Colorado: Late Rent Fee Limits

Requirements one by one

The cap: the greater of $50 or 5% of the past-due rent

Colorado limits a residential late fee to a hard maximum. Under C.R.S.
§ 38-12-105(1)(b) a landlord may not charge a fee "in an amount that exceeds the
greater of: (I) Fifty dollars; or (II) Five percent of the amount of the past
due rent payment."

The word that trips people up is "greater." On rent under $1,000 a month the
$50 floor controls; above $1,000 the 5% figure is larger and controls. The 5% is
measured on the past-due rent — the amount actually unpaid — not automatically on
the full month's rent.

Rent must be at least seven days late first

A fee cannot attach the moment rent is a day late. Section 38-12-105(1)(a) bars a
late fee "unless a rent payment is late by at least seven calendar days." If rent
is due on the 1st, a fee cannot be charged until at least the 8th.

It has to be in your rental agreement

There is no default statutory late fee. Under § 38-12-105(1)(c) a landlord may
not require a late fee "unless the late fee is disclosed in the rental
agreement," and § 38-12-105(2) makes any lease provision that does not comply
with the statute "void and unenforceable." A late-fee term that is missing, or
that exceeds the cap or skips the grace period, cannot be enforced.

What a landlord may not do with a late fee

Section 38-12-105(1) also draws several bright lines around the fee itself:

• No eviction for unpaid late fees. A landlord may not remove a tenant, or
  start a court process to remove one, because the tenant did not pay a late fee
  (§ (1)(d)), and may not terminate a tenancy for the same reason (§ (1)(e)).
• A late fee is not rent. Subsection (7) says a late fee "is distinct from
  rent" and a lease may not classify it as rent for the nonpayment eviction
  notice under § 13-40-104(1)(d) — so a landlord cannot fold late fees into the
  amount demanded in a pay-or-quit notice.
• Subsidy share is protected. No fee may be charged on the portion of rent a
  rent-subsidy provider (not the tenant) is responsible for paying (§ (1)(f)).
• One fee per late payment. A fee may be charged only once for each late
  payment, unless several fees together still fit within the $50/5% cap
  (§ (1)(g)).
• No interest, no recoupment. A landlord may not charge interest on a late
  fee (§ (1)(h)) or take a late fee out of a rent payment (§ (1)(i)).
• 180-day notice or the fee is lost. A late fee cannot be charged unless the
  landlord gave the tenant written notice of it within 180 days after the rent
  was due (§ (1)(j)).

If the fee is unlawful

The statute gives the tenant real teeth. A noncomplying lease term is void, and
the tenant can seek an injunction (§ 38-12-105(2)). A landlord who violates the
section owes the tenant a $50 penalty per violation (§ (3)), and then has seven
days to cure after receiving written or electronic notice (§ (4)). If the
landlord does not cure, the tenant may bring a civil action for compensatory
damages, a penalty of "at least one hundred fifty dollars but not more than one
thousand dollars for each violation," costs and reasonable attorney fees, and
other equitable relief (§ (5)). A tenant may also raise a violation as an
affirmative defense in an eviction (forcible entry and detainer) case (§ (6)).

What trips people up

"Greater of," not "lesser of." Some lease forms and fee calculators state
the cap as the smaller of $50 or 5%. The statute says the opposite — the fee may
be as high as whichever of the two is larger. A form that uses "lesser of"
misstates the ceiling.

The seven days are calendar days. Weekends and holidays count. Do not
confuse this seven-day fee grace period with the ten-day demand a landlord must
give before an eviction for unpaid rent — those are separate clocks.

Late fees can't be bundled into an eviction demand. Because a late fee is not
rent (§ 38-12-105(7)) and cannot support eviction (§ (1)(d)), a pay-or-quit
demand that lumps late fees into the amount owed can be defective.

Common questions

**What is the most my landlord can charge? ** The greater of $50 or 5% of the
past-due rent. On $1,500 rent, 5% is $75, so the cap is $75; on $600 rent, 5% is
$30, so the $50 floor applies.

How many days do I have before a late fee? At least seven calendar days after
the rent due date (§ 38-12-105(1)(a)). Your lease can give more time but not
less.

Can I be evicted for not paying a late fee? No. Section 38-12-105(1)(d) and
(e) bar eviction or termination for unpaid late fees, and subsection (7) keeps
late fees out of the rent figure in a nonpayment notice. Unpaid rent is a
different matter.

What if the landlord broke these rules? You can demand a cure, and if the
landlord does not fix it within seven days you may sue for damages, a $150–$1,000
penalty per violation, and attorney fees, or raise it as a defense if the
landlord tries to evict (§ 38-12-105(3)–(6)).

Statutes and sources

• C.R.S. § 38-12-105 — late fees charged to tenants and mobile home owners:
  the seven-day grace, the greater-of-$50-or-5% cap, the disclosure requirement,
  the prohibited acts, and the penalties and remedies.

  (1) A landlord shall not take any of the following actions ... (a) Charge a
  tenant or home owner a late fee unless a rent payment is late by at least
  seven calendar days; (b) Charge a tenant or home owner a late fee in an
  amount that exceeds the greater of: (I) Fifty dollars; or (II) Five percent
  of the amount of the past due rent payment; (c) Require a tenant or home
  owner to pay a late fee unless the late fee is disclosed in the rental
  agreement; ... (3) A landlord who violates subsection (1) of this section
  shall pay to an aggrieved tenant or home owner a penalty in the amount of
  fifty dollars for each violation. (4) ... a landlord who violates subsection
  (1) of this section has seven days to cure the violation ... (5) If a
  landlord ... fails to timely cure ... a tenant or home owner may bring a
  civil action to seek one or more of the following remedies: ... (b) A penalty
  of at least one hundred fifty dollars but not more than one thousand dollars
  for each violation ...; (c) Costs, including reasonable attorney fees to the
  prevailing party ... (7) A late fee is distinct from rent, and a rental
  agreement may not classify a late fee as rent for the purposes of section
  13-40-104 (1)(d).

Official source (Colorado Revised Statutes 2025, Title 38, § 38-12-105):
https://olls.info/crs/crs2025-title-38.pdf (accessed 2026-07-20)