More than nine in 10 renters in Colorado paid their April rent on time, the Colorado Apartment Association reports.

The percentage represents an increase from the first week in April, when the association found that 84% of tenants had paid. CAA considers partial or full payment by April 12 to be “on time.”

Mark Williams, the executive vice president of the association representing the managers of 300,000 housing units in Colorado, expects nonpayment to increase next month as the unemployment rate in Colorado rose to its highest in five years and continues to climb.

“Residents are continuing to experience job furloughs, layoffs and some residents may not receive a paycheck during the month of May,” Williams said. “As such, we encourage any resident who has been impacted by virus-related income or job loss to reach out to their housing provider immediately for financial assistance and payment options.”

Although the delinquency rate was higher in April by roughly 2% than in the first two months of the year, on-time payments in Colorado were seven percentage points higher than the nation as a whole.

CAA polled its members and found that only 3% of tenants had approached their landlord or property manager about a deferred payment plan. The association has called for renters to make their regular payments if they are able, explaining that only 9% of rent checks return to the housing provider on average.

More than one-third of a rent payment goes toward the property’s mortgage and 27% fund payroll expenses. Property taxes and building improvements constitute 14% and 10%, respectively, of a rent payment.

The federal CARES Act implemented a 120-day moratorium on eviction filings for buildings whose mortgage loans are federally backed. Various money transfers to individuals, such as a $1,200 tax credit to most adults and a $600 per week increase in unemployment benefits, were aimed at minimizing the financial impacts of business closures and stay-at-home orders.

In mid-March, Rep. Steven Woodrow, D-Denver, organized a letter signed by 40 state lawmakers, all Democrats, requesting that Gov. Jared Polis enact a 90-day moratorium on all eviction and foreclosure filings. So far Polis has only requested that evictions halt and has left it up to localities to enact a hard prohibition. A spokesperson for the governor told Colorado Politics that “suspending the sanctity of contract is not within the emergency powers of any governor or President.”

Woodrow counters that “to the extent the governor doesn’t believe he has the power to order this, there are those of us in legislature interested in exploring ways to provide him with such authority.”

He added that possible ideas include adding additional steps to the eviction process or suspending late fees. An eviction occurs only when a landlord is able to deny a tenant access to a dwelling. More typically, the eviction process results in the late payment of rent or a tenant leaving voluntarily.

“Many renters don’t know their rights or the process. The mere threat of legal proceedings is enough to get many people to leave,” said Woodrow. “While many landlords have been exemplary, others have unfortunately been less so. A clear directive would require everyone to work together on reasonable solutions.”