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Assessment Process
The Assessor is responsible for listing, classifying, and valuing all property in the county in accordance with state laws. Colorado law is very specific in establishing how Assessors value property:
- Real property must be revalued every odd numbered year
- The actual value of real property is based on its value as of the appraisal date, which is the June 30th of the year prior to the reappraisal year
- Residential property may be 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 to predict the price properties would have sold for on the Appraisal date
- For tax years 2019 and 2020, the assessor must use a minimum of the comparable sales between January 1st, 2017 and June 30th, 2018. However, the assessor may include and analyze additional sales that occurred up to five years preceding June 30th, 2018, adding sales in six month increments. Gunnison County typically uses a minimum of 24 months which includes all sales consummated after the previous reappraisal, and accounts for seasonal differences in the market. For the 2019 reappraisal, it was necessary to extend the time period to 5 years for commercial property, between 2 to 5 years for vacant land, and 2 to 3 years for residential improved, depending on the economic area and neighborhood
To return to the Assessor's page, click here.
To view more information on the various processes, click on the tabs below.
- Information Collection
- Economic Areas & Neighborhoods
- 2019 Reappraisal Sales
- Notice of Valuation
- Appeals Process
- Certification to Authorities
- Tax Warrant
Information Collection
The first step in the assessment process is to gather information on ownership, location, use, sales, building measurements, construction type, construction costs, and rental income.
Primary sources for this information are real property deeds and declarations, subdivision maps, building permits, and local building contractors. Other primary sources are declarations filed by owners of taxable personal property and appraisers who conduct on-site inspections to gather land and building characteristics. The assessor stores, updates, and maintains this information for current and future use in the assessment process. Other factors that influence value may be location, availability of services, and rental rates.
A property’s value may alter over time due to physical changes, such as new rooms finished in the basement or extensive remodeling and modernization. Changes made to maintain your property’s current value, such as painting your home, replacing your roof or making repairs would not necessarily increase the value of the property. But, if these tasks were not performed, the condition of the home would deteriorate which could adversely affect the value.
Most of the information gathered by the Assessor is public record and all of the public information available on individual properties is provided on our website through the property record search.
Economic Areas & Neighborhoods
Property types are generally self-explanatory, but economic areas and neighborhoods, when used for mass appraisal valuation, are not always so clear. An economic area is a grouping of neighborhoods that have similar economic forces or geographic location.
There also must be an adequate number of sales within each economic area to be statistically significant, and thus comply with the audit. Due to the relatively low number of sales in Gunnison County, there are only four economic areas. Economic area 1 consists of the City of Gunnison and its immediate surrounds. Economic are 2 is the Town of Crested Butte. The Town of Crested Butte is unique due to its National Historic designation and its stringent zoning and design rules. Economic Area 6 consists of the upper East River valley, from Jack's Cabin north. It excludes all areas that have seasonal access, such as Irwin and Gothic. Economic area 8 is the remaining county, predominantly rural in nature and without the economic drivers of the other three areas. View a link to the economic areas (PDF).
Neighborhoods are smaller subsets of economic areas. A neighborhood consists of properties with similar geographic features. Neighborhoods can encompass just one subdivision, or may include large acreages of unplatted land.
Property is revalued in Colorado every two years. Current values reflect Gunnison County market conditions on June 30, 2018, the reappraisal date. Property sales that occurred in the 24 to 60 month period prior to June 30, 2018 are used to set 2019 and 2020 values. These sales are listed in the spreadsheets on the following pages:
Economic Area 1 - Gunnison and Vicinity
Vacant Land
- Subdivision Sales
- City of Gunnison - Lot/Block
- Land Study - Meadow Tree
- Land Study - River
- Land Study - Sage
Residential Property
Economic Area 2 - Crested Butte
Vacant Land
Residential Property
Economic Area 6 - Upper East River Valley
Vacant Land
- Index and Vacant Land Values by LEA
- Subdivision Sales
- Land Study - Meadow-Sage: Lower East River Valley
- Land Study - Meadow-Tree Upper: East River Valley
- Land Study - River: Lower East River Valley
- Land Study - River: Upper East River Valley
- Land Study - Sage: All East River Valley
Residential Property
- Single Family Residence Sales
- Condominium Sales - Mt Crested Butte
- Condominium Sales - Skyland
- Condominium Sales - Riverbend
- Condominium Sales - CB South
Economic Area 8 - Rural Gunnison County
Vacant Land
- Subdivision Sales
- Land Study - Meadow-Tree: Good Access
- Land Study - Meadow Tree: Fair and Poor Access
- Land Study - River: Good Access
- Land Study - River: Fair and Poor Access
- Land Study - Sage: Good Access
- Land Study - Sage: Fair and Poor Access
- Land Study - Taylor River and Ohio Creek: On River
- Land Study - Taylor River and Ohio Creek: Off River
- Land Study - Marble and Crystal Area: On River
- Land Study - Marble and Crystal Area: Off River
Residential Property
Commercial Sales
Vacant Land
Improved Property
Notice of Valuation
The assessor is required to send a Notice of Valuation to property owners by May 1 of each reappraisal year (odd numbered years) for real property. During intervening years (even numbered years), only those real properties with a change in characteristics from the previous year receive a Notice of Valuation.
The notice describes the property you own, gives the actual value for both the prior and current year, and provides an opportunity for you to present your objection to the assessor. When you receive a Notice of Valuation, study it carefully! The value shown on the notice will affect the amount of taxes you will pay the following January. The deadlines for appeal are statutory and enforced.
If you feel the value the assessor has placed on your property is incorrect, you may wish to file a protest. This is not a complaint about higher taxes. It is an attempt to demonstrate that your property’s estimated market value is inaccurate. You have the right to appeal your property value or its classification each year. Procedures for appealing your assessment are provided in the tab to the left, "Appeals Process", including deadlines for filing your appeal.
Appeals Process
What is a Protest?
A protest is an opportunity to prove that your property’s estimated value is either inaccurate or unfair through the Assessor’s Office. The Gunnison County Assessor provides several options to appeal property value, but a protest may only be filed from May 1 to June 1 each year. Reasons for a protest might include:
- Items that affect value are incorrect on your property record. You have an unfinished basement, not finished. You have a carport, not a garage. Your home has 1,600, not 2,000 square feet
- The estimated market value is too high. You have evidence that similar properties have sold for less than the estimated market value of your property
- If the Assessor’s record of acreage or square footage of land is incorrect, a protest should be filed
Employees of the Assessor’s office have been trained to be polite and helpful. They will do anything within their means to help you get the information you need for a protest. Please view them as an ally, not an adversary.
If you think your value is correct, but your taxes are too high, this is an issue you must take up with the officials who determine budgets for each taxing authority. Taxes cannot be protested through the Assessor’s office. For more information, visit the Taxing Districts page of our website.
Step-By-Step Protest Procedures
- Prepare. Find your property identification number on your assessment notice. Use this number to view or obtain a copy of your property record from the Assessor’s Office. The information on all real property is also available on this website through the property record search function
- Review the facts on the property record. Is the architectural style correctly stated? If not, a recent photo of your home will help correct the information. Check the living area of your home, the size of your lot, the presence or absence of a garage or finished basement, the construction materials, the condition and so on
- Gather as much information as you can on similar properties in your neighborhood. A search of verified sales by subject property during the study period is available on our reappraisal sales web page. Or ask a real estate broker for sales prices on these properties during the study period. You may also review the entire sales database on this website, by choosing "Sales Search" or "Sales List" on the property record search page
- Use the account numbers or addresses of comparable properties to review their property record forms, which will include actual values. Compare the features of these properties to the features of yours. If there are differences, the values of the properties may be different
- If you are protesting the value of your business personal property, please see the information on Personal Property Protests below for applicable dates
Methods of Protest
Online
Online protests will be accepted through midnight on June 1. To preserve your right, your online protest must be time-stamped by the county server before midnight on that date. If you choose to file an online protest, you may email the Assessor.
If you choose to mail a written protest, you may elect to complete the protest form located on the Notice of Valuation. To preserve the right to protest, the real property protest must be postmarked not later than June 1. If June 1 falls on a Saturday, Sunday, or legal holiday, the protest is deemed to have been timely if postmarked on the next business day. If you don’t have a Notice of Value, a protest form (PDF) may be accessed.
Fax
A written protest may also be faxed to our office. Use the protest form located on your Notice of Valuation, complete, sign and fax to (970) 641-7920. To preserve your right to protest, your faxed protest must be received in our office no later than midnight on June 1. If you are faxing your protest on June 1, be sure to allow enough time in the event that others are also faxing their protests at the last minute. We will not accept any protest time-stamped after midnight on that date. If you don’t have a Notice of Value, a protest form (PDF) may be accessed.
In Person
If you wish to protest in person, please call the Assessor’s office at (970) 641-1085 to set an appointment. While we make every effort to accommodate walk-in appointments, we have a limited staff and cannot guarantee that an appraiser will be able to see you quickly without an appointment. We recommend that you make your appointment early in the protest period to ensure appointment availability that fits your schedule. Written protests may be presented in person no later than 5:00 p.m. on June 1. If you don’t have a Notice of Value, a protest form (PDF) may be accessed.
The appraiser conducting your meeting will review your property record with you, and will accept any information you have gathered. The appraiser will not commit to a change in value at this meeting, even though you may have uncovered an error or the assessment appears to be inequitable.
Personal Property Protests
Personal property Notices of Valuation are mailed no later than June 15. The Assessor conducts hearings on personal property valuation protests beginning June 15 and continuing through June 30. Protest procedures are identical to procedures for real property protests, although the dates are different. Written personal property protests must be postmarked on or before June 30. Hand delivered written protests will be accepted through 5 p.m., June 30 and faxed personal property protests will be accepted if date-stamped before midnight June 30.
Assessor’s Determination
IN 2020, THE ASSESSOR AND BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS HAVE ELECTED TO USE THE EXTENDED APPEAL PERIOD IN ACCORDANCE WITH §39-5-122.7, C.R.S. Property owners must appeal no later than June 1, 2020. The Assessor will mail Notices of Determination to those who have appealed on or before August 15, 2020. The County Board of Equalization will convene September 15 through October 31, 2020.
Appealing the Assessor’s Decision
If you disagree with the Assessor’s determination, you can file a written appeal with the County Board of Equalization(CBOE) on or before September 15 for real or personal property. The CBOE schedules and completes their hearings before October 31. The board must notify you in writing within five business days after their decision is made.
If you are satisfied with the CBOE decision, the process ends there.
If not there are three options:
- Go to binding Arbitration
- Appeal to the Board of Assessment Appeals (BAA)
- Go to District Court
You must appeal within 30 days of the CBOE decision.
If you choose Arbitration after the CBOE decision, the decision reached at Arbitration is final and not subject to review.
If you are satisfied with the decision rendered by either the BAA or District Court, the process ends there. If, however, the decision rendered by either the BAA or District Court is unsatisfactory, you may then appeal to the Court of Appeals within 30 days of the BAA decision or 45 days of a District Court decision. The only appeal beyond that is to the Colorado Supreme Court.
Protest / Appeals Calendar
| Process / Action | 2020 Appeal Deadlines |
| Assessor mails real property Notices of Valuation | Not later than May 1st |
| Assessor hears protests to real property valuation | May 1st through June 1st |
| Taxpayer mails written real property valuation protest to Assessor. Protests postmarked after June 1st cannot be accepted. Taxpayer hand delivers written real property valuation protest to Assessor before 5:00 P.M. Faxed or online protests will be accepted if date-stamped by midnight June 1st | Not later than June 1st |
| Assessor concludes real property protest hearings | Not later than June 1st |
| Assessor mails personal property Notices of Valuation | Not later than June 15th |
| Assessor hears protests to personal property valuations | Beginning June 15th |
| Taxpayer appears in person, mails, hand delivers or faxes personal property valuation protest to Assessor | Not later than June 30th |
| Assessor concludes personal property protest hearings | By July 5th |
| Assessor mails Notice of Determination on real and personal property protests | On or before August 15th |
| Taxpayer files a written real or personal property valuation appeal to County Board of Equalization (CBOE) | On or before September 15th |
| CBOE concludes hearings on property valuation appeals | Not later than October 31st |
| CBOE mails decisions on real and personal property appeals | Within 5 days of rendering decision |
| Appeals from CBOE decisions must be filed with BAA, district court or BOCC for binding arbitration | Not later than 30 days after CBOE decision |
Certification to Authorities
In August of each year, the Assessor certifies the total assessed value of all properties located within the boundaries of each taxing authority. Assessed values are calculated by multiplying the actual value by 29% for all property except residential. The residential assessment percentage is subject to change by the Colorado Legislature each odd numbered year. By Constitutional mandate, the change in percentage maintains the present balance of the tax burden between residential and all other taxpayers. The assessment rate is currently 7.15% on residential property.
These figures are used by the taxing authorities (PDF) to determine their mill levies. If there is any change in the assessed value due to Board of Assessment Appeal decisions, abatements or any other reason, these values are re-certified to the affected taxing authorities in early December to give them the most current figures for their calculations.
Tax Warrant
Once the property value is certified to the taxing authorities (PDF), they then determine their mill levies and submit them to the Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) for review by December 15th. The mill levies are approved by the BOCC and certified to the Assessor by December 22nd.
Upon receipt of the certified mill levies from the BOCC, the Assessor enters the mill levies and extends the calculations against the individual property assessed values. The resulting property tax for each account is collectively called the Tax Warrant, and is delivered to the Treasurer by January 10th.