How to Evict a Roommate in Colorado (and Other Household Situations)
What Colorado law says about roommates who are not on the lease, guests who won't leave, family members, renting a room in your own home, and tenancies at will — each with the statute or official source.
Short answer: A "tenant" is someone entitled under a written or oral rental agreement to occupy the unit. The definition also includes any member of the tenant's household and anyone with a right to occupy under law, the rental agreement or a separate agreement with the landlord, or who otherwise has explicit or implicit permission from the landlord to live there. So a roommate the landlord knows about and allows can have tenant rights even without signing the lease; whether a particular roommate qualifies depends on the facts. C.R.S. §§ 38-12-502(7), (9)
| Roommate not on the lease | A "tenant" is someone entitled under a written or oral rental agreement to occupy the unit. The definition also includes any member of the tenant's household and anyone with a right to occupy under law, the rental agreement or a separate agreement with the landlord, or who otherwise has explicit or implicit permission from the landlord to live there. So a roommate the landlord knows about and allows can have tenant rights even without signing the lease; whether a particular roommate qualifies depends on the facts. The for-cause eviction protections in part 13 do not apply to a tenant who is not known to the landlord to be a tenant (C.R.S. § 38-12-1302(1)(f)). Source: C.R.S. §§ 38-12-502(7), (9) |
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| Removing a roommate or subtenant | A tenant who sublets to a roommate is that roommate's "landlord" (the definition includes a sublessor), so the roommate must be removed through a county court eviction (forcible entry and detainer) case after proper written notice; removing or locking out a tenant without court process is unlawful. The for-cause eviction law does not apply where the master tenant lives in and maintains a single-family home, duplex or triplex as a primary residence, so in that case the regular notice periods apply (for example, 21 days for a month-to-month tenancy). Unlawful lockouts can bring statutory damages of actual damages plus the greater of three months' rent or $5,000 (C.R.S. § 38-12-510(2)). The master tenant's own lease may limit subletting. |
| Guests who won't leave | No statute sets a number of days after which a guest becomes a tenant. Anyone with the landlord's explicit or implicit permission to occupy the unit falls within the definition of "tenant." A separate fast court process ("verified motion" to remove unauthorized persons) applies only to people occupying a vacant home with no agreement, consent, payment or family relationship with the owner. Whether a long-term guest has become a tenant depends on the facts, such as payment of rent and the landlord's knowledge. |
| Removing a family member or partner | No statute sets a specific procedure for removing a family member or partner who lives in the home without a lease. The fast "unauthorized person" court process cannot be used against the owner's relatives (including a spouse, child, stepchild, parent, sibling, grandparent, uncle or aunt), anyone the owner accepted money from, or anyone previously given permission to be there; the regular court process for recovering possession is the forcible entry and detainer case. Which notice applies depends on whether the family member is treated as a tenant (for example, a tenant at will) or as a guest. Protection orders in domestic-violence cases are a separate court process. |
| Renting a room in your own home (lodgers) | No separate lodger statute. A person renting a room in a home the owner (or master tenant) lives in as a primary residence—a single-family home, with or without an ADU, a duplex or a triplex—is exempt from the for-cause eviction law, so the owner may end a periodic tenancy with the standard notice (for example, 21 days for month-to-month, 3 days for a tenancy at will) but must still go to court if the occupant does not leave. |
| Tenancy at will | Colorado recognizes tenancies at will and at sufferance; a tenant at will or sufferance who holds over after the tenancy ends commits unlawful detention. For premises not covered by the for-cause eviction law, a tenancy at will may be ended with at least 3 days' written notice that describes the property, states the termination date and is signed by the party giving it. For tenants covered by the for-cause law (generally after 12 months), the landlord needs a statutory cause to end the tenancy (C.R.S. § 38-12-1303). |
| Hotel and extended-stay guests | No statute in Colorado's landlord-tenant articles sets a number of days after which a hotel guest becomes a tenant. The for-cause eviction law excludes short-term rental property, meaning premises leased for less than 30 consecutive days for temporary, recreational, business or transient purposes. Whether a long-term motel resident is a tenant may depend on the facts and on court decisions. |
Never remove someone by changing the locks or taking their belongings: if the person has become a tenant, only a court can order them out. If there is violence or a threat, call 911 and ask about a protective order.
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Colorado eviction laws · Free legal help in Colorado · Roommate rules in other states
General legal information, not legal advice. Laws change and local rules can differ; check the linked official source or talk to a lawyer about your situation.