All about taxes in Colorado Springs (COS)! Colorado Springs is considered a very low tax area of the country to live, especially compared to other major cities. Our taxes are paid in several pieces. Check out this hand tool to calculate tax rates!
- State Income Taxes – The state income tax rate is 4.63% for 2018. It is primarily based on your Federal taxable income, so the state tax form is very simple to complete. Pretty much anything that is deductible for Federal taxes is also deductible for state purposes. For more information see the Colorado Department of Revenue web site.
- Sales Taxes – In the Colorado Springs area, sales tax is 8.20%.
- Property Taxes – Property taxes vary a lot based on where you live. Property taxes are the main source of revenue for schools in Colorado. GENERALLY, we plan for property taxes to be roughly 0.75% of the market value of the home. This is higher in certain areas where Special Improvement districts exist (such as Flying Horse Ranch, where the planning figure is closer to 1.25%) and lower in some of the older sections of the city (particularly in school district 11), where the figure is often closer to 0.5%. Because valuation is not precise and tax rates vary significantly, the only way to know for sure what taxes will look like is to check the assessors office information for a specific property.
Current City Sales & Use Tax Rate:
Effective January 1, 2021, the City of Colorado Springs sales and use tax rate has decreased from 3.12% to 3.07% for all transactions occurring on or after that date.
The combined amount is 8.20%, broken out as follows:
- 3.07% City of Colorado Springs (self-collected)
- 2.00% General Fund
- 0.10% Trails, Open Space and Parks (TOPS)
- 0.40% Public Safety Sales Tax (PSST)
- 0.57% 2C Road Tax
- 2.90% State of Colorado
- 1.23% El Paso County
- 1.00% Pikes Peak Rural Transit Authority (PPRTA)
- Restricted Use: TOPS, PSST, 2C Road Tax
- Collected by the Colorado Department of Revenue: State of Colorado, El Paso County, and PPRTA
Office Location (8am-5pm, M-F)northwest corner of Colorado and Nevada, downtown Colorado Springs
City of Colorado Springs / Sales Tax Office
30 S Nevada Avenue, Suite 203Colorado Springs, CO 80903
TABOR
Colorado enacted something called the Taxpayers Bill of Rights (TABOR) in 1992 that severely limits the ability of government at any level to raise taxes without taxpayers voting on it. TABOR has forced a significant level of discipline into local government spending, although it has also forced some very difficult decisions during hard economic times. Essentially, voters must approve all tax increases and the bill provides a cap on the amount of revenue that can be retained and spent.
We are considering moving to COS. The taxes one the homes are around $25kper year for a $379,000 house, What in the world???That is over $2000/mo just for taxes! Why???? Is there any relief for retired people on a fixed income?
Hi Kristina,
I don’t think that is the correct quote for taxes on a home in Colorado Springs. To calculate your property taxes, you will need to use this formula:
Calculating Your Assessed Value
& Estimated Taxes
$150,000 (Market Value) x .0715 (Current Residential Assessment Rate) =
$10,720 (Assessed Value)
then:
$10,800 (Assessed Value) x .054454 (Mill Rate) = $583.74 (Estimated Taxes Due)
For more information, please visit the El Paso County Assessor Website where you can type in a property address to get its tax rate: https://assessor.elpasoco.com/residential-real-estate/
Typically, homes around $350k will run about $1200/year in taxes, give or take depending upon the area (some areas have much higher tax rates). Hope this helps!
Also, here is the exemption for qualifying seniors:
The Deadline to apply for tax year 2021 payable in 2022 is July 15th!
In November 2000, Referendum A, also known as the Senior Homestead Exemption Act, was approved as an addition to the Colorado Constitution. The Act took effect as of January 1, 2002, for property taxes payable in 2003 and will remain in effect every year hereafter. Specifically, the Act grants an exemption (reduction) up to one-half of the first $200,000 in market value from property taxes for a qualifying residential owner, if funding is available.
If I relocate to Colorado Springs while telecommuting to a job in California, will I have to pay Colorado income tax as well as California income tax?
Hi Patricia! I am not a tax professional, but this link might help: https://www.optimataxrelief.com/live-work-pay-taxes/#:~:text=The%20easy%20rule%20is%20that,tax%20returns%20for%20both%20states.&text=One%20exception%20occurs%20when%20one%20state%20does%20not%20impose%20income%20taxes.
I know military spouses have an exemption to this rule called the military spouses residency relief act if that applies to you.
Thank you Megan!
You’re very welcome!
the accessor link is not working. How can I use the mil levy to figure property taxes for the year?
Try this one: https://assessor.elpasoco.com/