Purpose

The RFTA Housing Program provides below-market, short-term rental housing, primarily studio apartments, for eligible RFTA employees. The program supports employees who are new to the community or need temporary housing for up to five (5) years while transitioning to open-market housing. The program is intended as transitional rental housing only and does not include homeownership opportunities, ownership assistance, or long-term housing solutions.

Eligibility & Participation

To qualify for RFTA housing, employees must be full-time employees.

Employees may reside in RFTA housing for up to five (5) years (60 months). At the end of this period, employees are required to vacate their housing to ensure availability for new hires and less-tenured employees.

Short-term monthly extensions beyond the five-year period may be granted on a case-by-case basis, subject to availability and operational needs. Extensions are not guaranteed.

RFTA may maintain vacancy levels as necessary to accommodate maintenance, operational needs, or incoming employees.

Note: With respect to the Housing Lottery section below, additional eligibility requirements may apply for certain units. Employees must meet applicable APCHA guidelines for APCHA-owned and/or operated units (e.g., Burlingame Housing).

Employee Prioritization

RFTA prioritizes housing access based on organizational and workforce needs. Priority is generally given to:

• New employees
• Lower-income employees
• Mission-critical or hard-to-recruit positions

Employees with higher pay grades may be considered for short-term housing to assist with relocation or temporary personal circumstances, based on availability.

Housing Units

RFTA operates a mix of RFTA-owned and master-leased properties. These properties are overseen by a third-party property management company. The following list of properties and unit types are included in the housing program and subject to change at any time.

RFTA-owned properties include:

• Carbondale
  • Parker House – Two-Bedroom Units
  • Main Street – One- and Two-Bedroom Units
• Glenwood Springs
  • Iron Mountain Place – Studio Units

Master-leased properties include:

• Aspen
  • Burlingame – One Bedroom Units
• Glenwood Springs
  • Residence on Grand – Two-Bedroom and Studio Units
• Town of Snowmass Village
  • Snowmass Inn – Studio Unit

Housing Waitlist

RFTA maintains a housing waitlist for eligible employees seeking program housing. Placement on the waitlist does not guarantee a housing assignment or a specific unit type. Housing offers are based on availability at the time of assignment, and while preferences may be considered, they cannot be guaranteed.

Employees will be considered for housing as units become available, consistent with program priorities and operational needs.

Housing Lottery

When multiple eligible employees are seeking housing and units become available, RFTA may utilize a lottery process to ensure fairness and transparency in assignments. The lottery may be conducted among employees with similar priority levels, such as new hires or employees with comparable tenure.

Participation in the lottery does not guarantee housing placement. Final assignments are based on available inventory and operational needs.

Property Management

RFTA has contracted a property manager to oversee housing operations, including:

• License agreements
• Rent collection
• Maintenance requests
• Move-ins and move-outs

Employees will work directly with the property manager to pay rent and report issues or concerns regarding their housing.

License Agreement

Employees who wish to utilize employee housing are required to abide by all the rules set forth in a license agreement. The license agreement will be managed by the property management company.

Rent Payment & Security Deposit

Rent payments must be made in accordance with the property manager’s policies and procedures. Rent may be paid in multiple installments, provided full payment is received by the 7th of each month. If rent is not paid on time, late fees will be assessed.

Security deposits will carry over when an employee moves to another RFTA housing unit. If there is damage in the original unit, repair costs will be taken out of the deposit before it transfers. If the remaining deposit is less than the required amount for the new unit, the employee will need to pay the difference to bring the deposit up to the full required amount.

Relocation

At its sole discretion, RFTA may move employees to another employer-provided housing unit. RFTA will provide at least ten (10) calendar days’ written notice whenever possible and will give as much notice as practical under the circumstances.

Move-Out Guidelines

Upon termination of employment, employees must vacate RFTA housing within three (3) calendar days, consistent with license terms.

Employees who voluntarily leave employer-provided housing should give as much notice as possible, but must provide at least three (3) calendar days’ notice. Employees wishing to return to RFTA housing will be placed on the waitlist if no units are available.

Rent Increases

Rent may be increased once per year. Tenants will receive at least sixty (60) calendar days’ written notice before any rent increase takes effect. No more than one rent increase will occur in a twelve-month period.

Housing Resources & Assistance

RFTA provides the following guides available on the HUB at hub.rfta.com:

• Rental Advance Program Checklist
• Rental Resources Outside of RFTA Employee Housing