Under Colorado law, a landlord has 72 hours to start fixing mold tied to dampness after getting notice in writing. If the condition “materially interferes with the tenant’s life, health, or safety,” the deadline is 24 hours.
Both deadlines come from SB24-094, which Governor Polis signed on May 3, 2024. The act also lists what the mold work has to include, and we walk through it below with the key lines quoted from the act.
What does SB24-094 say about mold?
SB24-094 rewrote the landlord duties in Colorado’s warranty of habitability. That is the part of state law that says a rental has to be fit to live in. It covers rental housing across Colorado.
Colorado law counts “mold that is associated with dampness” as a condition that can make a rental uninhabitable. It leaves out “mold that is minor and found on surfaces that can accumulate moisture as part of their proper functioning and intended use.”
The act then names mold in its own subsection, 38-12-503 (12). A landlord with notice of “mold associated with dampness in a dwelling unit” has to start what the law calls remedial action within the deadlines above.
What counts as notice to a landlord?
Notice means “any writing that provides a basis for the landlord to substantially know that the condition exists or may exist,” in the act’s words. That includes:
- Written notice from the tenant, sent the way the landlord usually communicates with that tenant.
- A tenant’s written messages to maintenance staff or to a maintenance service the landlord provides.
- Written notice from a government office or from a third party.
- Written reports or observations the landlord gets, directly or indirectly.
Writing includes paper, electronic and digital records. If a lease says tenants may or must report problems verbally, the act says the landlord gives up the right to written notice.
How fast does a landlord have to act on mold?
- Within 24 hours: contact the tenant. The message has to say what the landlord plans to do and estimate when the work will start and finish.
- Within 24 or 72 hours: start remedial action. It is 24 hours when the condition materially interferes with the tenant’s life, health or safety, and 72 hours when the home is uninhabitable.
- Within 72 hours: contain the area, stop the water and set up air filtration. The act says “installing a containment, stopping active sources of water contributing to the mold, installing a high-efficiency particulate air filtration device.”
- Before entering the unit: give the tenant written notice at least 24 hours ahead. The act skips that notice when the condition imminently threatens someone’s life, health or safety, or threatens substantial damage to the building.
The act also draws a line at 14 calendar days after notice. When the condition materially interferes with life, health or safety, the line is 7 calendar days. If the problem is not fixed by then, the law presumes the landlord failed to act in time.
A landlord can answer that presumption. The act names examples, such as a delay outside the landlord’s reasonable control or a tenant who unreasonably refused entry.
What does the mold work have to include?
Section 38-12-503 (12) lists the tasks. The landlord has to perform every one that applies, within a reasonable amount of time.
- Contain the area, stop active water and set up HEPA filtration, all within 72 hours of notice.
- Maintain the containment through the whole remediation and repair.
- Add any other protections that workers and the people living there need.
- Remove or limit the moisture sources, and dry every material the mold or dampness touched.
- Decontaminate or remove materials damaged by mold or dampness.
- Check whether the remediation worked, “including post-remediation testing for the existence of mold”.
- Put the unit back together in a way that controls moisture, so the mold does not return.
When the condition would interfere with a tenant’s life, health or safety, the tenant can ask for a comparable unit or hotel room. It comes at no cost to the tenant. The landlord has to provide it within 24 hours of the request, with at least as many beds, and in most cases within five miles.
What records does a landlord have to save?
The act requires “accurate and complete records” of every written notice, all correspondence, and the paperwork on any remedial action. Those records have to be saved for the whole tenancy and for at least three years after it ends.
A tenant can ask for them, and the landlord has 10 calendar days to hand them over.
Since January 1, 2025, every lease has to include a bold statement in at least 12-point type. It says tenants are entitled to safe and healthy housing and that retaliation is illegal. The lease also has to give an address and an email or online portal for habitability notices, in English and Spanish.
Does the law apply to property managers?
Yes. The act’s definition of landlord includes the “manager” and any “agent of the owner” of a rental.
So the deadlines apply to managers as well as owners. The act is state law, which means it covers rentals from Fort Collins to Colorado Springs and every town in between.
In Front Range rentals, mold often shows up in basements after spring snowmelt, in bathrooms with weak fans, and under kitchen sinks. Seventy-two hours goes fast if you have to find a contractor first, so pick one before a tenant email arrives.
How can our team help with a mold notice?
Our team handles the mold part of that list. We do not fix leaks, dry out wet framing or rebuild, so plan on a plumber or a water crew for those steps.
The law also lists testing after the work. Plan for that step when you book the remediation.
Send us photos from the unit, and we send back a number, usually the same business day. Most of our jobs finish in one working day, and you can read our written guarantee before you book.
Our mold removal for property managers page covers how we work with managers, owners and HOAs across the Front Range. Call (720) 443-4222 in the Denver area or (970) 469-9030 in Northern Colorado.
This post is general information about Colorado law, not legal advice.