The number everything depends on

What is the house actually worth?

Every other decision about the house rests on one number, and both of you have a reason to argue it. Here is which number Colorado courts use, when you need an appraisal, why the Zestimate is not evidence, and how to get a valuation both sides can accept.

Ask for a Smart Pricing Report The four options

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Valuation date

Decree or hearing

Colorado values property as of the decree or the property hearing, not separation (C.R.S. 14-10-113(5)).

CMA

Written, dated, both spouses

A comparative market analysis from a licensed agent, delivered to both sides at once.

Appraisal

$550 to $800 in Denver metro

A licensed appraiser’s opinion. The default when either side disputes the CMA, and what a lender needs anyway.

Zestimate

Not evidence

An algorithm that has never been inside the house. Useful for a hunch, useless in mediation.

The short answer

Colorado values the house as of the date of the decree or the property hearing, whichever comes first. The number itself comes from a licensed appraisal or a written comparative market analysis (CMA) from a real estate professional, or both. In a buyout the “buyout value” is the most argued number in the case, so get it in writing, from a neutral source, delivered to both spouses at the same time. If either side disputes it, order an independent appraisal and write into the agreement that the appraisal controls.

Which number does the court use?

Whatever the evidence supports. In an agreed case, the number the two of you write into the Property and Financial Agreement. In a contested case, the judge weighs appraisals and CMAs and can pick one, average them, or order a third. A number without a date and a signature is not evidence. A printout from a listing portal is not evidence.

CMA, appraisal or both?

A CMA (comparative market analysis)Recent sales of similar homes, adjusted for size, condition and location, by a licensed agent who has seen the house. Free from most agents. Our version is the Smart Pricing Report: a written, dated report with the comps, the adjustments and a range. Delivered to both spouses at the same time on a divorce file.

An appraisalA licensed appraiser’s formal opinion of value, $550 to $800 in the Denver metro. Required by any lender for a refinance or buyout loan. The default in mediation when the CMAs do not agree.

Two CMAs, then an appraisalA common compromise: each side gets a CMA, and if they differ by more than a set percentage, an appraisal controls. Write that rule in before the numbers exist.

A retroactive appraisalWhen one spouse owned the house before the marriage, an appraisal as of the wedding date sets the separate-property value; the growth since is marital.

Why the buyout value causes the most fights

The spouse keeping the house wants a low number (smaller buyout). The spouse leaving wants a high number (bigger check). Neither is lying; they are just reading the same comps differently. Two fixes work: an independent appraisal that both agree in advance will control, or a buyout price set at the midpoint of two CMAs with a small deduction for the selling costs the staying spouse will eventually bear. Some agreements deduct estimated selling costs (about 7 percent) from the value because the leaving spouse gets cash now while the staying spouse gets an illiquid asset; others do not. Decide it explicitly.

What moves the number

Condition and deferred maintenance. A roof at end of life or a furnace from 1998 is a real deduction, and the spouse keeping the house will pay for it. Brian Burke’s background is 25 years of construction and 13 as a multifamily superintendent; that is why our valuations come with a condition note.
The market between now and the decree. Denver-metro prices were flat year over year in August 2026 and attached homes were down almost 5 percent. Months matter.
Improvements made after separation. Track them; the paying spouse can ask for credit.
Whether the house has to be sold quickly. A forced 60-day sale rarely gets full value. This is another reason the refinance deadline matters.

Questions people ask on this page

Can I use the Zestimate to negotiate?

You can start a conversation with it. You cannot settle a case with it. Neither side’s attorney will accept it and neither will a lender.

Do we each need our own appraiser?

Not usually. One independent appraisal both of you agree in advance to accept is cheaper and faster than dueling appraisals and a hearing about them.

Can the agent who sells the house also do the valuation?

Yes, and on a neutral listing that is normal. The protection is that the valuation is written, dated, and delivered to both spouses at the same moment, and that any dispute goes to an appraisal.

Is a Smart Pricing Report free?

Yes. It is the same report we prepare for any seller, delivered to both spouses on a divorce file. There is no obligation to list with us.

Where to go next

Plain-language education, not advice. Divorce Decisions is published by The Kenna Real Estate Group at Keller Williams DTC, a real estate team. Nothing here is legal, tax, lending or financial advice, and reading it does not create any professional relationship. Colorado law and lender rules change; confirm anything that matters to your case with a licensed Colorado attorney, a tax professional, and your lender. See our full disclaimer.

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