Home/Insights/Colorado in Numbers
Reference · Quotable Statistics · Updated October 2026

Colorado Commercial Property Tax, in Numbers

The numbers that decide Colorado commercial tax bills (assessment ratios, the appeal calendar, market medians, and what actually happens when owners appeal) on one page, each figure traced to a public source. Built to be cited.

By Charlie Young, Principal, former Managing Director at one of the nation's largest property tax firms · IPT, ULI & CREDA member · LinkedIn · Last verified August 2026

Assessment ratios (share of actual value that is taxed)

Commercial-classed improved property (offices, retail, lodging, warehouse): 27% (2025) → 25% (2026); 2024 was 27.9% (26.4% for renewable energy), with a temporary $30,000 actual-value reduction on commercial-classed property that did not apply to industrial. Industrial-classed improved property (manufacturing, processing, refining), vacant land, and business personal property: 26% (2026), meaning equipment now assesses a point above commercial-classed buildings and at parity with industrial-classed plants. Residential: 6.8% for local-government levies (after statutory relief of 10% of the first $700,000 of value) and 7.05% for school levies, which get no such relief (2026). From 2027: 25% for all nonresidential real property and all business personal property under current law, so industrial-classed property, vacant land and equipment drop a point to match commercial-classed buildings (C.R.S. § 39-1-104(1.9)(c), enacted by HB24B-1001; see the 2027 reappraisal). Ratios are statewide, set per tax year, which makes the ratio itself a classification check: assessed ÷ actual on your notice tells you what the county thinks your property is. The bill follows one formula: tax = actual value × assessment ratio × mill levy; at a representative 90-mill levy, a 2026 commercial building pays an effective ~2.25% of actual value.

The calendar

Colorado revalues every two years. For the 2027 reassessment: values are set as of the June 30, 2026 level-of-value data date; notices of valuation mail May 1, 2027; real-property protests are due June 1, 2027 (SB26-046, effective with the 2027 cycle). Business personal property runs its own lane every year: declarations April 15, notices June 15, protests June 30 (July 15 and July 31 from 2027 in counties using the alternate protest procedure, the nine over 300,000 in a reappraisal year), exemption $56,000 per county through 2026 and a flat $58,000 from 2027 (SB26-116). Abatements reach back two years; tax year 2024 closes permanently January 1, 2027. Full table: appeal deadlines.

What commercial property is worth on the rolls

Median assessor value per square foot across the 15 Colorado counties compiled, by type and building size (certified county rolls)
Size BandIndustrialOffice
Under 10,000 SF$185 (n=5,739)$230 (n=5,538)
10,000 to 50,000 SF$151 (n=4,334)$173 (n=1,870)
50,000 to 150,000 SF$125 (n=1,045)$164 (n=500)
150,000+ SF$105 (n=403)$137 (n=197)

The benchmark also covers hotels (ranked per key) and 50+ unit apartment communities (per unit); the table shows the two per-square-foot classes. Medians fall as buildings get larger, so every percentile in SVA's assessment check ranks within type and size band. County-level cohorts (80 in all, spanning 15 counties) are available in the checker.

What happens when owners appeal

From the state Board of Assessment Appeals public docket, all 8,058 commercial cases for tax year 2023: 61% settled by stipulation (the county agreed to a reduction), 37% were withdrawn, 1.4% were dismissed or closed without an order, and 0.7% (55 cases) were decided on the merits; of those 55, eight (one in a thousand filings) ended in a raised value. Across eight Front Range counties in 2025, decided-petition success rates ran from 6% (Adams) to 44% (Larimer), and in Douglas County owners who argued their hearings won 68% while waived hearings won nothing at the county level. Sources: the BAA analysis and the 2025 county results.

Business personal property, concentrated

Across 11 counties' public rolls (El Paso absent and two counties partial, so these are floors), the 1,384 largest BPP accounts (≈$500K+ assessed) carry an estimated $354 million in annual tax; 442 accounts pay an estimated $150,000+ each. Full analysis: Who Actually Pays Colorado's BPP Tax.

Cite this page: Strategic Valuation Advisors, Colorado Commercial Property Tax in Numbers (August 2026), svatax.com/colorado-commercial-property-tax-numbers.html. The figures may be reused under CC BY 4.0 with this citation and a link to this page. Every figure above traces to certified county assessor rolls, certified levy tables, Colorado Division of Property Taxation ratio schedules, enrolled session laws (SB26-046, SB26-116), or the state Board of Assessment Appeals public docket. Corrections welcome: charlieyoung@svatax.com.
Ratios and dates verified against enrolled statutes and Division of Property Taxation publications as of August 2026; medians computed from SVA's independent compile of certified county rolls (within-type, within-size-band cohorts, minimum 8 properties); appeal outcomes from public docket records. This page is informational and not legal or tax advice.

The same rigor, on your property

Every number above comes from the same public records SVA works from on engagements. Check where your building ranks (no account needed) or send your notice for a written read.

Check Your Assessment How Our Fees Work