C.R.S. §38-33.3-123

Enforcement - limitation

The CCIOA enforcement and fee-recovery section. Subsection (1)(a) lets an association recover actual collection costs, reasonable attorney fees, and other actual costs for unpaid assessments without commencing a legal proceeding, and caps the recoverable attorney fees at five thousand dollars or fifty percent of the assessments and money owed, whichever is less. Subsection (1)(b) applies a parallel cap to non-assessment compliance failures, measured against actual costs rather than assessments. Subsection (1)(c)(II) caps a court's fee award in a collection action on the same terms, and permits the court to exceed the cap where it finds the unit owner was financially, physically, and reasonably able to comply but willfully failed to. Subsection (1)(f) lists the factors a court considers on fees in a lien foreclosure. Subsection (1)(g) adjusts the caps for inflation on August 1, 2025 and annually after, by the Denver-Aurora-Lakewood CPI for all urban consumers. The caps and the factor list were added by HB 24-1337, effective August 7, 2024. HB 25-1043, effective October 1, 2025, added (3): as a condition precedent to recovering money owed, collection costs, or attorney fees through foreclosure of an association lien, the association must strictly comply with the lien and foreclosure provisions of title 38 and of its own governing documents. A court that finds it out of strict compliance with title 38 may stay the case to give it time to comply, and no late fees, interest, or other delinquency charges may be assessed or accrued during the stay. The same act added (1)(f)(III.5), which adds to the fee factors whether the association incurred inflated or duplicative attorney fees because of such a stay. The act applies to enforcement actions instituted on or after October 1, 2025.

Status Active

Verified Oct 11, 2026

Source Official text

Reviewed October 11, 2026 · Colorado changes feed

Source Provenance C.R.S. §38-33.3-123

Primary source: Official text
Source verified: 2026-10-11
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Text snapshot: 2026-09-05 b9dfb41a5263 via olls-title38-pdf
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Statutory Text Verified Sep 5, 2026 · olls-title38-pdf

38-33.3-123. Enforcement - limitation. (1) (a) If a unit owner fails to timely pay assessments or any money owed to the association, the association may require, without the necessity of commencing a legal proceeding, reimbursement for the following, in addition to the assessments or owed money: (I) Actual collection costs of the unpaid assessments; (II) Reasonable attorney fees incurred as a result of the failure to pay; except that the association is not entitled to reimbursement for attorney fees that exceed five thousand dollars or fifty percent of the assessments and any money owed to the association as described in the introductory portion of this subsection (1)(a), whichever is less; and (III) Other actual costs incurred as a result of the failure to pay. (b) For any failure to comply with this article 33.3 or the declaration, bylaws, articles, or rules and regulations, other than the payment of assessments owed to the association, the association, any unit owner, or any class of unit owners adversely affected by the failure to comply may seek, without the necessity of commencing a legal proceeding, reimbursement for: (I) Actual collection costs incurred as a result of the failure to comply; and (II) Reasonable attorney fees and costs incurred as a result of the failure to comply; except that the association is not entitled to reimbursement for attorney fees that exceed five thousand dollars or fifty percent of the actual costs the association or unit owner incurred as a result of the failure to comply, whichever is less. (c) (I) In any civil action to enforce or defend this article 33.3 or the declaration, bylaws, articles, or rules and regulations, the court shall award reasonable attorney fees, actual costs, and actual costs of collection to the prevailing party, except as provided in subsection (1)(c)(II) of this section. (II) In connection with any civil action described in subsection (1)(c)(I) of this section to collect money owed to an association from a unit owner, the court shall not award attorney fees to the association in an amount in excess of five thousand dollars or fifty percent of the actual costs the association incurred as a result of the failure to comply with this article 33.3 or with the declaration, bylaws, articles, or rules and regulations, whichever is less; except that the court may award attorney fees in excess of the limitations, based on the court's discretion, if the court finds that the unit owner was financially, physically, and reasonably able to comply with the declaration, bylaws, articles, or rules and regulations but willfully failed to comply. (d) Notwithstanding paragraph (c) of this subsection (1), in connection with any claim in which a unit owner is alleged to have violated a provision of this article or of the declaration, bylaws, articles, or rules and regulations of the association and in which the court finds that the unit owner prevailed because the unit owner did not commit the alleged violation: (I) The court shall award the unit owner reasonable …

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Enforcement

Ref	Requirement
(1)(a)(II)	When an owner falls behind on assessments, the HOA can bill back its attorney fees — but only up to $5,000 or half of what is owed, whichever is smaller. The cap rises with Denver-area inflation each August.
(1)(c)(II)	The cap binds the court too, not just the association's own billing. A judge may go above it only by finding the owner could have paid and chose not to.
(3)	A Colorado association that forecloses its lien must follow every lien and foreclosure step in the statutes and in its own governing documents to the letter. If a court finds it has not followed the statutes, the court may pause the case to let it comply. While the case is paused, the association may not add late fees, interest, or other delinquency charges to the owner's account. When the court sets the association's attorney fee award, it must consider whether the pause inflated or duplicated those fees.

Session Laws

HB 24-1337 (2024) — Real Property Owner Unit Association Collections

Legal Topics

Articles Citing This Statute

Colorado HOA Foreclosure After HB 24-1337 (1)(g), (1)(c)(II), (1)(a)(II), (3) Primary

Legal references last verified October 11, 2026. This content is educational and informational. It does not constitute legal advice. Consult a licensed attorney in your state for legal guidance specific to your situation.

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