The 2019 Colorado Legislature has concluded, and the new laws include two affecting most Colorado landlords. These new laws are:
HB 19-1118 extends the time that most landlords must give residential tenants to cure rent defaults and other lease violations from three to ten days. Once signed in to law, this bill will require that demands for possession or compliance to most residential tenants allow ten days, up from three, for compliance before the landlord can file an eviction lawsuit. However, the ten day time period does not apply to non-residential (i.e. commercial) leases or to employer-provided housing, and a three day demand for possession or compliance will still be allowed in such situations. Additionally, the ten day time period is shortened to five days for landlords who lease five or fewer single family rental homes and provide written notice in their leases that the ten day time period does not apply.
Essentially, HB 19-1118 will require most residential landlords to give ten days when delivering a demand for possession or compliance, however small landlords who properly update their leases will be able to to give five days instead.
HB 19-1106 limits rental application fees to the costs actually incurred by a landlord, and also prohibits landlords from considering rental or credit history older than seven years from the time of an application. It also prohibits landlords from considering most criminal arrests and convictions older than five years, however contains exceptions for certain methamphetamine offenses, sex offenses, and homicide. Additionally, HB 19-1106 requires that landlords disclose their reasons for denying rental applications, and creates a private civil cause of action for prospective tenants to recover rental application fees and penalties in the event of a violation.
The 2019 Colorado Legislature also considered other bills with a more narrow application to landlords, including HB19-1170 (concerning the warranty of habitability) and HB19-1309 (concerning mobile home park lot rentals).