Colorado Landlord-Tenant Law, In Plain Language
If you’re a landlord thinking about selling, understanding your legal obligations to a current tenant is usually step one. Here’s how Colorado’s rules actually work.
The Short Version
Colorado passed a “just cause” law in 2024 (HB24-1098) that changed things significantly: landlords can no longer simply decide not to renew a lease or end a month-to-month tenancy without a legally qualifying reason. On top of that, self-help evictions — changing locks, shutting off utilities, removing belongings — are illegal. Everything has to go through the court process.
How it actually works
- Ending a tenancy now requires “just cause” – Since HB24-1098, landlords need a qualifying reason to end a tenancy — non-payment of rent, a material lease violation, substantial property damage, criminal activity, or owner move-in under specific conditions. “I want to sell the property” isn’t automatically one of them, so this is worth understanding early if a sale is the goal.
- Notice requirements depend on the reason
- Non-payment of rent: a 10-Day Notice to Pay or Quit
- A curable lease violation (like an unauthorized pet): a 10-Day Notice to Cure or Quit
- Serious or repeat violations, or illegal activity: a 3-Day Notice to Vacate, with no opportunity to fix it
- Ending a month-to-month tenancy for cause: 21 days’ written notice
- If the tenant doesn’t leave, it goes to court – Colorado evictions run through the county court as a Forcible Entry and Detainer (FED) case. Hearings are typically scheduled 7 to 14 days after the tenant is served. Only after a judge issues a Writ of Restitution can the county sheriff actually remove someone — landlords can’t do this themselves under any circumstances.
- Property left behind – If it does get to that point, landlords have to store any belongings a tenant leaves behind for at least 15 days and provide written notice before disposing of anything.
What this means if you're ready to sell
A lot of landlords selling a rental assume they can just ask the tenant to leave once they’ve decided to sell. In Colorado, that’s usually not how it works anymore — and starting the legal process without understanding it can slow things down more than it needs to. In many cases, selling with the tenant still in place (to another investor, for example) is actually faster than trying to end the tenancy first. Worth knowing before you decide which direction to go.
A note on this information
This is general information about Colorado’s landlord-tenant law — not legal advice for your specific lease or tenant situation. Rules can vary based on your lease terms, your tenant’s history, and local jurisdiction requirements. A landlord-tenant attorney can tell you exactly where you stand.
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See also: Tired Landlord — how Chinook Home can help.