What a Landlord Cannot Do in Colorado
The main limits Colorado law puts on landlords — lockouts and utility shutoffs, entering without notice, retaliation, deposits, fees and discrimination — each with the statute or official source.
In short: a Colorado landlord cannot evict without a court order, cannot punish a tenant for asserting legal rights where state law protects them, and must follow the state's rules on entry, deposits and fees shown below.
| Lockouts & utility shutoffs | Unlawful for a landlord to remove or exclude a tenant without court process, including by willfully cutting utilities or removing doors, windows, or locks. Exceptions are abandonment, mutual consent, and meth-lab cleanup rules. The tenant is awarded statutory damages equal to actual damages plus the higher of three times monthly rent or $5,000, plus attorney fees and costs, and the court may restore possession. The damages amount was increased by SB 24-094, effective for actions filed on or after May 3, 2024. Source: C.R.S. § 38-12-510 |
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| Landlord entry notice | No general statute on landlord entry or advance notice. For habitability repairs, the landlord must give at least 24 hours' written notice of entry, stating the date, time, and expected duration, unless the condition imminently threatens life, health, or safety or threatens substantial property damage. The tenant may reasonably deny a requested time, and the parties then agree on an alternative. Source: C.R.S. § 38-12-503(6) |
| Landlord retaliation | A landlord may not retaliate (raise rent, cut services, end or not renew the lease, bring or threaten eviction, harass, or charge fees) because the tenant made a good-faith complaint about a habitability condition to the landlord, a nonprofit, or a government agency; joined or organized a tenants' association; or used habitability remedies. The tenant need only show that the protected activity was a motivating factor. Remedies: the greater of three months' rent or three times actual damages, plus attorney fees. The tenant may also terminate the lease and raise retaliation as a defense to eviction. The statute sets no presumption period. Last amended by HB 24-1098 and SB 24-094 (2024). A separate rule bars retaliatory rent increases against tenants covered by Part 13 (§ 38-12-1307). Source: C.R.S. § 38-12-509 |
| Security deposit limit | Two monthly rent payments. A separate pet deposit may be no more than $300 and must be refundable. Monthly pet rent may be no more than the greater of $35 or 1.5% of monthly rent. The deposit cap was added by SB 23-184, effective August 7, 2023. Pet limits were added by HB 23-1068, effective January 1, 2024. Source: C.R.S. §§ 38-12-102.5, 38-12-106 |
| Penalty for withholding | Treble (three times) the amount wrongfully withheld, plus reasonable attorney fees and court costs. The tenant must first send a demand and notice of intent to sue at least 7 days before filing, and may sue only if the landlord does not return the money within those 7 days. Keeping 125% or more of actual damages is presumed bad faith, and the landlord bears the burden of proof. Before HB 25-1249, treble damages required 'willful' retention. The standard is now 'wrongful' retention, effective January 1, 2026. |
| Late fees | No late fee until rent is at least 7 calendar days late. The fee may not exceed the greater of $50 or 5% of the past-due rent, and it must be disclosed in the lease. The landlord may not evict for unpaid late fees, charge interest on late fees, or take late fees out of rent payments. Late-fee notice must be given within 180 days. Added by SB 21-173, effective October 1, 2021. Penalty is $50 per violation. If the landlord does not cure within 7 days of notice, the tenant may recover $150 to $1,000 per violation plus damages and attorney fees. Source: C.R.S. § 38-12-105 |
| Rent control / increase limits | Local rent control is preempted. No county or municipality may enact an ordinance or resolution controlling rent on private residential property, except voluntary agreements or deed restrictions with a permit applicant or owner for affordable housing. There is no statewide rent cap. Source: C.R.S. § 38-12-301 |
| Statewide ban on refusing Section 8 / source of income | Yes. Colorado's fair housing law bars refusing to rent, setting different terms, using discriminatory ads, or falsely saying a unit is unavailable because of a person's source of income. Source of income means any lawful, verifiable source of money, including wages and any government or private assistance, grant, or loan program such as housing vouchers. Landlords may still check credit if they check every applicant. Exemptions: landlords with three or fewer rental units are exempt from the source-of-income provisions. A landlord with five or fewer single-family rental homes (and no more than five total units) need not accept federal housing choice vouchers for those homes. Applying the income-screening limits in § 38-12-904(1)(c)-(d) is also a source-of-income violation. Since May 29, 2025, it is also an unfair housing practice for a landlord to fail to make reasonable efforts to respond on time to requests for information and documents needed for a tenant's rental-assistance application, or to fail to cooperate in good faith with a tenant applying for rental assistance. If a court finds discrimination based on a tenant's use of a housing subsidy, it must award at least $5,000 in damages, and actual damages must account for a subsidy the tenant lost because of the discrimination. Added by HB 20-1332. Complaints go to the Colorado Civil Rights Division (Title 24, Article 34, Parts 3 and 5). Text is from the CRS 2024 printout. Rental-assistance cooperation duty and $5,000 minimum award: HB 25-1240 (2025 Sess. Laws ch. 291, effective May 29, 2025), https://leg.colorado.gov/bill_files/84209/download. |
| Cameras & privacy | No landlord-specific statute. Knowingly observing or photographing (including video or live feed) another person's intimate parts without consent where they reasonably expect privacy is criminal invasion of privacy (class 2 misdemeanor). Overhearing or recording a conversation without the consent of at least one party is eavesdropping (class 2 misdemeanor). Colorado's landlord-tenant statutes set no general notice-of-entry rule except for bed-bug inspections; leases usually govern entry. Source: C.R.S. §§ 18-7-801, 18-9-304 |
| Other rental fees | Since January 1, 2026, rent advertisements and offers must show the total price, meaning all mandatory fees, as one number that is more prominent than any other price information. Landlords may not misrepresent fees and must disclose the nature, refundability, and recipient of any optional charges. The cost of separately billed utilities need not be included. Landlords may not charge tenants for: utilities above what the provider bills for the unit; fees that rise more than 2% during a lease of one year or less (except utilities); property taxes; payment processing, unless a free payment method is reasonably available; late fees on anything other than rent; anything needed to meet the landlord's own duties, including habitability; anything not actually provided; or common-area maintenance. Leases may not pass through a markup on third-party services greater than 2% of the bill or $10 a month (not both). A violation is a deceptive trade practice. If a written demand goes unpaid for 14 days, the tenant can recover actual damages plus 18% annual interest. Since March 26, 2026, a landlord may divide a building's utility bill among tenants with a ratio utility billing system (RUBS) only if the total billed to all tenants does not exceed what the utility charges for the whole premises, no markup, surcharge or administrative fee is added, common-area and shared-facility utility costs are left out, and the allocation method is clearly disclosed in the lease or a lease addendum. For residential buildings with permits applied for on or after July 1, 2027, gas, electric and water service must be metered by the utility or by a submeter. HB 25-1090 (2025 Sess. Laws ch. 94) was signed April 21, 2025 and took effect January 1, 2026 (bill page https://leg.colorado.gov/bills/hb25-1090). Ratio utility billing rule: HB 26-1013 (2026 Sess. Laws ch. 11, signed and effective March 26, 2026), https://leg.colorado.gov/bill_files/113380/download (bill page https://leg.colorado.gov/bills/hb26-1013). |
Can I sue my landlord in Colorado? · All Colorado tenant rights
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.