In court-decided eviction outcomes for Denver, CO, tenants prevail in roughly 62.0% of contested cases. A higher number means landlords face stronger tenant defenses, longer calendars, and more required documentation, and landlord-friendliness drops as this rises.
Timeline
98d
filing → judgment
From the moment an unlawful-detainer notice is filed in Denver, CO until a money judgment is entered, a contested eviction takes about 98 days on average. Longer timelines mean more lost rent and higher carry costs for landlords.
Cost range
$4.9–12.3k
legal + lost rent
A typical eviction in Denver, CO costs landlords $4,938 to $12,307 all-in, covering court filing fees, process-server costs, attorney time, and lost rent during the calendar between filing and possession.
Average rent
$1,831
29% stretched on rent
Average gross rent in Denver, CO is $1,831 per month per the U.S. Census American Community Survey (5-year 2023). 29% of renter households here spend more than 30% of pre-tax income on rent, the federal cost-burden threshold.
Renters
51.2%
of households
51.2% of occupied housing units in Denver, CO are renter-occupied (vs owner-occupied). A higher renter share usually correlates with more eviction filings, more turnover, and a more active rental market.
Poverty
11.2%
4.6% unemp.
11.2% of Denver, CO residents live below the federal poverty line, and unemployment runs at 4.6%. Both feed into the economic-stress sub-score in our Eviction Risk Score model because rent payment problems track poverty + joblessness more reliably than any other single signal.
Time machine
Scrub 50 years
197619861996200620162026
2026
● LIVE · today◀ REPLAY · historical
Nine-axis profile
9-axis profile · today
Shape of the risk surface
1 landlord · 10 tenant
Sub-scores · with sparkline
Where the score comes from
1 → 10 scale
Local political climate
Dem margin +56.1% (2024)
9.0
Regional political climate
County-weighted neighbor mix
7.5
State political climate
Colorado legislature & governorship
6.5
Economic stress
11.2% poverty · 4.6% unemp.
5.5
Supply constraint
$1,831 average · 51.2% renters
7.0
Rent Control risk
29.2% of income on rent
7.0
Eviction process difficulty
98 days filing → judgment
8.5
Tenant organizing strength
51.2% renters
8.0
Housing court bias
County bench composition
7.5
Geographic context
Risk heat across Denver and the region
Click any city to see its score
How Denver compares
Risk score vs. peers, county, state, and the U.S.
Rank in Denver County
Very High
#1of 6 cities
#1 of 6 cities in Denver County for landlord eviction risk.
Rank in Colorado
Very High
#2of 479 cities
#2 of 479 cities in Colorado for landlord eviction risk.
vs. county · state · U.S.
Score story
Six-stop tour of the risk profile
5.7
/ 10 · ELEVATED
The verdict
A Elevated-tier market.
Composite 5.7/10. Mid-range market; standard documentation usually wins. The 50-year curve shows a sharp climb.
50-yr trend+3.7 over 50 yr
197620012026
Steepening since 2010 · COVID inflection visible
98d
Typical timeline
The money
What renting (and evicting) looks like.
Rent published at $1,831/mo. A contested eviction takes 98 days and costs $4,938–$12,307 per case.
50-yr trendCalendar drag rising since '15
197620012026
Court-clerk data lands in the next release.
51.2%
Renters
The renters
Who you'll be renting to.
Out of 718,877 residents, 51.2% rent. 29% are spending 30%+ income on rent, 11.2% below the poverty line.
50-yr trendRenter share rising
197620012026
ACS 1970-present · once the migration overlay is in.
8.3
Local + regional
The politics
Strong-tenant coastal market.
Local & regional political climate score 9 and 7.5 (Dem margin +56.1% (2024)). State climate at 6.5, a mid-range statehouse.
50-yr trendTracks county vote margin
197620012026
Built on 50-yr presidential margins back to 1976.
6.5
State politics
The process
Moderate calendar, moderate friction.
State political climate 6.5/10 sets the legislative ceiling for landlord remedies, and it shows up in the process. Eviction process difficulty reads 8.5, housing court bias 7.5, rent-control risk 7. Standard process speed for the state.
50-yr trendProcess difficulty +3.5 since '00
197620012026
Court-clerk data lands in the next release.
5.5
Economic stress
The stress
Economic pressure is the background risk.
Economic stress: 5.5. Supply constraint: 7. The numbers behind those: 11.2% poverty, 4.6% unemployment, 29% of income on rent.
50-yr trendTwo visible dips · '08 + COVID
197620012026
Mirrors BLS unemployment series.
US eviction landscape · timeline × all-in cost
Denver sits in the slow & expensive quadrant
Bubble size = population · color = risk score
Denver · 98d · ~$8.6k all-in ($88/day) · score 5.7National average: 58d · $4.6k all-inHover any bubble for stats · click to openColor: 0–4 4–7 7–10
Landlording in Denver, Colorado, presents an elevated-friction market where documented notices and proactive screening matter. The Eviction Risk Score is 5.7/10 (ELEVATED tier), drawn from the nine sub-axes shown above, covering rent-control exposure, eviction-process difficulty, housing-court bias, tenant-organizing strength, supply constraint, economic stress, and local, regional, and state political climate. This is not a quick-fix market: it's a Elevated-friction market where lease drafting, screening discipline, and well-documented notices materially change outcomes.
Denver is a city of 718,877 residents where 51.2% of occupied units are renter-occupied, and the typical renter spends 4.1% of income on rent. At an average rent of $1,831/month, the typical renter household here spends more than the federal 30% threshold on housing, a leading indicator of payment volatility and a precondition for the kinds of tenant defenses that show up most often in housing court.
01Process
How Denver eviction process actually works
Eviction process difficulty here reads 8.5/10, a number that combines statutory complexity (notice categories, just-cause rules, mandatory pre-filing disclosures) with operational realities (court calendar length and clerk responsiveness). The typical contested filing in Denver closes 98 days after the initial notice. For non-payment of rent the first step is a properly-formatted, properly-served pay-or-quit notice; for material lease breaches it's a cure-or-quit; for tenancies under just-cause protection an at-fault grounds notice (or a no-fault notice with statutory relocation assistance) is required.
The slow part of Denver's timeline is usually the calendar, not the motion practice. Housing court bias scores 7.5/10 here, meaning judges read borderline procedural defects in the tenant's favor more often than the national norm. The practical implication: every notice and every proof of service needs to be airtight before it gets filed.
02Cost
What it costs (and how long it takes)
An all-in eviction in Denver runs $4,938 to $12,307 per case once you account for filing fees, attorney time, lost rent during pendency, sheriff lockout, and unit turnover. That range is wide because the upper bound assumes a tenant answer plus motion practice, common when housing court bias is high. The lower bound assumes a default judgment after proper service.
For landlords running the numbers on holding costs vs. cash-for-keys: if your projected timeline times your monthly rent already exceeds the high-end cost number, cash-for-keys at 1–2 months' rent is typically the economically rational choice. With 98 days of typical timeline and $1,831/month in lost rent, that crossover happens fast here.
03Operations
Security deposits, screening, and lease terms
Tenant organizing strength scores 8/10 in Denver, and the city carries meaningful rent control exposure (7/10). Operations practice that survives audit in this environment looks like:
Screening discipline. Document income (verified at 2.5 to 3x rent), credit (with a clear minimum), and prior-tenancy reference checks, but do not screen on protected categories or source-of-income where banned. Keep a written, consistent screening criteria document for every applicant.
Lease specificity. Use a state-specific lease that names every term clearly: rent due date, late fees within statutory caps, deposit handling, smoke and CO disclosure, lead paint disclosure (pre-1978 stock), and a clean attorney's-fees clause.
Security deposit handling. Itemize deductions within the statutory window. Photograph move-in/move-out condition. In Colorado, deposit cap and refund window are statute, so exceed them at your own risk.
Mid-tenancy documentation. Keep date-stamped records of every rent receipt, every habitability request, every notice served. The day you need them in court is too late to start.
04Strategy
What an everyday landlord should actually do here
If you own one to four units in Denver: hire a property manager who knows the local court. The pricing differential between self-managing and hiring out is small relative to the cost of one botched eviction in a ELEVATED tier market. If you own five or more: build relationships with a local landlord-side attorney before you need one, since retainer fees are negligible compared to emergency-rate billing when an eviction is already moving.
The avoidable mistakes here are all upstream of the filing: weak screening, an informal lease, sloppy rent receipts, and notice templates pulled off the internet that don't match Colorado's statutory language. Fix those four, and most cases settle or default. Skip them, and a $12,307 all-in fight is the realistic worst case.
04bPractical traps
Local traps to avoid in Denver
Trap · HB21-1117 (2021)
The bigger policy story: HB21-1117 (2021) repealed Colorado's 1981 statewide rent-control preemption, restoring municipal authority to enact stabilization frameworks. Boulder Initiative 305 (2024 ballot) passed and instituted a stabilization framework. Denver, Aspen, Telluride, and Crested Butte have all explored or piloted opt-in stabilization, though Denver City Council has not enacted a binding ordinance as of mid-2025.
Trap · PRACTICAL TRAP
The Denver eviction-filing volume has remained elevated through 2024 partly because the post-COVID arrears tail is longer here than in peer cities. Mile High United Way and Colorado Legal Services run an active eviction-defense referral network, and contested-case rates have climbed roughly 30 percent year-over-year since just-cause took effect. Operators who relied on no-fault termination as a routine tool are still adjusting their playbooks.
05FAQ
Frequently asked questions
Q1
Can I refuse to rent to someone with a Section 8 voucher in Denver?
No, Colorado has statewide source-of-income protection. You cannot refuse to rent to someone solely because they use a Section 8 voucher or other legal forms of income. You must apply the same screening criteria to all applicants, regardless of their income source.
Q2
What happens if I don't return a security deposit within 30 days?
If you don't return the security deposit or provide an itemized statement of deductions within 30 days (or up to 60 days if specified in the lease), you could face severe penalties. Colorado law allows tenants to sue for three times the amount of the withheld deposit, plus attorney fees. Don't miss this deadline.
Q3
How long does a tenant have to move out after a 10-day pay-or-quit notice expires?
After the 10-day notice expires and the tenant has not paid rent, you can immediately file an Unlawful Detainer action in court. The tenant does not get more time to move out after the notice. The legal process starts right away.
Q4
Can I charge whatever late fees I want in Denver?
No, Colorado law limits late fees. They generally cannot exceed $50 or 5% of the past due rent, whichever is greater. Check C.R.S. § 38-12 for the exact current limitations. Don't overcharge; it can backfire in court.
Q5
What if my tenant starts paying rent again after I've filed for eviction?
This is tricky. If you accept full payment of all outstanding rent, late fees, and court costs, the eviction case is usually dismissed. If you accept a partial payment, it can complicate your case and might require you to issue a new notice. Consult an attorney before accepting any payments once an eviction has been filed.
A 5.7/10 places Denver in the 100th percentile of Colorado cities on the Eviction Risk Score index. The score is the average of the nine sub-axes, all calibrated on a national 1 to 10 scale where 1 is most landlord-friendly and 10 is most tenant-protective. The 50-year reconstruction shows this score has risen sharply since 1976, a structural drift driven by court-calendar growth, rent-control adoption, and the rise of tenant-side legal aid. The trajectory matters more than the snapshot: the score is the climate, not the weather.
Neighborhoods in Denver (24 with eviction-risk data)
Click a neighborhood to see its pop-weighted score, constituent census tracts, and demographics. Sorted by population.
