Denver rental license program increases inspections, leaves out 90% of units in each assessment

Right now, every rental property in Denver has to get inspected (yes, every single one), but not all of them are. On top of that, the inspections that pass only look at a fraction of the units. The city started requiring these inspections with a new rental licensing program two years ago.

While Denver has seen some success with the program's required third-party inspections by fixing problems before a renter moves in, some renters say their concerns were missed, and consequences aren't always enforced.

Brittney Colon lives at the Cedar Run apartments in Denver, and while the complex says it has worked hard to repair past issues and make it a place that residents are proud to call home, Colon says there are still issues.

Over the last eight years living there, Colon says she's seen problems ranging from broken mailboxes to no hot water. But, Colon also noted that things have recently gotten a lot better.

"(Management is) working with us to bring up the standard of living here, but there is always that creeping factor of like, 'What's gonna happen next?" Colon said.

Many of those fixes came around the time they hired third-party licensed inspector Hasso Schutrumpf to look at their property. That inspection is required to pass the city's checklist to get a rental license.

"This is a 25 item, very comprehensive checklist," Schutrumpf explained, "...smoke alarms, carbon monoxide alarms, some mis-wired outlets and not having fire extinguishers."

Cedar Run initially failed a few categories on that checklist, but fixed it up and passed a few months later.

Except Schutrumpf never actually saw most of the apartments, as the city notes he's only allowed to inspect 10% of units, leaving Colon's apartment un-inspected.

She showed us pictures of lights hanging from the ceiling and leaks from what she says was the same time the complex passed inspection.

When CBS Colorado showed Schutrumpf those photos, he said those would not pass an inspection and created "a very unsafe condition."

The Denver Tenants Union says they see problems like this across the city, something that Schutrumpf says is possible with the amount of apartments he can actually go into.

"Ninety percent of units being omitted is really key, because if you went to used car lot and you said, I'm going to buy just 10 random cars, and I'll have a mechanic inspect one, and then you have mothers with children rent the other nine and drive around whether not knowing whether they're safe or not, like that's none of us would do that," Schutrumpf said.

Beyond this inspection, Communications Director  for Denver's Excise and Licenses Eric Escudero explained that tenants still have options to address housing concerns.

"If [landlords] get the license and let's say they don't fix the problem, then what can happen is the health department can get a call to investigate, and they'll come out and they'll levy fines as well," Escudero said.

The program has still brought in close to 26,000 new inspections in the last two years that weren't required beforehand, but the city says they don't know how many rental properties are not on that list. Still, while the city acknowledges the program isn't perfect, they believe it's a success compared to the options prior.

"We have seen over the years that one of the problems that's growing as the city of Denver has grown is problem landlords who aren't taking the necessary steps to make sure they're renting a place that's safe," Escudero said, "It's our responsibility to protect the people we serve across this community."

And inspectors like Schutrumpf see some of that value in the fixes that come from inspection reports but says it's not perfect.

"I'd say it's a good B to B+, there's always room for improvement," Schutrumpf said.

And for moms like Colon, that's not good enough.

"Even if it's an apartment complex, it's a home for all of us" Colon said, "There has to be somebody to step in."

The city does have the power to fine landlords who don't have that license with a maximum penalty of $999 after multiple warnings and smaller fines. However, that $999 is still often less than a month's rent in the city. So in order to encourage bigger complexes to get their license, Escudero says the city is looking into possibly raising that fine.