Colorado Former-Tenant Abandoned Personal Property Notice

Colorado Notice of Proposed Disposition of Abandoned Property

Mandatory Lien-and-Abandonment Gate

Do not send this notice unless every box below is checked after legal review:

• ☐ The former tenant owes unpaid rent.
• ☐ The landlord has a lien under C.R.S. § 38-20-102(3) on the listed property.
• ☐ The tenant has vacated the premises.
• ☐ The owner has not contacted the landlord for at least 30 days.
• ☐ The landlord, in good faith, knows of no evidence that the owner does not intend to abandon the property.
• ☐ The proposed sale or other disposition date is at least 15 days after this notice is transmitted.
• ☐ This is not the special motor-vehicle-at-repair-shop or mold procedure in § 38-20-116(2.5) or (3).

The landlord lien does not cover pet animals, small kitchen appliances, cooking utensils, beds, bedding, necessary wearing apparel, personal or business records and documents, or the personal effects of the tenant or household members. Do not include any excluded item below.

If the lien gate is not satisfied, use the universal attorney-review intake rather than inventing a Colorado deadline or disposal right.

Notice to Former Tenant / Property Owner

Date transmitted: [__/__/____]

To: [FORMER TENANT / OWNER NAME]

Last-known address: [________________________________]

Former rental premises: [________________________________]

Landlord / lienholder: [NAME / ADDRESS / PHONE / EMAIL]

The landlord holds the following property under the landlord lien for unpaid rent described in C.R.S. § 38-20-102(3):

[ITEMIZED DESCRIPTION OF LIEN-COVERED PROPERTY ONLY]

The property is stored at [________________________________]. The owner has not contacted the landlord concerning the property for at least 30 days. The landlord, acting in good faith, knows of no evidence that the owner does not intend to abandon it.

Under C.R.S. § 38-20-116, the landlord proposes to:

• Manner of sale or other disposition: [________________________________]
• Date of sale or other disposition: [__/__/____]
• Location, if applicable: [________________________________]

To dispute abandonment, assert ownership, arrange retrieval, or provide evidence that the property is not abandoned, contact [NAME / PHONE / EMAIL / ADDRESS] immediately and before the proposed disposition date.

Landlord / authorized agent: [________________________________]

Signature: [________________________________]

Date: [__/__/____]

Delivery and Publication Record

• ☐ Sent to the owner's last-known address by registered or certified mail
• ☐ Return receipt requested, signed by the addressee only
• Mailing date and tracking number: [________________________________]
• Proposed disposition is at least 15 days after transmission: ☐ Confirmed
• Result: ☐ Signed return receipt received ☐ Returned unclaimed ☐ Other: [__________]

If returned unclaimed:

• ☐ Published for at least one day in a newspaper in the county where the property is located
• ☐ If no newspaper is published in that county, published in a newspaper in an adjoining county
• Newspaper and publication date: [________________________________]

Keep for at least one year the notice and either the signed return receipt or, if returned unclaimed, the notice and proof of return. Retain the inventory, photographs, rent ledger, lien analysis, evidence supporting abandonment, publication proof, and disposition record with the file.

Counsel Review Record

• Lien-covered-property classification reviewed by: [________________________________]
• Ownership / secured-interest issues checked: [________________________________]
• Eviction-writ, probate, bankruptcy, and local-law issues checked: [________________________________]
• Proposed disposition method approved by: [________________________________]

Substantial noncompliance with Article 20 can expose a lienholder who sells or disposes of property to recovery of the property's value, at least $100, plus reasonable attorney fees. Section 38-20-107(3) removes the need for a judicial lien-foreclosure action only when the held property is abandoned as defined by § 38-20-116.

Sources and References

• C.R.S. §§ 38-20-102, 38-20-107, and 38-20-116 — Colorado General Assembly, 2025 official statutory data — https://olls.info/crs/crs2025-title-38.htm
• Understanding the Eviction Process (June 26, 2025) — Colorado Judicial Branch — https://www.coloradojudicial.gov/sites/default/files/2025-06/250623%20FED%20Clinic%20Slides%20w-o%20WoH_handout.pdf