Helpful Information

Duties of the Assessor

The assessor shall list all taxable real and personal property located within his/her county on the assessment date, other than that comprising the property and plant of public utilities. §39-5-101

Valuation Process

Residential property is valued using only the market approach to value. In this approach, the value of the subject property is based on an analysis of comparable sales. For tax years 2011 and 2012, the comparable properties must have sold between January 1, 2009 and June 30, 2010. However, if insufficient data existed during that timeframe, data from each preceding six-month period (up to a period of five years preceding June 30, 2010) may be utilized.

Most non-residential property, including personal property, is valued by consideration of the market approach, the cost approach, and the income approach to value. Please see “Property Valuation and Taxation for Business and Industry in Colorado” for additional information regarding non-residential property.

In May of every reappraisal year, Notices of Valuation are sent out by the 1st of May (June 15th for Personal Property). As the property owner, it is your responsibility to watch for these Notices, and to protest any inaccuracies on the Notice.

Protest Procedure

If you disagree with the value placed on your property by the Assessor’s Office, you have the right to protest your value within 30 days of the date on the Notice of Valuation (NOV). On the back side of your NOV, there will be a protest form, which you will need to fill out and return to the Assessor’s Office no later than June 1st. Once protests are received in the Assessor’s Office in writing, protests will be analyzed and a decision will be made. The Assessor’s Office has until the last working day in June to render a decision and mail out Notices of Determination to property owners who protested their value.

If your protest is denied, you can then file a protest with the County Board of Equalization (CBOE) by the July 15th for Real Property, and July 20th for Personal Property.

If your protest is denied by the CBOE you can then protest by arbitration, district court, or Board of Assessment Appeals within thirty days of CBOE decision.

Calculating Property Taxes

In the State of Colorado residential properties are assessed at 7.96% and vacant, agricultural, and commercial land is assessed at 29%. This means that if a particular property is residential, and does in fact have a livable residence on the property, the property owner will be taxed on 7.96% of the full actual value. This gives us an assessed value which is then multiplied by the levies for the taxing district the property lies in. This gives us the tax amount. See example below:

ACTUAL VALUE	X	ASSESSMENT RATE	=	ASSESSED VALUE	X	MILL LEVY	=	TAX AMOUNT
$100,000	X	7.96%	=	$7,960	X	.083231	=	$662.52
$50,000	X	29%	=	$14,500	X	.083231	=	$1206.85

See the Assessor’s Homepage for updated Abstract of Assessment and listing of mill levies for tax year 2010.

Personal Property Tax

Businesses in Colorado with a total actual value of $5,500 in personal property assets or more, are required to complete a Personal Property Declaration Schedule. Information that must be listed includes all assets owned as of January 1 along with information regarding the original date and cost of acquisition for those assets. It is the responsibility of the Personal Property Auditor to take the information provided by the property owner and calculate a value for each personal property account. A notice of Valuation is mailed by June 15 to notify the property owner of the value. If the property owner disagrees with the value on the Personal Property Notice of Valuation, he/she then has the option to protest that value to the Assessor’s Office. Further protest procedures are included with the Notice, and are listed below.

Information for Seniors & Disabled Veterans

In order to qualify for these exemptions, applicant must have a home on the property which must serve as primary residence for ten years prior to January 1 of the year of application. When funds are available the State reimburses local governments for lost revenue. Half of the applicant’s property value is exempted from the first $200,000 of actual value.

Property Tax Exemption for Seniors

This exemption is available to seniors age 65 and older. In order to qualify for this exemption, applicant must have a home on the property which has served as primary residence for ten years prior to January 1 of the year of application. This exemption is also available to a surviving spouse if he/she was legally married to a senior who met all requirements to receive the exemption. The surviving spouse must not be remarried, and the property must serve as primary residence.

Applications for this exemption are available in person and online from Assessor’s Office. Please remember to include a copy of identification (e.g., driver’s license, social security card, etc.) when turning in the application.

Property Tax Exemption for Disabled Veterans

This exemption is available to disabled veterans who have served for U.S. Military and sustained a service connected injury making the applicant 100% disabled and being honorably discharged. Applicant must have a home on the property which has served as primary residence for ten years prior January 1 of the year of application. Applications for this exemption are available on the Division of Veterans Affairs website or the Division of Property Taxation’s website.

These applications are also available in person and online from Assessor’s Office, however completed applications must be returned to the Division of Veteran’s Affairs.

Important Dates

Data Gathering Periods

Vacant Land - July 1, 2008 through June 30, 2010

Residential - January 1, 2007 through June 30, 2010

Commercial - July 1, 2005 through June 30, 2010

Tax Payment Due Dates

Please make tax payments to Costilla County Treasurer's Office

Single Payment (full) - April 30, 2011

1st Half Payment - February 28, 2011

2nd Half Payment - June 30, 2011

Notices of Valuations For:

Real Property Are Mailed Out - May 1, 2011

Protest Period to Assessor - May 1, 2011 through June 1, 2011

Notices of Valuations For:

Personal Property Are Mailed Out - June 15, 2011

Protest Period to Assessor - June 15, 2011 through June 30, 2011

Dates

Notices of Determinations Are Mailed Out - June 30, 2011

Protest Period to County Board of Equalization - June 30, 2011 through July 15, 2011