Now that the 2017 income tax season is over, why not focus on another tax issue - like property tax calculations in Sterling Ranch! I know, I know, the last thing many of us want to focus on are property taxes - which is why I tried to make this Roundup post as clear, simple, and most importantly, short as possible.
First, let's walk through the formula used to calculate your property taxes. To calculate property taxes in Douglas County, you need to know three things:
(1) the assessed value of your property, as calculated by the Douglas County Assessor,
(2) the assessment rate on your property, and
(3) the applicable mill levy.
Once you know these, you simply multiply the three numbers, and bingo, that's your property tax payment.
To calculate the assessed value, you take whatever the value of your home is per the Douglas County Assessor. Let's pretend that number is $500,000. Multiply $500,000 times the current assessment rate, which is 7.20%. This totals $36,000, which is your assessed value. Now you have (1) and (2) for your property tax formula.
As a quick aside, as I noted above, 7.20% is the current assessment rate. Not so long ago the assessment rate was 7.96%. The assessment rate is established by the legislature every odd numbered year - so, long story short, you should be aware that the assessment rate, and frankly all the numbers, formulas, and everything else in this Roundup post, are fluid and subject to change. Check out the disclaimer at the bottom of this Post for more information.
Back to the formula. Next, take $36,000 and multiply it by .165542 (this is your mill levy, by the way - more on that number in a minute ). And bingo, you now know you pay $5,959 in property taxes.
Here's the formula:
$500,000 (home value I made up) x 7.2% (assessment rate) = $36,000 (assessed value)
$36,000 x .165542 (mill levy) = $5,959 in taxes.
Now you might be wondering where your property taxes go, and what the heck that mill levy thing is. Well, currently, there are 12 separate taxing authorities that assess what's called a mill levy against properties in Providence Village, per the Douglas County Assessor's Office website. These are the 12:
(1) Sterling Ranch Colorado Metro District
(2) Douglas County Re-1 School District
(3) Douglas County Government
(4) South Metro Fire Rescue Fire Protection District
(5) Douglas County Schools - Debt Service
(6) Douglas County Law Enforcement
(7) Douglas Public Library District
(8) Urban Drainage & Flood Control District
(9) Urban Drainage & Flood South Platte
(10) Douglas County Schools - Cap Reserve
(11) Douglas County Schools - Insurance Reserve
(12) Douglas County Soil Conservation District
These 12 taxing authorities assess 165.542 mills (or for calculation purposes, .165.542 mills) on, for example, this beautiful Wonderland Meadowlark home. The Sterling Ranch Colorado Metro District (88.444 mills); the Douglas County Re-1 School District (30.942 mills); and the Douglas County Government (19.774 mills) are the the biggest tax entities for the Meadowlark and therefore Providence Village. The other 9 combine for the approximately 25 remaining mills.
So there it is - a short and sweet post on property taxes! I know this can be confusing, but the good news is that one of the services I can provide you as your Sterling Ranch realtor is detailed pricing projections for your new Sterling Ranch home. Builders often provide rough estimates for some costs and taxes, but understandably supply chain pricing changes, future labor availability, not knowing what the final assessed value of your home might be, whether tax formulas might change before your house is completed, the unpredictability of what you'll select at the design center after you go under contract, and so on can make them wary about predicting your final price at the level of detail you might want.
If you want to know what I think the real final projected price of that Parkwood, Lennar, Wonderland, or other Sterling Ranch builder's home you're dreaming about might be, including property taxes, CAB fees, lot premiums, and so on, well, let's just say having helped clients build over 50 new homes in the past three years, I can help! Shoot me an e-mail any time at mariel@focus-realtors.com. And if you'd like to learn more about how a realtor fits into the Sterling Ranch new build process, and what my fees are (spoiler, my services are free to you!), check out this post.
Last, last but not least, keep in mind that while the information in this Roundup post is accurate with respect to Providence Village property taxes to the best of my knowledge as of the date of publication, I can't provide tax advice or opinions on taxes, and I certainly can't guarantee that all of the information in this post is accurate. I'm by no means a tax professional, but I do know that tax amounts, and the nature, amount, and calculation of taxes, and tax jurisdictions and tax authorities, can and do change all the time, and your taxes can be dependent on any number of specific facts, and you should not rely on this Roundup post in any way. Please contact a tax professional for more detailed information about your specific tax situation. Don't believe what you read on the Internet! Etc. (My lawyer made me write this :)).
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