How portable screening helps renters save on application costs
- Steve Wake
- Dec 15, 2025
- 3 min read
Applying for a home in Colorado can get expensive fast. Every time you submit a new application, you’re usually asked to pay another screening fee. It adds up, especially if you’re applying to more than one place or moving in a competitive market.
Colorado’s portable tenant screening report law changes that. A valid portable report gives you a way to reuse your verified information for up to 30 days, so you don’t have to pay for the same screening again. Property managers must accept a valid report in most cases, though they still make their own decisions about approving or denying applications. That distinction matters, and we’ll walk through it clearly and calmly — the Rentell way.
Here’s how portable screening puts real money back in renters’ pockets.
Repeat rental application fees add up
Application fees often cover the cost of pulling a new screening report. When you apply to several homes, you’re paying for the same checks again and again. Many renters end up paying for multiple reports in a single month.
Colorado law recognizes the burden this creates. That’s why HB23-1099 gives renters the right to provide a portable tenant screening report instead of paying for a new one. Valid reports must include items defined in the law, such as identity, income, credit, and rental history information.
Portable reports create rental application savings
A portable tenant screening report, sometimes called a PTSR, is a screening report you can reuse for up to 30 days. Under Colorado law, property managers must accept a valid portable report instead of running (and charging for) a new screening check, unless they fall under a narrow exemption.
To be considered valid, the report must:
Be completed in the last 30 days
Come directly from a consumer reporting agency
Include all required components – identity, income, credit, rental history
Be provided at no cost for the property manager to access
When those conditions are met, you avoid paying a new application screening fee.
People also ask: “If a property manager accepts my portable report, does that mean I’m approved?”
No. Acceptance of the report and approval of the application are two different steps.
Colorado law requires property managers to accept a valid portable report, but they still use their own criteria to decide whether to approve or deny an application.
Accepting the report simply means they’ll use it as the screening information
Approval is always up to them
A portable report helps you save money, but it doesn’t guarantee a housing decision
How much can renters actually save?
Every property sets its own application fee, but many Colorado renters pay between thirty and sixty dollars per application. Apply to three homes in a week, and that cost jumps quickly while limiting your search.
With a portable report, you pay once for screening and reuse it across multiple applications during its thirty-day window. This means the more places you apply, the more you save and the more chances you have of getting a home you love.
The goal isn’t complexity. It’s fairness. Colorado designed portable reports to reduce unnecessary, repetitive fees and give renters more control over their own verified information.
When property managers don’t have to accept your report
Most property managers must accept a valid portable report. There’s one narrow exemption: a property manager who only takes one application fee at a time for a home and refunds unused fees within twenty days doesn’t have to accept a portable report.
They also don’t have to accept it if:
It’s older than thirty days
It doesn’t include required components
They can’t access it
You don’t provide it
If your report is complete and current, you’re covered in most situations.
Portable screening supports fairness and transparency
Portable reports also support a more transparent experience. Instead of being screened by multiple systems that might return different results, you’re sharing one verified report — the same version with every property manager.
This consistency aligns with what Colorado law intends and what Rentell values: simple, clear information renters can understand and reuse. Rentell’s voice is renter-first, calm, and trustworthy, and portable screening reflects those same ideals. Rentell verifies information and provides a report; property managers decide how to use it, as required under state and federal law .
How to start using portable screening
You don’t need to wait for a product or platform to understand your rights. Here’s the basic flow:
Get a screening report from a consumer reporting agency
Make sure the report is less than thirty days old
Confirm that it includes all required components
Provide it directly to the property manager
If you prefer a simple way to share a report securely, you can explore options designed for portability. Rentell is building one with renters in mind, guided by accuracy, clarity, and Colorado’s legal standards.
