The Colorado steps, in one paragraph
Colorado sets the case. You serve a 10-day demand, go to mediation first if the tenant receives SSI, SSDI or Colorado Works cash assistance, and file once the demand runs. The summons sets an appearance 7 to 14 days out, the tenant can cure by paying everything owed until judgment for possession, the writ can issue 48 hours after judgment and the sheriff can’t carry it out until 10 days after judgment. Our Colorado eviction process guide walks through each of those rules. Colorado also bars local rent control, so Denver has no rent cap. The rest of this page is what Denver adds.
Denver County Court is not like other Colorado county courts
Denver evictions are filed in Denver County Court, which describes itself as both a municipal and a state court. Its judges are appointed by the Mayor of Denver, and the court runs its own systems instead of the state’s. It hears forcible entry and detainer cases for residential, mobile home and commercial property, plus money claims up to $25,000.
That matters on filing day. Attorneys e-file through the court’s own platform, DCC eFile, and cases are looked up through the court’s public portal. Landlords without a lawyer file in person at the Clerk’s Office in the City and County Building at 1437 Bannock Street, where civil fees are paid by case type. The court’s Self Help Center is in Room 281 of the same building and helps people without a lawyer with forms and procedure.
- Where to file: Denver County Court Clerk’s Office, City and County Building, 1437 Bannock Street
- Attorney filing: DCC eFile, the court’s own system
- Case lookup: the Denver County Court public portal
- Self-help: Room 281, shared with the District and Probate self-help centers
- Case type: forcible entry and detainer (FED)
Denver’s residential rental license
Anyone who offers, provides or operates a residential rental in Denver for 30 days or more needs a residential rental property license. If you don’t have one, you can’t legally rent the unit, and the city treats a property as unlicensed until the license issues. Fines and citations under DRMC 27-203 range from $150 to $5,000, and an unlicensed property cited for a housing code violation faces a $250 fine on the first citation.
Licenses last four years. The application fee is $50, plus a license fee based on the number of units. A third-party inspector checks minimum health and safety standards, and for a multiunit property the inspector must randomly choose at least 10% of the units, or one unit in a building with fewer than 10. The license must be displayed.
One rule hits sellers and buyers directly. Denver rental licenses are not transferable. When ownership changes, the new owner needs a new license, and until it issues the property is unlicensed. Build the inspection and application into any closing timeline.
The tenant rights notice and written lease rules
Under DRMC 27-201 and C.R.S. 13-40-104, Denver landlords must give the city’s current Tenant Rights and Resources notice when they hand over a signed lease and any time they make a rent demand. In practice, that means the notice goes out with every 10-day demand. It’s published by the Department of Housing Stability in English and Spanish, and tenants can complain anonymously if they didn’t receive it.
Since January 1, 2022, a tenant can’t start an occupancy of more than 30 days until both sides sign a written lease and the tenant has a copy. You must provide an electronic copy within seven days of the tenant signing, or paper if the tenant asks. The city warns there are penalties for noncompliance, so keep proof that each notice went out.
Free eviction defense for Denver tenants
Denver’s Department of Housing Stability funds free legal services for households at or below 80% of the area median income that are facing eviction. The program came out of an ordinance the City Council passed in 2021, and the city lists several providers, including the Colorado Poverty Law Project, the COVID-19 Eviction Defense Project, Colorado Affordable Legal Services and Colorado Legal Services.
The city also runs a free eviction clinic in Room 163 of the City and County Building, weekday mornings from 8 a.m. to noon. For landlords, the practical effect is the same as in any right-to-counsel city. Expect a represented tenant to check the demand, the SSI mediation question, the cure amount and your license and notice compliance.
How the Denver Sheriff carries out a writ
Once the court issues the writ of restitution, take it to the Denver Sheriff Department Civil Unit at 201 West Colfax Avenue and pay the fee. A deputy posts an Eviction Scheduled Notice at the property, tries to contact the tenant and calls you to set a date and time by mutual convenience. Evictions happen between sunrise and sunset, and the writ is good for 49 days.
If the tenant moves out first, call the assigned deputy by 4 p.m. on the prior business day to cancel, or you forfeit the service fees. When the eviction falls on a Monday or the day after a holiday, that deadline moves back to the business day before.
Eviction day in Denver: crew, time limit and cancellations
You or a representative with full authority must be there, or the eviction is cancelled. It is also cancelled if you don’t have enough people and equipment to remove and hold the property. A first cancellation can be rescheduled inside the 49 days, but a second one isn’t rescheduled and the fees are gone.
Nothing gets touched until the deputy arrives and gives permission. All belongings must come out within two hours, at your expense and with reasonable care, and some sites need a roll-off dumpster so the property doesn’t block the public right-of-way. Animals and hazards such as firearms or drugs are impounded, and business records with personal information stay in the building. You have no duty to store what comes out, and a landlord who follows the deputy’s lawful directions is immune from liability.
| Unit size | Approximate movers | Bring |
|---|---|---|
| One-bedroom | About 4 | More for upper floors |
| Two-bedroom | About 6 | Bags, boxes, tools |
| Four or five bedrooms | 10 to 14 | Locksmith to enter and re-key |
| Commercial space | More as needed | Possible roll-off dumpster |
Denver eviction timeline at a glance
This is the fastest path for a nonpayment case with no mediation requirement, no answer and no appeal.
| Step | Deadline | Rule |
|---|---|---|
| 10-day demand plus Denver tenant rights notice | 10 days | C.R.S. 13-40-104; DRMC 27-201 |
| File FED in Denver County Court | After the demand runs | C.R.S. 13-40-110 |
| Appearance date on summons | 7 to 14 days after issuance | C.R.S. 13-40-111 |
| Tenant can cure by paying in full | Until judgment for possession | C.R.S. 13-40-115(4) |
| Writ of restitution issues | 48 hours after judgment | C.R.S. 13-40-122 |
| Earliest Sheriff execution | 10 days after judgment | C.R.S. 13-40-122 |
| Cancel if the tenant leaves | 4 p.m. prior business day | Denver Sheriff rules |
| Writ expires | 49 days after issuance | C.R.S. 13-40-115(3) |
Worked example: a $1,750 two-bedroom in a 12-unit Denver building
Assume a two-bedroom in a licensed 12-unit Denver building rents for $1,750 a month, or $57.53 a day. The tenant misses rent due on day 0, doesn’t receive SSI, SSDI or Colorado Works, and never answers. Assume $1,200 for an attorney and $600 for a six-person crew, which matches the Sheriff’s guide for a two-bedroom.
You serve the demand and the Denver tenant rights notice on day 1. The demand runs through day 11, you file on day 12, and the summons sets the appearance 7 days out, on day 19. Default judgment for possession enters at the close of business that day, the writ issues 48 hours later on day 21 and the earliest the Sheriff can act is day 29.
Those 29 days cost $1,668 in lost rent, and the full minimum is $3,468 with the attorney and crew. Every day the Sheriff’s calendar adds costs another $57.53, and a second cancellation for a short crew would mean starting the writ process over.
| Item | Days or rate | Cost |
|---|---|---|
| Daily rent at $1,750 a month | $57.53 a day | |
| Lost rent, due date to earliest execution | 29 days | $1,668 |
| Assumed attorney fee | $1,200 | |
| Assumed six-person crew | $600 | |
| Total, minimum Denver path | $3,468 |
Alternatives before you file in Denver
Because the tenant can cure until judgment, a payment plan negotiated before filing often gets you to the same place without the court fees. Denver also points tenants to rent and utility help through its rent help line, which can close a gap faster than a writ.
Cash for keys trades the Sheriff’s schedule, the two-hour removal and the crew bill for a signed move-out date. Pay only when the keys come back, and include a mutual release.
Selling a Denver apartment building with tenants in place
A pending case can move with the building, but the license can’t. Because Denver rental licenses aren’t transferable, the buyer will need its own license, so share your last inspection report, the unit count on the license and any housing code citations. Expect requests for the written leases, proof that each tenant rights notice was delivered, the court file for any open FED and tenant estoppel certificates.
Skyline Capital Investments buys apartment buildings with five or more units in Denver and across Colorado, occupied and in any condition, including buildings with problem tenants or cases in Denver County Court. Send the address and unit count through the form on this page or call (469) 660-2977. We typically respond within 48 hours.
