Assessor's Office
Business Personal Property Section
The Personal Property Section of the Assessor's Office establishes values for business personal property (the assets owned by businesses) located in the City & County of Denver.
By April 15 of every year, businesses in Denver with a total actual value greater than $4,000 are required to send the Personal Property Section a declaration listing all the assets they owned as of January 1, along with information regarding the original date and cost of acquisition for those assets. Even if assets were disposed of after January 1, they must be declared because current Colorado law does not provide for prorated assessments. The Personal Property staff takes the information provided by the taxpayer and calculates a value for each business; a Notice of Valuation is mailed by June 15. If the value appears incorrect, the taxpayer has the opportunity to protest their assessment; protest instructions are included with the Notice of Valuation.
PERSONAL PROPERTY AUDITS
The Personal Property Section of the Assessor's Office is required by the State Board of Equalization to conduct an annual personal property audit program. If selected for a routine personal property audit, a company will be asked to provide such standard accounting documents as a general ledger, chart of accounts, depreciation schedules, purchase documentation, etc. The primary purpose of the audit is to ensure that all assets have been declared, and that correct acquisition dates and costs for those assets were also declared. Many audits result in a finding that everything was declared properly, and no adjustments are needed.
A MESSAGE TO OWNERS OF SMALL BUSINESSES
If you own a new small business in Denver, you might be exempt from personal property tax, in accordance with 39-3-119.5 of Colorado Revised Statutes. Under this law, you are not required to file the annual personal property declaration form if the total actual value (market value) of all your personal property in Denver (the assets owned and used for your business) is $4,000 or less. However, if your business is new to Denver and you have never filed a personal property declaration with the Denver Assessor's Office, please file a listing of all of your company's machinery, equipment, furniture and other personal property, so that the Assessor's Office can verify whether you do qualify for the exemption, and can then set up your business with an exempt status.
New business owners may be unaware of the basic rules and procedures regarding the personal property assessment process, so please review the information at the top of this page, and feel free to call the Personal Property Section at (720) 913-4067.
EXEMPTIONS FROM ASSESSMENT
Organizations which have non-profit status for federal IRS purposes are not automatically exempt from local personal property assessments. To obtain such exemption status, organizations which are charitable, educational, or religious in nature must apply to the State Division of Property Taxation at 303-866-2371.