Two people buying a car together decide, without realising it, what happens when one of them dies. Colorado's default is tenancy in common, which sends a half share into an estate; joint tenancy with rights of survivorship sends the whole vehicle to the survivor on a death certificate. This form is how the choice is made, and the sentence that matters is printed on it: if any owner chooses Tenancy in Common or if neither box is checked, the Colorado Certificate of Title will be issued as Tenancy in Common.
Written against DR 2383 (03/24/25), issued under C.R.S. 38-11-101 and 42-6-116. This is a form about death, filed at the moment of a purchase, and it is the only Colorado vehicle document where doing nothing produces a definite legal result. Neither box checked means tenancy in common, in writing, on the form itself.
Two documents, and they are not the same thing. Take the blank DR 2383 from the dmv.colorado.gov copy so you get the revision that is current today.
This is all 2 pages of the actual DR 2383, rendered from the PDF the Colorado Department of Revenue, Division of Motor Vehicles publishes and completed end to end: letterhead, every field, and the blocks at the foot.
Vehicle identification number, year, make and model on page one, and the identification number again at the head of page two.
Watch out: The second page carries three owner blocks and nothing else identifying the vehicle. Filling in its header is what keeps the sheets together.
The name after the word I, spelled as it will appear on the certificate.
Watch out: The same spelling that goes into the buyer's block on the back of the title and onto the title application. Three documents, one spelling.
Joint Tenancy With Rights of Survivorship, or Tenancy in Common.
Watch out: Read the two definitions printed above first. Survivorship needs a death certificate and the survivor's signature; tenancy in common needs a court-appointed personal representative.
Under a certification made under penalty of perjury in the second degree, citing C.R.S. 42-6-116.
Watch out: Each owner signs their own block. Nobody signs for anybody else here, even with a power of attorney over the vehicle.
The identical block - print name, one tick, signature and date.
Watch out: Both owners have to tick the same box. One survivorship and one tenancy in common produces tenancy in common for both of them.
Two more identical blocks at the foot of page two.
Watch out: Leave them empty on a two-owner vehicle rather than writing not applicable across them. An alteration or erasure may void the document.
| On the form | What to put in it |
|---|---|
| The two definitions | Joint tenancy with rights of survivorship - at the death of one co-owner, the surviving co-owner becomes sole owner, and transfer requires a copy of the death certificate and the signature of the survivor. Tenancy in common - the deceased share goes to their estate, and transfer requires documents appointing a personal representative for the decedent. |
| Any Alteration or Erasure may Void this Document | Printed under the statutory citation at the top. |
| Vehicle Identification Number (V I N) | At the head of page one and repeated at the head of page two. |
| Year, Make, Model | One rule under the identification number. |
| Owner One | A Print Name rule following the word I, then two tick boxes - Joint Tenancy With Rights of Survivorship, or Tenancy in Common - and a signature and date under a certification made under penalty of perjury in the second degree. |
| Owners Two, Three and Four | Three identical blocks on page two, so a vehicle can be held by up to four people. |
| The default sentence | Its own line above the first owner block, and it is the operative rule of the form. |
Every line here was read off DR 2383 (03/24/25) itself — the PDF is here — and off the Colorado Department of Revenue, Division of Motor Vehicles pages. This is plain-language help with a form, not legal advice, and where our wording and the agency's differ, theirs governs.
Back to all Colorado seller paperwork, or what selling a car in Colorado involves.