DJ Summers

Director of Policy and Research at Common Sense Institute Colorado

Director of Policy and Research @csinstituteco

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Articles

Guest opinion: DJ Summers: Credit card rewards programs are at risk

Jun 13, 2024 | dailycamera.com | DJ Summers

By DJ SummersDenver is home to the sixth busiest airport in the world. People from across the world fly into Colorado to enjoy our beautiful state. And Coloradans across the state are busy making travel plans to either visit far-away loved ones or go on well-deserved vacations. But all that traveling could soon get much more expensive.
The cost of juvenile crime

Mar 10, 2024 | gazette.com | Paul Pazen |DJ Summers

A recent story in Forbes ranked Colorado No. 4 on the list of least safe states. This is not the kind of ranking our state needs to attract a workforce, create jobs and make Colorado the best place to live. A quick headline scan deepens the narrative — fatal shootings, assault, property theft, and a fatal hit and run just to name a few. This isn’t only scary, but costly.
PERSPECTIVE: The cost of juvenile crime

Mar 10, 2024 | denvergazette.com | Paul Pazen |DJ Summers

A recent story in Forbes ranked Colorado No. 4 on the list of least safe states. This is not the kind of ranking our state needs to attract a workforce, create jobs and make Colorado the best place to live. A quick headline scan deepens the narrative — fatal shootings, assault, property theft, and a fatal hit and run just to name a few. This isn’t only scary, but costly.
Denver metro adding more apartments than most US cities

Aug 28, 2023 | kdvr.com | DJ Summers

DENVER (KDVR) — The Denver metro is cranking out more apartments than most U.S. metros, according to a new report. As a chronic housing shortage plagues the U.S., some cities have seen massive booms in apartment construction to fill demand. According to a new RentCafe report, these apartments are largely for the well-to-do renters in a handful of U.S. metro areas.
Denver's newly built housing stock lags behind US

Aug 24, 2023 | kdvr.com | DJ Summers

DENVER (KDVR) — Denver is lagging behind the national average when it comes to newly built homes on the housing market. According to a Redfin report, a record share of the U.S. housing market is comprised of newly built homes responding to a surge in demand in the early 2020s. These homes are the only thing keeping the market above water. “Newly built homes made up nearly one-third (31.4%) of U.S. single-family homes on the market in the second quarter,” reads the report.
Colorado households have some of the nation’s highest debt

Aug 23, 2023 | kdvr.com | DJ Summers

DENVER (KDVR) — Coloradans have good credit, but they pay for it. Economic and social disruptions aside, there were some benefits U.S. households reaped from the COVID-19 pandemic. Stimulus checks and other financial relief racked up in 2020 and 2021, increasing the level of household savings and debt repayment. A new study of financial data by Upgraded Points shows that delinquencies on loans decreased during the pandemic.
Colorado's back to school crashes spiked since 2018

Aug 23, 2023 | kdvr.com | DJ Summers

DENVER (KDVR) — Roads have gotten deadlier in the 2020s and back-to-school season is no exception. Over the last decade, traffic deaths in Colorado have been on the rise, and state officials are making it a priority to take action to reverse this trend. Colorado lost nearly 750 lives to traffic fatalities in 2022. This is the most roadway deaths in the state since 1981.
Data shows rent in Denver suburbs grew more than in city limits

Aug 22, 2023 | kdvr.com | DJ Summers

DENVER (KDVR) — The Denver metro’s high housing expense isn’t just in the city itself. Area suburbs rose in price even higher than the city proper through the pandemic’s disruptive years. Traditionally, rent has been cheaper in suburbs. Crucially in an age of crushing housing expenses, that is less and less the case. ApartmentList analyzed the rent growth between July 2020 and July 2022.
Map: How much of Denver’s city center is parking lots?

Aug 22, 2023 | kdvr.com | DJ Summers

DENVER (KDVR) — Denver may have a reputation for being car-centric, but a new study says it has a lower share of city land devoted to parking than most U.S. cities. Parking Reform Network published maps of the parking lot coverage in the cores of 86 U.S. cities, part of an overall effort to inform people about the impact of parking on climate change, housing and traffic. The mission tracks with local concerns.
Colorado Health Foundation: Cost of living, homelessness still top concerns

Aug 22, 2023 | kdvr.com | DJ Summers

DENVER (KDVR) — Coloradans continue to hold cost of living and homelessness as the state’s most serious problems, according to a new survey. The Fourth Annual Pulse Poll commissioned by The Colorado Health Foundation (CHF) was released on Monday. A bipartisan team of researchers collected responses from 2,639 adults between April 8 – May 3, 2023. Economic concerns have topped the list for four years, and 2023 is no exception.