Landlord repairs in Colorado

In every rental agreement the landlord warrants that the home is fit for human habitation at move-in and will be kept fit for the whole time the tenant lawfully lives there (C.R.S. § 38-12-503(1)). A home is uninhabitable if it has mold associated with dampness, substantially lacks any listed basic, or is otherwise unfit for habitation (§ 38-12-505(1)). Waivers are void (§ 38-12-503(10)). (Colo. Rev. Stat. §§ 38-12-503(1), 38-12-505(1) (as reenacted/amended by SB24-094))

Colorado law names these:

• functioning appliances the landlord provides, maintained in good working order
• waterproofing and weather protection of roof and exterior walls, including unbroken windows and doors
• plumbing and gas facilities in good working order
• running water at all times and enough hot water for ordinary cleanliness and health, connected to an approved sewage system
• functioning heating facilities
• electrical lighting, wiring and equipment in good working order
• clean, sanitary common areas
• extermination of rodents, vermin, pests and insects (including bed bugs)
• adequate exterior garbage receptacles, emptied at sufficient intervals
• floors, stairways, elevators and railings in good repair
• working locks on exterior doors and locks or security devices on openable windows
• compliance with building, housing and health codes where a violation materially interferes with life, health or safety
• freedom from mold associated with dampness

The landlord has notice when any writing gives a basis to know the condition exists, including the tenant's written notice sent the way the landlord usually communicates, written messages to maintenance staff or a maintenance portal, or a written notice from a government agency or third party (§ 38-12-503(3)(e)). 'Writing' includes e-mail and electronic portals (§ 38-12-502(11)). Notice given in any manner the lease or property rules allow is sufficient, and a lease that allows verbal notice waives the written-notice requirement (§ 38-12-503(3)(f)). Since Jan. 1, 2025 leases must list a mailing address and an e-mail address or portal for repair notices (§ 38-12-505(3)(d)). (Colo. Rev. Stat. §§ 38-12-502(11), 38-12-503(3)(e)–(f), 38-12-505(3)(d))

The notice must be in writing. Write a Colorado repair request letter.

After notice, the landlord must contact the tenant within 24 hours (§ 38-12-503(6)(a)) and begin remedial action within 24 hours for a condition that materially interferes with life, health or safety, or within 72 hours for other uninhabitable conditions, then continue until it is completely fixed within a reasonable time (§ 38-12-503(2)(b)). The landlord is presumed to have failed if the condition still exists 7 calendar days after notice (life, health or safety) or 14 calendar days after notice (other uninhabitable conditions) (§ 38-12-503(3)(a)). For mold or dampness, the landlord must contain the mold, stop active water sources and install HEPA filtration within 72 hours (§ 38-12-503(12)).

Urgent problems (24 hours): A condition that materially interferes with the tenant's life, health or safety; presumed for lack of weatherproofing, hazardous gas or electrical conditions, inadequate running or hot water, no working heat October through April, loss of electricity from poor maintenance, missing working exterior locks, failed plumbing or sewage, pest infestation, blocked fire exits, bad chimney or venting, or an inoperable elevator a disabled tenant needs (§ 38-12-505(4)).

Law: Colo. Rev. Stat. § 38-12-503(2)(b), (3)(a), (6)(a), (12)

Allowed with limits. After a breach, the tenant may deduct from one or more rent payments the cost of having a licensed or otherwise qualified professional (not a relative) fix the condition, if the tenant gives at least 10 days' advance written notice of the intent to hire one (only 48 hours' notice if the tenant believes in good faith that the condition materially interferes with life, health or safety), the landlord does not fix it in that time or fails to provide a required substitute unit or hotel room, the estimate is consistent with industry standards, and the tenant gives the landlord a receipt or invoice (§ 38-12-507(1)(c)(I)). A broken landlord-supplied appliance may be replaced with a comparable one and deducted after 3 days' written notice (§ 38-12-507(1)(c)(II)). The statute sets no dollar cap; a bad-faith deduction makes the tenant liable for double the amount.

Law:

Colo. Rev. Stat. § 38-12-507(1)(c)

Not addressed by state law. The statute does not authorize simply withholding rent; it provides repair-and-deduct and court remedies instead. A tenant sued for possession or rent may raise the breach as an affirmative defense; if proven, the court denies possession (conditioned on paying any rent found owed within 30 days), orders repairs, and reduces rent to the fair rental value, presumed to be $0 when the condition materially interferes with life, health or safety and 50% of rent otherwise (§ 38-12-507(2)(g), (3)). Under HB25-1240 (effective May 29, 2025), the landlord must reimburse the overpaid rent even if a housing subsidy paid part of it.

Law:

Colo. Rev. Stat. § 38-12-507(2)–(3); HB25-1240

Allowed. If the condition causing a breach stays unfixed, the tenant may end the lease without penalty by giving 10 to 60 days' written notice that names the condition, states the intent to terminate and move out, and gives a termination date at least 10 days after the notice (§ 38-12-507(1)(a)). If a fixed condition recurs within six months, the tenant may terminate with at least 10 days' written notice given within 30 days after it recurs (§ 38-12-507(1)(b)). The landlord and tenant may agree in writing to cancel the termination if repairs begin or finish before the date.

Law:

Colo. Rev. Stat. § 38-12-507(1)(a)–(b)

For a condition that materially interferes with life, health or safety, the landlord must, at the tenant's request and within 24 hours, provide a comparable unit or hotel room at no cost (within 5 miles, with kitchen or meal per diem after 48 hours); the tenant still owes rent (§ 38-12-503(4)). The tenant may sue for actual damages including reduced rental value, plus court costs, attorney's fees and punitive damages (§ 38-12-507(1)(d)), seek an injunction or specific performance (§ 38-12-507(1)(e)), or get an immediate temporary restraining order without posting security (§ 38-12-507(1)(f)). Landlords must keep repair records for 3 years after the tenancy and give them to the tenant within 10 days on request (§ 38-12-503(5)).

A landlord may not raise rent, decrease services, terminate or refuse to renew, bring or threaten an eviction, harass or intimidate, or charge fees because the tenant made a good-faith complaint about an uninhabitable or unsafe condition to the landlord, a nonprofit, a third party or a government agency, organized or joined a tenants' group, or used a § 38-12-507 remedy (§ 38-12-509(1)). The tenant need only show the protected activity was a motivating factor (§ 38-12-509(1.7)). The tenant recovers the greater of three months' rent or three times actual damages plus attorney's fees, and may end the lease (§ 38-12-509(2)). The statute sets no presumption period in the tenant's favor. (Colo. Rev. Stat. § 38-12-509 (as amended by SB24-094))

The Colorado Attorney General may sue or intervene against landlords engaged in a pattern or practice of violating the warranty-of-habitability law (C.R.S. § 38-12-512, added by SB24-094). Under SB25-020 (2025), counties and municipalities may also bring civil actions to enforce state landlord-tenant laws, including the habitability law (part 5), and the Attorney General or a county or municipality may ask a district court to appoint a receiver for a multifamily property whose landlord shows a pattern of neglect (C.R.S. § 38-12-513).

• Since Jan. 1, 2025, every lease must state in 12-point bold type that tenants are entitled to safe and healthy housing and that retaliation for reporting unsafe conditions or requesting repairs is illegal (§ 38-12-505(3)(c)).
• Landlords generally may not ban portable air conditioners or evaporative coolers except for code, safety, damage or electrical-capacity reasons (§ 38-12-505(7)).
• Conditions substantially caused by the tenant's household or guests are not a breach, except where caused by domestic violence, sexual assault or stalking the landlord knows of (§ 38-12-503(9)).
• Hazardous gas conditions must be fixed by a licensed professional (§ 38-12-503(14)). A landlord may not make the tenant file a renter's insurance claim for repairs the landlord must pay for (§ 38-12-503(13)).
• SB24-094 took effect on the governor's signature in May 2024 (safety clause) and applies to cases filed on or after its effective date.
• The Attorney General may seek a civil penalty of up to $20,000 per violation of the habitability law, counted separately for each tenant affected, and up to $10,000 per violation of a court order or injunction (§ 38-12-512(5)).
• SB24-094 removed from the eviction summons the rule that a tenant raising failure to repair as a defense to nonpayment must pay rent into the court registry when answering (§ 13-40-111(1)).

• Colorado repair request letter (free, runs in your browser)
• Breaking a lease in Colorado: notice periods and early-termination rights
• Colorado eviction notice rules: what a notice for unpaid rent requires

• SB24-094 Safe Housing for Residential Tenants, signed act (Colorado General Assembly) Retrieved October 14, 2026.
• SB24-094 bill page Retrieved October 14, 2026.
• HB19-1170 Residential Tenants Health and Safety Act, Session Laws 2019 ch. 229 Retrieved October 14, 2026.
• Colorado Legislative Council, 2025 Summary of Legislation: Housing and Landlord-Tenant (HB25-1240) Retrieved October 14, 2026.
• HB25-1240 enrolled bill Retrieved October 14, 2026.
• SB25-020 signed act (Colorado General Assembly) Retrieved October 14, 2026.

Laws change. This page was checked against the sources above on October 14, 2026. It is legal information, not legal advice; before withholding rent or ending a lease, contact your state's legal aid. See our methodology.