This is the question I get first, and the fear is usually worse than the reality. For most families selling a Colorado home they inherited, the tax bill is far smaller than they expect, because of one rule that resets the math entirely.
Colorado imposes no state estate tax and no inheritance tax. Nobody sends you a bill from the state simply for inheriting a house here. Federal estate tax exists, but it applies only to very large estates and is paid by the estate, not by you as an heir.
So the tax question that actually matters for most families is capital gains when the property is sold. That is where the next section comes in.
Normally, capital gains are calculated from what the original owner paid. For inherited property, federal law generally resets that starting point to the fair market value on the date of death. Decades of appreciation during your parent's lifetime effectively drop out of the calculation.
You are generally taxed only on the increase in value after the date of death.
Say a parent bought the house in 1985 for $70,000, and it was worth $500,000 on the date they died. You sell it eight months later for $515,000, with $35,000 in commissions and closing costs.
Change the numbers and the answer changes. The point is the shape of it: the gain is measured from the date of death value, and selling costs come off. This is why families are often relieved rather than alarmed once they see it worked out.
One nuance worth knowing: Colorado is a common law state, so when a property was jointly owned, generally only the deceased owner's share receives the step-up. A surviving spouse's own half typically keeps its original basis.
Federal. A sale of inherited property is reported as a long-term capital gain regardless of how long you personally owned it. Per the IRS instructions for Form 8949, you enter INHERITED as the acquisition date rather than a purchase date. That matters, because long-term rates are lower than short-term rates. Even if you sell three months after the death, you get long-term treatment.
Colorado. Colorado has a flat income tax rate of 4.4% for 2026, and capital gains are taxed as ordinary income at that same flat rate. Colorado does not offer a lower rate for long-term gains. There is a narrow state capital gain subtraction, but it is limited to qualifying agricultural real property for taxpayers filing IRS Schedule F, so it does not apply to a typical inherited home.
Document the date of death value while you still can
Your entire tax position rests on what the property was worth on the date of death. Establishing that with real evidence, ideally close to the event, protects you later. Families who wait years and then try to reconstruct it from memory are the ones who end up overpaying or arguing with the IRS. A licensed appraiser can provide a formal date of death appraisal, and your CPA can tell you when that is worth it. I can provide the recorded comparable sales at no cost.
Once you place an inherited property in service as a rental, depreciation enters the picture, and depreciation recapture can affect what you owe on sale. A 1031 exchange may also become available to defer gain on an investment property. This is genuinely CPA territory.
The federal home sale exclusion generally requires you to have owned and used the home as your primary residence for a qualifying period. Inheriting it does not automatically give you that exclusion, so if you have lived in it, get advice on whether you qualify.
Trusts have their own tax treatment and their own filing requirements, and the answer can differ depending on the type of trust. Ask the trustee's attorney and CPA rather than assuming it mirrors a probate estate.
It happens, particularly with older homes needing significant work, or when selling costs exceed post-death appreciation. A loss on inherited property may be deductible in some circumstances, which is another reason to have your basis documented.
Each heir generally has their own basis in their share and reports their own portion. See the guide on inheriting a house with siblings.
Paying off a mortgage at closing is not itself a taxable event. The mortgage affects your net proceeds, not the gain calculation. The gain is based on sale price against basis, regardless of what is owed.
I will pull the recorded sales closest to the property, which are actual closed prices rather than online estimates, and put together a written review you can hand to your CPA or your attorney.
This is the single most useful thing you can do early, whether or not you sell soon, and whether or not you ever work with me.
Questions first? Call or text 303-647-4188.
Recorded comparable sales, sent within one business day.
Please read this part. I am a real estate broker, not a CPA or a tax attorney, and this page is general information rather than tax advice. Tax outcomes depend on facts specific to you, including how the property was titled, whether it was ever rented, and your own income. The numbers in the example below are illustrative only. Confirm everything with a tax professional before you act on it. I am glad to refer you to local CPAs and estate attorneys at no fee or obligation to me.
The starting point. Whether probate is required, how it is taxed, and the three ways to sell.
How to move forward when heirs want different things, including what a partition action really means.
You do not have to empty it or repair it. What as-is does and does not mean.
Verified August 2026. Tax law and rates change, and this is general information rather than advice. Confirm with a CPA.