Online complaint form for unlicensed rental properties released

Published on February 01, 2024

The main goal of the City and County of Denver's new residential rental licensing law is for tenants to have a safe home in the Mile High City. In order to increase compliance with the law, the Department of Excise and Licenses has launched a new online form for consumers to file a complaint about an unlicensed residential rental property.

"We're proud of the fact we've surpassed 20,000 applicants for the license one month into the full licensing requirement," said Molly Duplechian, Executive Director of the Department of Excise and Licenses. "As our enforcement team continues to search for unlicensed properties, we believe this tool will help the city increase our licensing compliance rate and achieve the public health and safety goals of this important licensing requirement."

Tenants and consumers can still call 311 to lodge a complaint about an unlicensed residential rental property.

The new form is another tool for the city to search for and identify landlords who are avoiding making any needed repairs that would be required through the licensing process. In addition, tenants or people searching for a place to rent can check the licensing status of a property by going to Denver's Online Permitting and Licensing Center here. Click on business licenses in the top menu of items. Then type in the address to find out if there is a license.

A total of 14,179 residential rental licenses have been issued so far. The city received a monthly record of 5,084 residential rental license applications in December. Unlicensed landlords identified by the city receive a notice of violation warning letter when initially uncovered, which gives landlords 30 days to get the required third-party inspection and apply for the license before the city issues a first fine of $150. Fines increase to $500 for a second fine and $999 for any additional fines necessary for operating a residential rental property without a license. Through Feb. 1, the city has issued $85,387 in fines.