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56 acquisition and preparation expenses. The following quote is indicative of the problem: In these years Craig has been transformed from a quiet ranching community to a bustling boom town, the product of energy development. The town is sprawling in every direction, with developments filled with mobile homes, campers and, in a few instances, tents. Housing prices have soared. The demand for housing has pushed up the prices for existing or new sites. Price becomes no ob- ject in dealing for a site home. As a result, local real estate agents are busy hustling their neighbors, trying to get them to sell their two- and three-bedroom homes worth about $15,000 a few years ago for prices in excess of $50,000.* One possible way to solve a portion of this problem is for local munici- palities or. housing agencies (perhaps in collaboration with energy devel- opers) to purchase and hold vacant land for future housing needs. Reason- able site acquisition costs can mean the difference between an economic- ally feasible project and one that is not. Another approach that would help in meeting housing demands is for local financial institutions to become more familiar with secondary sources of mortgage and construction funds. The Savings League of Colorado has ex- cellent resources for assisting in this area and has expressed a willing- ness to cooperate. The Colorado Housing Finance Authority, a quasi-public body established by the Colorado Legislature, can also assist in making alternative sources of financing available by adapting their lending re- quirements to better fit the local lending institutions. Experienced developers and builders have been encouraged to work with less experienced, smaller scale operators in several traditional public housing projects in the state. The results of these cooperative projects have been good. Housing officials in the Denver Metropolitan Area, both in the private and public sector, believe that such cooperative ventures can be utilized successfully in many energy impacted situations. *Rocky Mountain News, "Boom Town Problems Cast Pall on Craig," Septem- ber 19, 1976.