Squatters Rights in Colorado: 18-Year Adverse Possession Law
Colorado requires 18 years of possession, reduced to 7 years for claimants with color of title who pay all property taxes for that period. Since 2018, Colorado has also allowed an expedited law-enforcement removal process for clear-cut squatting cases separate from the adverse possession timeline.
Last reviewed July 8, 2026 — statutes and case law independently verified against official sources
Colorado vs Neighboring States: Quick Comparison
- Statutory Period
- 18 years
- Tax Payment Required
- No
- Color of Title
- Not required
- Expedited Removal Law
- Yes 2024–2025
- Statutory Period
- 10 years
- Tax Payment Required
- No
- Color of Title
- Not required
- Expedited Removal Law
- Yes 2024–2025
- Statutory Period
- 10 years
- Tax Payment Required
- No
- Color of Title
- Not required
- Expedited Removal Law
- Standard process
- Statutory Period
- 15 years
- Tax Payment Required
- No
- Color of Title
- Not required
- Expedited Removal Law
- Standard process
Data verified for 2026. Laws subject to change, verify with official state statutes.
The Path to Adverse Possession in Colorado
A visual summary of what a claimant must complete, start to finish.
How Adverse Possession Works in Colorado
To claim ownership of property through adverse possession in Colorado, a claimant must possess the land for 18 years while meeting the legal requirements established under state law. A shorter 7-year track is available for claimants who pay property taxes and, where required, hold color of title.
Legal Basis and Statutory Period
Colorado’s adverse possession law is codified under Colo. Rev. Stat. §§ 38-41-101, 38-41-108. The standard statutory period is 18 years of continuous, open, and hostile possession.
Property Tax Requirements
A shorter 7-year period is available to claimants who possess under color of title and pay all property taxes for the full 7 years. Without both elements, the standard period is 18 years.
Color of Title Rules
Color of title is not required for the standard 18-year claim, but is required (together with tax payment) to qualify for the shorter 7-year track.
Key Legal Requirements
- Actual possession
- Open and notorious possession
- Hostile possession
- Exclusive possession
- Continuous possession for 18 years (7 years with color of title and tax payment)
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Recent Law Changes in Colorado
A 2025 bill, House Bill 25-1104 ('Squatting Prohibited'), would have created a new standalone misdemeanor offense of squatting with escalating fines, but it was postponed indefinitely by the House Judiciary Committee in February 2025 and did not become law. Colorado's actual expedited removal mechanism remains the 2018 declaration process under SB 18-015 (C.R.S. § 13-40.1-101 et seq.), described below; this does not alter the 7/18-year adverse possession periods.
Colorado Adverse Possession Procedures
Making an Adverse Possession Claim
To establish adverse possession in Colorado, a claimant typically must:
- File a quiet title action in the district court where the property is located
- Provide evidence meeting the common law requirements: actual, exclusive, hostile, open, and continuous possession
- Prove these elements by clear and convincing evidence for claims filed after July 1, 2008
- Demonstrate a good faith belief in ownership that was reasonable under the circumstances, also required for claims after the 2008 reform
- For the shorter 7-year claim, provide evidence of color of title and payment of all property taxes during that period
- For the standard 18-year claim, prove continuous adverse possession for the full period under Colo. Rev. Stat. Sections 38-41-101 and 38-41-108
The court determines whether the claimant has satisfied every requirement and may hold a separate hearing to decide whether compensation should be awarded to the original owner.
Defending Against Squatters
Colorado property owners can protect against adverse possession claims by:
- Regularly inspecting the property, at least once a year
- Posting "No Trespassing" signs
- Maintaining fences and clear boundary markers
- Promptly addressing any encroachments
- Granting written permission for any allowed use, which converts hostile possession into permissive use
- Keeping tax payments current
- Taking legal action against unauthorized users before the statutory period expires
- Documenting property visits and inspections
Any action that interrupts the continuity of possession will restart the statutory period.
Removing Squatters
Colorado has an established landowner-affidavit process for removing squatters, alongside the standard eviction and trespass routes:
- Landowner Written Statement (SB 18-015): Since 2018, a property owner can sign a written statement under penalty of perjury alerting law enforcement that squatters are present without permission; if the squatter has no legal right to occupy the property, law enforcement can remove them within 24 hours without a court order (C.R.S. § 13-40.1-101 et seq.).
- Traditional Eviction Process: If the above does not apply, serve a written eviction notice (typically a 3-day demand for possession); file a Forcible Entry and Detainer (FED) action with the court; attend the court hearing; obtain a writ of restitution; have the sheriff execute the writ and remove the squatters.
- Criminal Trespass: In some cases, squatters may also be subject to separate criminal trespass charges under Colorado law.
Colorado law prohibits 'self-help' evictions such as changing locks, removing doors, or shutting off utilities. A 2025 bill that would have added standalone criminal penalties for squatting (HB 25-1104) was postponed indefinitely and never became law, so these remain the only two removal paths.
Notable Colorado Adverse Possession Cases
Smith v. Hayden (1989)
772 P.2d 47 (Colo. 1989)
In a dispute over parcels near Buffalo Creek, the Colorado Supreme Court set out the modern test for adverse possession in the state: the claimant must show possession that is actual, adverse, hostile, under a claim of right, exclusive, and uninterrupted for the statutory period. The court also held that a claimant's acknowledgment that someone else holds record title does not, by itself, disprove hostile intent where other evidence, like marked boundary lines and actual use, supports the claim.
Salazar v. Terry (1996)
911 P.2d 1086 (Colo. 1996)
A survey revealed that a long-standing fence deviated by 100 to 160 feet from the actual government subdivision line between two ranches, which had briefly come under common ownership for about 15 days in 1977. The Colorado Supreme Court held that this common ownership legally wiped out any prior acquiescence in the fence as the boundary, since a single owner cannot adversely possess against themselves, unless a later deed expressly re-adopts the old boundary line.
Ocmulgee Properties, Inc. v. Jeffery (2001)
53 P.3d 665 (Colo. App. 2001)
A landowner applied to the county to subdivide property that included a strip another party was actively, adversely possessing, and the possessor's predecessor received notice of the application but did not object. The Colorado Court of Appeals held, as a matter of first impression, that merely applying for a subdivision exemption is not an exercise of control sufficient to interrupt an adverse possession claim, and it ordered title quieted in the possessor.
Welsch v. Smith (2005)
113 P.3d 1284 (Colo. App. 2005)
Neighbors disputed a strip of land enclosed by a fence that both sides had treated as the property line, and the record owner later removed the fence and sued for trespass. The Colorado Court of Appeals held that when both owners believe a fence marks the true boundary for the 18-year statutory period, a presumption of adverse holding arises, and that tearing the fence down after the period has already run does not necessarily undo a claim that has already matured.
Schuler v. Oldervik (2006)
143 P.3d 1197 (Colo. App. 2006)
Neighbors in a rural area disputed ownership of a shared driveway that record title placed on one owner's land but that the other family had used and maintained for years. The Colorado Court of Appeals upheld the trial court's finding of adverse possession, explaining that possession is hostile when the claimant uses the land as their own, exclusive and actual when they use it as an average landowner would, and adverse when that use is open and obvious enough to put the record owner on notice of the claim.
Matoush v. Lovingood (2008)
177 P.3d 1262 (Colo. 2008)
A homeowner with an express easement for sewer and water pipes across a neighboring lot found that the neighbor had built over the easement area for years without objection. The Colorado Supreme Court held that an easement can be extinguished by adverse possession where the use of the easement area was adverse, open or notorious, and continuous for the statutory period, but that terminating an existing easement this way requires an even stronger showing of adverse use than creating a new prescriptive easement does.
Frequently Asked Questions About Colorado Adverse Possession
How long must someone occupy my property in Colorado to claim adverse possession?
In Colorado, the standard adverse possession period is 18 years of continuous possession (Colo. Rev. Stat. Sections 38-41-101, 38-41-108). This can be reduced to 7 years if the person has color of title and has paid all property taxes on the land during those 7 years.
Do squatters have to pay property taxes in Colorado to claim adverse possession?
It depends on which statutory period applies. For the 18-year claim, payment of taxes is not required, though it can strengthen the case. For the shortened 7-year claim, payment of all property taxes during that period is required along with color of title.
What is the "good faith belief" requirement in Colorado adverse possession law?
Since 2008, Colorado law has required that the adverse possessor or their predecessor had a good faith belief that they were the actual owner of the property, and that belief must have been reasonable under the circumstances. This reform was designed to prevent intentional adverse possession claims by people who knew all along that they did not own the land.
Can I legally remove squatters from my property in Colorado?
Yes, in clear-cut cases. Since 2018 (SB 18-015), a property owner can sign a written statement under penalty of perjury alerting law enforcement that squatters have no permission to be there, and officers can remove them within 24 hours without a court order. A 2025 bill that would have added separate criminal penalties for squatting (HB 25-1104) was postponed indefinitely and never became law. If the SB 18-015 process doesn't apply, owners must use the standard Forcible Entry and Detainer eviction process. Self-help methods like changing locks or removing doors remain illegal.
Can I lose part of my property because my neighbor's fence is over the boundary line?
Potentially, yes. As Welsch v. Smith (2005) illustrates, if both you and your neighbor treated a fence as the true boundary for the full 18-year period (or 7 years with color of title and tax payments), a presumption of adverse possession can arise, and even removing the fence afterward may not undo a claim that has already matured.
If someone successfully claims adverse possession of my property in Colorado, can I receive any compensation?
Yes. Colorado law allows courts to award compensation to property owners who lose land through adverse possession, which may include the property's value based on the county assessor's valuation and reimbursement for property taxes paid during the years before the action. This compensation provision, added in 2008, is one of the features that makes Colorado's adverse possession law more favorable to record owners than most states.
Do Colorado police have the authority to remove squatters directly?
Yes, in narrow circumstances, through a tool that predates recent headlines: under Senate Bill 18-015 (2018), a property owner can sign a sworn declaration to police or the sheriff attesting they own the property and the occupant has no legal right to be there, and law enforcement can verify it and remove the person within 24 hours without a court proceeding; officers can also arrest for ordinary criminal trespass in obvious break-in cases. A widely discussed 2025 bill, HB25-1104, would have made squatting a stand-alone crime with escalating fines and mandatory restitution, but it was postponed indefinitely by the House Judiciary Committee in February 2025 and never became law. Where the SB 18-015 declaration doesn't fit — for example, the occupant claims a lease or was once a tenant — the owner must instead serve a 3-day demand for possession, file a Forcible Entry and Detainer action, obtain a writ of restitution, and have the sheriff execute it.
This information is provided for general educational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Adverse possession claims are highly fact-specific. Consult a licensed attorney in the relevant state before relying on this information.