Colorado 5 Day Notice to Pay or Quit

A Colorado 5 Day Notice To Quit is a letter that complies with state legal requirements to begin eviction against a tenant for nonpayment of rent, when the landlord owns five (5) or fewer rental properties. The tenant must pay the balance due, or else move out within five (5) calendar days of receiving notice.

When To Use a Colorado 5 Day Notice To Quit

A Colorado 5 Day Notice To Quit begins the eviction process for nonpayment of rent, when the landlord owns five (5) or fewer rental properties. A landlord may deliver this notice when any portion of the rent remains unpaid the day after it’s normally due.

Some types of Colorado lease termination notice may allow different reasons for termination, or different notice periods. This may also apply to an eviction notice issued because of a lease or legal violation.

warning

Colorado courts have specified that a tenant covered by the federal Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act is entitled to a minimum 30 days of advance notice before a landlord can file for eviction. This applies even after the act’s other protections have expired.

How To Write a Colorado 5 Day Notice To Quit

To help ensure the legal compliance of a Notice To Quit:

Use the full name of the receiving parties, and address of record, if known
Specify the basis upon which the tenancy will terminate, and the payment amount required to avoid termination
Specify the termination date of the lease or tenancy
Fill in the full address of the rental premises
Provide updated/current address and phone number information
Print name and sign the notice
Complete the certificate of service by indicating the date and method of notice delivery, along with printed name and signature

It is easy to lose an otherwise justified legal action because of improper notice. Check carefully to ensure enough time after notice is delivered, not when it’s sent.

How To Serve a Colorado 5 Day Notice To Quit

Colorado landlords may deliver an initial Notice To Quit using any of these methods:

Hand delivery to the tenant
Hand delivery to a person over age 15 on the premises who can accept the notice on behalf of the tenant
Only if all forms of hand delivery fail: Posting the notice in a conspicuous place on the premises, such as the entry door

note

In almost all cases, notice is legally served when it is received by the other party, NOT when it’s sent. Check specified date of termination carefully to ensure compliance with the legal requirements for a notice period.

Sources

1 Colorado HB19-1118: For an exempt residential agreement, meaning for the lease of a single family home by a landlord who owns 5 or fewer single family rental homes, 5 days notice is required.
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2 Arvada Vill. Gardens L.P. v. Garate, No. 23SA34, 9 (Colo. 2023): “A landlord of a property covered by the CARES Act must give thirty days’ notice before filing for FED [i.e., eviction] in Colorado.”
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3 Colo. Rev. Stat. § 13-40-108: A notice to quit or demand for possession of real property may be served by delivering a copy thereof to the tenant or other person occupying such premises, or by leaving such copy with some person, a member of the tenant’s family above the age of fifteen years, residing on or in charge of the premises, or, in case no one is on the premises at the time service is attempted, by posting such copy in some conspicuous place on the premises.

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