By Prerna Kapoor, CLHMS | REAL Brokerage | June 21, 2026
Most people I meet who qualify for Colorado’s senior property tax exemption have no idea it exists. I’ve sat at closing tables in Parker and Highlands Ranch with sellers in their 70s, owners who had been in the same house for decades, and when I mentioned the exemption they looked at me like I’d handed them a coupon they were never told about. So let’s fix that.
If you’re 65 or older and you’ve owned your home for a while, Colorado may let you knock a big chunk of value off your property tax bill every year. It isn’t automatic. You have to apply, and the deadline lands in the middle of summer, which is exactly when it tends to slip people’s minds.
What the exemption actually does
The Colorado senior homestead exemption removes 50% of the first $200,000 of your home’s actual value from the property tax calculation. In plain terms, that’s up to $100,000 of value that simply doesn’t get taxed.
It helps to see how that flows through. Your county assessor takes your home’s actual value, applies the state residential assessment rate, then multiplies by your local mill levy to get your bill. The exemption shrinks the value at the very first step, so every step after it gets smaller too. The state reimburses your county for the lost revenue, so your local schools and services don’t take the hit. And good news for this year: the exemption is fully funded for 2026, after several past budget cycles where the legislature suspended it.
Who qualifies: the three tests
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There are three boxes you need to check, and all three have to be true:
Age. You have to be at least 65 years old as of January 1 of the year you apply. For the 2026 tax year, that means a birthday on or before January 1, 2026.
Ownership. You, or your spouse, must have owned the property for at least 10 consecutive years. A few situations preserve that clock, like a home held in a trust you control, or property passed to a surviving spouse.
Occupancy. It has to be your primary residence, and you have to have lived there for those same 10 consecutive years. Colorado treats the place you’re registered to vote as a strong signal of where you actually live, so keep that consistent.
There’s a separate version of this exemption for veterans with a service-connected disability rated 100% permanent, and it doesn’t carry the age or 10-year rules. Surviving spouses of those veterans and of qualifying seniors can sometimes step into the benefit too. If any of that might apply to you, it’s worth a phone call to confirm.
How much it can save you
The honest answer is that it depends on your mill levy, which varies by where you live and which districts your home sits inside. Two homes worth the same amount in different parts of Douglas County can have different bills because of local metro districts and school levies.
What stays constant is the mechanism: up to $100,000 of actual value comes out before the math even starts. For most owners in the south Denver suburbs, once you run that through the residential assessment rate and a typical local mill levy, you’re looking at a few hundred dollars off your annual bill, every year you qualify. Over a decade in the same home, that adds up to real money, which matters a lot if you’re on a fixed retirement income and watching every line item. Colorado property taxes have been climbing across the metro, so any structural break like this one is worth grabbing. I wrote more about that broader trend in my guide to Colorado’s 2026 property tax increases.
How and when to apply
You apply through your county assessor’s office, not the state. The form is short. You’ll confirm your age, your ownership history, and that the home is your primary residence.
The deadline is July 15 of the year you want the exemption to apply. Miss it, and you generally wait until the next year. Here’s the part people love: once you’re approved, you don’t have to reapply every year. The exemption stays in place as long as you keep living in the same home and your situation doesn’t change. If you move, you start fresh and the 10-year clock resets on the new property, which is one more thing to factor in if you’re thinking about downsizing.
You can find the application and the current rules straight from the source at the Colorado Division of Property Taxation, or call your county assessor directly. Douglas, Arapahoe, and El Paso county assessors all post the form online.
The mistakes I see people make
The first one is simple: assuming it happens on its own. It doesn’t. Nobody mails you a reminder, so the application is on you.
The second is resetting the clock without realizing it. I’ve worked with owners who sold and bought again across town, fully qualified for years, then had to wait another decade in the new place. If you’re close to the 10-year mark, sometimes staying put a little longer is the move. That’s a personal decision, and it’s one worth talking through before you list. If you’re weighing a sale and want to understand the tax side completely, my guide to capital gains tax when selling a Colorado home pairs well with this one.
Quick answers
Do I have to reapply every year?
No. Once your county approves you, the exemption continues automatically as long as you keep living in the same home and your eligibility doesn’t change.
What’s the deadline for 2026?
July 15, 2026. You file with your county assessor, not the state. If you miss it, you generally wait until the following year.
Does selling and buying a new home affect it?
Yes. The 10-year ownership and occupancy clock is tied to the specific property, so moving resets it on your new home. Factor that in before you decide to sell.
Prerna Kapoor | REALTOR® | Luxury Home Specialist
REAL Brokerage | 720-949-5450 | info@prernakapoor.com
CLHMS • RENE • PSA • ABR | International Sterling Society Award Winner
Prerna specializes in residential real estate across Parker, Aurora, Lone Tree, Castle Pines, Highlands Ranch, Cherry Creek, Greenwood Village, and Centennial. She speaks English, Japanese, and Hindi.
