Renewal residential rental property application

Step 1.Before you apply

You can renew a license as early as 90 days before it expires. The Department will try to remind license holders of the approaching deadline to the email provided at application. Failure of a reminder does not excuse any applicable late penalty.

• Review inspections and inspector information for requirements.  

Step 2.Gather all required documents

Licensed establishment application

This captures information about the location of the residential rental property. You will need to provide:

• Details for one to three on-site managers, including their name, date of birth, home address and contact information. On-site managers are individual(s) who have the authority to make decisions about the licensed establishment. They must always have access to and control over the licensed establishment. If you do not have an on-site manager, list the owner/applicant or if agreed to by the tenant, them.

Residential rental property license application

• Copy of a completed home inspection checklist(PDF, 295KB).
• Copy of the home inspector certifications.
  • Both documents must be combined and uploaded as a single .pdf. You can use a free, online tool to merge documents into a single file.
  • Inspector certification examples(PDF, 2MB).

Fee and inspection exemption:

• For fee exemption information, see "Fee exemption" on the property owners and managers webpage.
• For inspection exemption information, see inspections and inspector information for requirements.

Important notes about your documents

• All materials must be digital files saved as a .pdf or .jpg. Do not include any other file types. The Department of Licensing and Consumer Protection cannot accept other file types.
• Use numbers or letters but not characters such as symbols (/ ? < > \ : * | ^) or spaces that could cause complications.
  • For example:
    • Good filename: drivers-license-name-2022.pdf
    • Bad filename: last name/ id.pdf
• In some cases, you might need to combine documents and upload them in a single .pdf. You can use a free, online tool to merge documents into a single file.
• Legal documents must be signed, dated and executed. All pages of large legal documents (such as a lease) must be included in the application.
• All materials must be legible.
• Incomplete applications will be rejected.

Step 1.Renew in Denver's Online Permitting and Licensing Center

In Denver’s Online Permitting and Licensing Center:

• Click on the Business Licenses tab.
• On the "My Records" page, select "Renew Application" for the license you want to renew and follow the prompts. "Renew Application" is on the right side of the page in the "Action" column.

This will begin and guide you through the application.

You can save and resume within 30 days any time during the application process. After 30 days, you must start again.

After the online application is complete, you will be prompted to submit fees in the online portal. These can be paid with a bank account or a Visa, Mastercard, or Discover card.

Step 2.Pay required fees

License fee: Based on the number of dwelling units

• $50: Single dwelling unit
• $100: 2 to 10 units
• $250: 11 to 50 units
• $350: 51 to 250 units
• $500: 251 or more units

If applying for a fee exemption as a qualifying entity, see "Fee exemption" on the property owners and managers webpage.

Nonprofit tax-exempt organizations and state agencies must get the license but are exempt from the license fees (application fees and late fees will still be charged).

Below are the documents required to request nonprofit fee waivers.

• Certificate of tax exemption from the State
• 501(C)3 letter from the IRS listing the nonprofit's name
• A letter addressed to the Department of Licensing and Consumer Protection that contains the following:
  • Request of fee waiver
  • Name on nonprofit
  • Explanation of vision/how does the community benefit from this nonprofit
  • Must be on letterhead
  • Dated
  • Signature

Step 3.City application review and next steps

Once you submit your application, you will not be able to make changes or corrections until your application is reviewed.

The Department of Licensing and Consumer Protection tries to conduct an initial review of a complete application within seven business days. The review process might take longer if it is incomplete or requires police review (if applicable).

• All application related communications will be sent by email from DLCPNotifications@denvergov.org. Do not respond to these emails as this inbox is not monitored.
• If the application is incomplete, the applicant will receive a "notice of deficiency" email. This allows 14 days for corrections.

Step 4.License issuance

Once approved, the applicant is emailed a copy of the business license. This allows the license holder to start operating.

The licensee should read "Once you have your license" below and follow the requirements.