Assessor's Office

The Colorado Constitution and state laws of Colorado established real and business personal property assessment procedures and requirements. The values determined by the Assessment Division for real and personal property are used in the calculation of property tax bills. The revenue raised through these property taxes is used to help pay for all public services including police, schools, libraries, and fire protection.

For residential properties, Division appraisers study the sales of homes similar to yours which sold within a specific 24-month period. For commercial and industrial properties, the cost, market and income approaches are considered and for business personal property, values are based on the asset information submitted directly by business owners.

Under Colorado law, all real property (land, buildings, improvements, etc) must be re-appraised every two years. This occurs in each odd-numbered year (2021, 2023, etc). The Assessment Division studies the prices of properties which sold during the 24-month period ending on June 30 of the year prior to the reappraisal. For example, 2023 values are based on properties which sold between July 1, 2020, and June 30, 2022. New values are set each year for personal property owned by businesses based on the information annually submitted by the taxpayers on personal property declarations.

The Assessment Division does not set property taxes or collect payments.  However, we can provide the following general information about how your most recent property tax bill (2023 taxes payable in 2024) was calculated and how to estimate taxes.

To calculate taxes, Actual Value is adjusted by any applicable “Value Reductions” and the appropriate Assessment Rate to determine its Assessed Value.  For 2023 the Value Reductions and Assessment Rates are as follows:

                                                         Value Reduction (per parcel)              Assessment Rate

Residential property                                     $55,000                                      6.7%

Commercial improved property                    $30,000                                    27.9%

All other property                                                   $0                                    27.9%

The Assessed Value (less any exempted amount) in next multiplied by the applicable Tax Rate.  In Colorado, tax rates are expressed as a decimal fraction of a dollar for every one dollar of Assessed Value.  Known as a mill levy, or mills, one mill is 1/1,000^th of a dollar or $0.001 (1/10^th of a penny).  Mill levies greater than one mill are typically written as a whole number followed by three digits to the right of a decimal point. 

For 2023, Denver’s combined general mill levy including Denver Public Schools and the Urban Drainage District is 77.486 mills or a tax rate of 0.077486 for every $1 of assessed value.

For 2023, the typical single family home was valued at about $631,800.  As a result, the property tax calculation using this valuation is as follows:

              (Actual Value less Value Reduction) x Assessment Rate x Mill Levy (Tax Rate) = Taxes

                            ($631,800 - $55,000 = $576,800) x 0.067 x 0.077486 = $2,994.49

Likewise, for 2023, an example of a commercial improved property (a commercial structure) using $1,000,000 for the Actual Value is as follows:

($1,000,000 - $30,000 = $970,000) x 0.279 x 0.077486 = $20,970.04

In order to determine new values for residential property (including single-family, multi-family and apartment properties) all Colorado assessors are required by law to use only the market approach to value. For 2023 property values, the sales prices of homes similar to yours which sold between July 1, 2020, and June 30, 2022, were studied.  If the sales prices of those homes went up, then the actual value of your home likely showed an increase.

The Assessor does not set property taxes or mill rates. Property taxes are determined by multiplying a property's assessed value by the millage or mill rate. Mill rates are set in December of each year by the various taxing authorities (City and County of Denver, Denver Public Schools, and any special districts).

State laws as well as other voter-approved measures impact the mill rate that is eventually adopted by each taxing authority. It is not possible to determine whether property taxes will increase or decrease until the various mill rates are determined in December of each year.

The Assessor determines the “actual” (or market) value for all real and personal property.  The actual value is then reduced by any applicable “value reductions” and by a percentage (known as the assessment rate) to derive the “assessed” value.  The basic formula is as follows:

              Actual Value (as determined by the Assessor)

              Less (-) Value Reduction (if applicable)

              Equals (=) Reduced Actual Value

                            Reduced Actual Value (from above)

                            Multiplied by (x) Assessment Rate

                            Equals Assessed Value

See FAQ “How are my property taxes calculated” for more specific examples.  

Information Management Team
Information Management (I.M.) Reps are available to assist the public Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m.- 4:30 p.m. Information provided includes property ownership (owner name, mailing address, legal description, etc.) for real estate, as well as such items as the property characteristics for homes, including the style, year built, number of bedrooms and baths, square foot of living area, lot size and zoning. The  historical "chain of title" (names of previous owners) pre-dating website data (prior to 1987) is available from the Denver Public Library. Current maps of the neighborhood or the full subdivision are also available from the website or from the Division's GIS Mapping Team. Additional assistance in these matters is available from the website, the 311 Call Center at 720-913-1311 or in person at the front counter on the fourth floor of the Webb Building.