases lasting five months or more, or for long-term leases of 12 months or longer. To assist with the rental rates, a single payment stipend is provided, which varies depending on the number of bedrooms and the duration of the lease. For seasonal leases, the stipend falls within the range of $2,000 to $6,000, while for long-term leases, it ranges from $4,000 to $12,000.

An eligible household must have at least one household member working at least 30 hours a week in Eagle County or who has recently been hired by an employer in Eagle County. Exceptions can be made for disabled and retired individuals.

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“Housing in Eagle County is one of our community’s biggest challenges,” Eagle County Housing Department Director Kim Bell Williams said. “Our partnership with Placemate will bring more existing units into the year-round rental inventory. Our goal is to house more than 100 people with Lease to Locals.”  

Placemate brings experience and operational capacity in helping local governments with their housing needs through innovative programs. It runs similar Lease to Locals incentive programs across the country in four other mountain resort communities in California, Idaho, and Colorado, and has seen success with these programs. 

Tenants and property owners can learn more about the program and fill out online applications by visiting Placemate.com/EagleCo, calling Placemate at 970-470-8047, or emailing hello@placemate.com.