House Lockout in Denver, CO

Which door is locked in Denver

Capitol Hill is Denver's most densely populated neighborhood, and many of its apartments have been converted into condominiums, so a resident can be shut out at two points: the lobby and the unit door. Citywide, 24.2 percent of homes are in buildings of 50 or more units, so the lobby lock may belong to the building rather than to you. If your unit key works and only the entry fails, the manager is the first call. If you are past the lobby and your own door is locked, that door is yours, and a locksmith works on it.

In Central Park, on the former Stapleton International Airport site and built since 2001, the vast majority of single-family homes have alley-loaded garages. The door used every day may be the one from the garage into the house, so say which door is locked and whether the garage itself is open. A small southeastern portion of the neighborhood lies in Aurora, so give the cross streets.

If a landlord changed the locks

A lost key and a landlord-changed lock are different problems. C.R.S. 38-12-510 bars a Colorado landlord from removing or excluding a tenant without court process, apart from cases such as mutual consent or abandonment, and it counts the willful removal of doors, windows or locks, other than for repair or maintenance, as part of that. This is general information, not legal advice.

What to have ready

• photo ID that shows the address you are locked out of
• a lease, deed or utility bill in your name if the ID shows an old address
• for a condo or apartment, the unit number and whether you are past the lobby door
• for a house, which door: front, back, alley-side garage or garage-to-house
• the neighborhood and the nearest cross streets

Colorado's large day-to-night temperature changes, noted by CSU's Colorado Climate Center, mean a mild afternoon can turn into a cold evening while you wait, so shelter in a car, with a neighbor or in a nearby business rather than on the step. Colorado Locksmith Pros takes service requests from homes, businesses and drivers in Denver. See house lockout for the service and the Denver page for the neighborhoods.