Please sign up to testify 3/12/2025 starting upon adjournment of the House
HB25-1249 Tenant Security Deposit Protections
Sponsor: Naquetta Ricks
Committee: Business Affairs & Labor
Link to Bill: https://leg.colorado.gov/bills/hb25-1249
ACTION NEEDED!
Please sign up to testify against HB25-1249, Tenant Security Deposit Protections on Wednesday, 3/12/25, starting after the adjournment of the House, in the Business Affairs and Labor committee. If you are in the Denver area, or can make the trip to the Capitol, please testify in-person. Otherwise, please register to testify remotely. It’s really important for us to show up in force and speak out against this bill to make the committee members understand just how detrimental this bill can be!
The CHC opposes this bill as it seeks to cap security deposits at 1x the monthly rent, or 1x the tenant’s portion of rent; forces property owners and managers to allow payment plans on deposits of at least 6 months, with no option to evict for an unpaid deposit; forces property owners and managers to do a final inspection with a tenant, at the tenant’s request, up to 10 business days after the tenant vacates, and limits damages charged against the deposit to what was documented during that inspection.
What your testimony should look like:
Your testimony should focus on the negative aspects of this bill: remind the committee that additional deposits allow for unqualified residents to gain access to the rental, and offset the additional risk that comes from taking a chance on unqualified, or under-qualified, residents in a rental property. Speak about the reality of what it means to allow a resident to move in with no deposit would mean for you, or your clients. What does it mean to you to be required to wait to start work on a property for 10 business days after the resident moves out? What if you couldn’t charge a move-out clean to a resident who leaves the unit an absolute wreck? We all know that many subsidized residents have no collectible income–what would you do if the only deposit you had on hand was $40.00, and they left owing multiple months’ rent, or thousands of dollars in damages? Do you have any clients who would go bankrupt from the financial burden of renovating or repairing the property?
