Free Colorado Move-In / Move-Out Inspection Checklist

No. Colorado has no statute requiring a move-in or move-out inspection form and none prescribing its contents. Its value is evidentiary, and the deposit statute is what gives it teeth. C.R.S. § 38-12-103(1)(a) bars a landlord from retaining the security deposit to cover normal wear and tear or any damage or defective condition that preexisted the tenancy. C.R.S. § 38-12-103(3)(b) then places the burden on the landlord to prove that a withholding was not wrongful and that the landlord complied with the section. A checklist signed by both parties at move-in is how you prove a condition did not preexist the tenancy.

Yes, on request and where reasonable and practicable. C.R.S. § 38-12-103(1.5) requires the landlord and tenant to conduct a walk-through inspection of the dwelling unit, either in person or by a telecommunication-assisted interactive walk-through, to identify in writing any damage or defective conditions beyond normal wear and tear that did not preexist the tenancy. The landlord shall provide it at the tenant’s request, at a mutually convenient time, before the termination of the lease or the surrender of the premises, and after the tenant has had the opportunity to remove furniture. This provision arrived with House Bill 25-1249, effective January 1, 2026. Subsection (12) exempts a mobile home in a mobile home park.

C.R.S. § 38-12-102(4) defines normal wear and tear as deterioration, damage, or uncleanliness that occurs, based upon the use for which the rental unit is intended or reasonably and typically used, without negligence, carelessness, accident, or abuse of the premises by the tenant, members of the tenant’s household, or their invitees or guests. It expressly does not include uncleanliness that renders a dwelling unit substantially less clean than it was when the lease began. That wording, current since January 1, 2026, is broader than the older text, so classify conservatively: if ordinary living in the unit would have produced the condition, it is not chargeable.

C.R.S. § 38-12-103(1)(a) gives a landlord thirty days after the termination of the lease or the surrender of the premises, whichever occurs last, to return the full security deposit, unless the lease agreement specifies a longer period, which may not exceed sixty days. Where actual cause exists to retain any portion, you must provide a written statement listing the exact reasons for the retention and deliver the difference between the sum deposited and the amount retained. Under § 38-12-103(1)(b) that actual cause is limited to nonpayment of rent, utilities, other lawful charges listed in the lease, or necessary repair work beyond normal wear and tear that did not preexist the tenancy. Your checklist supplies the line items.

C.R.S. § 38-12-103(2) provides that a landlord who fails to comply with the section or otherwise wrongfully withholds a deposit forfeits the right to withhold any portion of it. Subsection (3)(a) makes wrongful retention render the landlord liable for treble the amount wrongfully withheld, together with reasonable attorney fees and court costs, except that the tenant must notify the landlord of the demand and of the intention to file legal proceedings at least seven days before filing. Subsection (3.5) defines bad-faith retention and presumes an amount unreasonable where it is one hundred twenty-five percent or more of the actual damages. Under (3)(b) and (3.5)(c) the landlord carries the burden on both questions.

Plan on it. C.R.S. § 38-12-103(8) applies to a termination of a lease or a surrender of the premises on or after January 1, 2026. Where the landlord provides the written statement required by subsection (1) within fourteen days after a written request by the tenant, the landlord shall also provide documentation in the landlord’s possession or control that is relevant to the retention, and the statute names photographs, inspection forms or reports, receipts, invoices, and estimates. Subsection (2.5)(a) deems a deposit wrongfully withheld where the landlord fails to timely provide that statement and all documentation required by subsection (8).

Usually not for the whole unit. C.R.S. § 38-12-103(11)(a) provides that a landlord does not have actual cause to retain any amount to pay for replacement of carpet throughout a dwelling unit unless there is substantial and irreparable damage to the carpet that exceeds normal wear and tear and did not preexist the tenancy, though partial replacement remains available on the same test. Subsection (11)(b) applies the equivalent rule to painting throughout the interior. Subsection (11)(c) adds that carpet may not be deemed substantially and irreparably damaged if it has not been replaced with new carpet within the ten years preceding termination or surrender. Room-by-room checklist entries keep a deduction partial and defensible.

Keep them for at least as long as a claim can still be brought against you. C.R.S. § 13-80-101(1)(a) sets the general limitation period for all contract actions in Colorado, and a security-deposit dispute arising out of a lease is a contract action, so retain the signed move-in and move-out checklist, the written statement of deductions, and the dated photographs until that period has run from the date the claim would accrue. Storage costs nothing next to a treble-damages claim you cannot document. Keep the tenant-signed original and the original image files, not a retyped summary.