Colorado’s pet rent laws cap monthly pet rent at $35 or 1.5% of your monthly rent, whichever is higher, and limit refundable pet deposits to $300. These limits come from House Bill 23-1068, codified at C.R.S. § 38-12-106, which took effect January 1, 2024.1Colorado General Assembly. HB23-1068 Pet Animal Ownership in Housing They only apply once a landlord agrees to allow pets in the first place.
Landlords Can Still Say No to Pets
The law does not give you a right to keep a pet in a rental. A Colorado landlord can prohibit animals outright and refuse to rent to anyone who has one. The caps on rent and deposits matter only after a landlord chooses to permit pets. If your lease says “no pets,” HB 23-1068 gives you nothing to argue with. You would need to negotiate, find a pet-friendly unit, or qualify for an assistance animal accommodation under separate rules covered below.
How Much Pet Rent a Landlord Can Charge
When pets are allowed, the maximum monthly pet charge is $35 or 1.5% of your rent, whichever is larger.1Colorado General Assembly. HB23-1068 Pet Animal Ownership in Housing Multiply your monthly rent by 0.015, compare the result to $35, and the higher figure is the ceiling.
Some examples. At $2,000 a month, 1.5% is $30, so the cap is $35. The two numbers cross at roughly $2,334. Above that, the percentage controls: at $3,000 rent, the limit is $45. Any amount charged over these figures exceeds what state law allows.
Multiple Pets and Non-Refundable Fees
The statute uses the singular “the tenant’s pet animal” and no official guidance has clarified whether the cap applies per pet or per household.1Colorado General Assembly. HB23-1068 Pet Animal Ownership in Housing Most landlords read it as per animal, meaning a tenant with two dogs in a $2,000 unit could face $35 for each. Until a court or the legislature settles the question, read your lease closely and expect per-pet billing.
The statute addresses “additional rent” charged as a condition of keeping a pet. It does not clearly cover one-time, non-refundable pet fees that some landlords tack on at move-in. The deposit itself must be refundable under the law, but a separate non-refundable “pet fee” sits in a gray area. A large fee of that kind could be challenged as an attempt to work around the statutory limits.
The $300 Pet Deposit Limit
A landlord cannot collect more than $300 as a pet-specific security deposit, and that money must be refundable.1Colorado General Assembly. HB23-1068 Pet Animal Ownership in Housing The cap holds regardless of your pet’s size or breed. If you add a pet partway through a lease, any new deposit still cannot exceed $300. This amount is separate from your general security deposit; the law treats it as an additional security deposit tied specifically to allowing the animal.
Because the money is classified as a security deposit, it carries all the usual deposit protections. A landlord cannot label a pet deposit “non-refundable” and keep it no matter what. Any lease clause that tries to do so conflicts with the statute.
Getting Your Pet Deposit Back
Pet deposits follow the same return rules as general security deposits under C.R.S. § 38-12-103. Your landlord has one month after the lease ends or you surrender the unit, whichever is later, to return the deposit. A lease can extend that window, but not past 60 days.2Justia. Colorado Code 38-12-103 – Return of Security Deposit
A landlord can only withhold money for actual damage beyond normal wear and tear. Pet hair on the carpet and minor scuffs don’t qualify. Significant staining, chewed woodwork, or gouged flooring would. If any portion is withheld, the landlord must send a written statement listing the specific reasons and return the balance. Missing that deadline forfeits the landlord’s right to keep any of it.2Justia. Colorado Code 38-12-103 – Return of Security Deposit
If a landlord willfully keeps your deposit without justification, you can sue for triple the wrongfully withheld amount plus attorney fees and court costs. Give at least seven days’ written notice of your intent to file before going to court.2Justia. Colorado Code 38-12-103 – Return of Security Deposit The landlord carries the burden of proving any withholding was justified.
HB 25-1249, signed in June 2025, added further protections that apply to pet deposits.3Colorado General Assembly. HB25-1249 Tenant Security Deposit Protections You can request a joint walk-through to identify damage, and anything the landlord fails to document during that inspection cannot be deducted later. Carpet replacement or repainting can only be charged against the deposit if the damage is substantial, irreparable, beyond normal wear and tear, and did not predate your tenancy, and the deduction is limited to the minimum necessary. If a landlord demands and keeps an illegally excessive deposit, they have seven days from your written demand to return the excess or face triple damages.
The walk-through right is especially useful for pet owners. Documenting the unit’s condition together at move-out heads off arguments about whether a scratch or stain came from your animal or was there all along.
Assistance Animals Are Not Pets
None of the pet rent or deposit rules above apply to assistance animals. Under federal law, service animals and emotional support animals are not pets, so a landlord cannot charge pet rent, collect a pet deposit, or impose a pet fee for one.4HUD.gov. Assistance Animals The animal is a reasonable accommodation for a disability, not an optional addition to the household.
Service animals are trained to perform specific tasks for a person with a disability, such as guiding someone who is blind or alerting someone who is deaf. The Fair Housing Act is broader than the ADA and also covers emotional support animals, which provide therapeutic benefit without task-specific training.5HUD.gov. Fact Sheet on HUD Assistance Animals Notice Both categories are protected.
If your disability is obvious, a landlord generally cannot ask for documentation. When the disability or the need for the animal is not readily apparent, the landlord may request a letter from your healthcare provider confirming a disability-related need for the animal. HUD has warned that certificates sold online to anyone who pays a fee do not reliably establish that need.5HUD.gov. Fact Sheet on HUD Assistance Animals Notice A letter from a licensed professional with an actual clinical relationship with you carries much more weight.
Breed bans and weight limits also do not apply to assistance animals. HUD guidance is explicit that pet policies on breed or size do not extend to them.6HUD Exchange. Can a Public Housing Agency Restrict the Breed or Size of an Assistance Animal A landlord can only refuse a specific animal by showing it poses a direct threat to health or safety that cannot be reduced through other measures. A blanket “no pit bulls” or “no large dogs” rule does not meet that bar.
One warning. Colorado makes it a class 2 petty offense under C.R.S. § 18-13-107.3 to intentionally misrepresent a pet as a service or assistance animal, with fines starting at $25 for a first violation and rising to $100–$500 for repeat offenses. A proven misrepresentation can also lead to denied accommodation requests and eviction.
Dog Breeds and Insurance
HB 23-1068 also banned breed-based discrimination in homeowner’s and renter’s insurance. Under C.R.S. § 10-4-110.8(16), an insurance company cannot refuse coverage, cancel a policy, decline to renew, or raise premiums based on your dog’s breed, and insurers cannot even ask what breed you have.1Colorado General Assembly. HB23-1068 Pet Animal Ownership in Housing The one exception is for an individual dog that has been formally declared dangerous under Colorado’s dangerous-dog statute.
This matters for renters because landlords often banned certain breeds not out of personal preference but because their insurer required it. That justification no longer holds in Colorado.
What Happens to Your Pet in an Eviction
HB 23-1068 also set rules for pets during evictions. When an officer executes a writ of restitution, they must inspect the unit for animals. If you are present, the officer hands your pet directly to you.1Colorado General Assembly. HB23-1068 Pet Animal Ownership in Housing If you are not home, the officer contacts local animal control to take custody. The landlord must give animal control access, provide your name and contact information, and post a visible notice at the unit telling you where the pet was taken. Leaving a pet unattended on any public or private property during an eviction is specifically prohibited.
The same law excludes pets from a landlord’s personal property lien. If you owe unpaid rent, your landlord cannot hold your animal as leverage.1Colorado General Assembly. HB23-1068 Pet Animal Ownership in Housing Pets sit alongside beds, clothing, and personal records on the list of items a landlord cannot seize.