When you buy a home inside the Town of Crested Butte, the closing includes a 3% real estate transfer tax on the full purchase price. Buy up the road in Mt. Crested Butte and that line doesn't exist. The cause isn't a policy choice either council made recently. It's a vote Crested Butte took in 1991, one year before Colorado's constitution shut the door on new transfer taxes.
That gap now matters more than it has in years. On November 3, 2026, 22 days from today, voters in both towns will decide on tax measures. Crested Butte's would add a yearly charge on homes that aren't a primary residence. Mt. Crested Butte's would raise the tax its short-term rental guests pay. If both pass, each town moves further into the model it already uses.
What the 3% Does at Closing
Crested Butte's Land Transfer Excise Tax sits in Town Code Chapter 4, Article 4. Its key provisions:
- It applies to the whole price. No tax is due when the consideration is $500 or less. Above that, the tax is 3% of the entire consideration. It isn't calculated only on the amount over $500. At a $1.5 million price, that comes to $45,000.
- The buyer is on the hook alongside the seller. Under § 4-4-20, the purchaser is jointly and severally liable with the seller. The code doesn't say which side customarily pays under a purchase contract. That gets settled in the contract.
- The deed won't record until it's paid. The tax is due when the transfer instrument is delivered. Closing agents may collect and remit it, and the document can't be recorded until the tax, plus any penalties and interest, is paid.
- Exemptions are tied to the type of transaction. They include gifts, transfers at death, divorce transfers, qualifying partitions between co-owners, and certain entity reorganizations. The code lists no general exemption for primary residences. Claiming an exemption usually requires a Town Manager certificate attached before recording.
- Entity buyers get no easy workaround. Transferring 17% or more of the stock or ownership in an entity that holds Town real property is specifically excluded from the reorganization exemption.
The town tax page and § 4-4-90 split the money in half. One half goes to the Capital Fund, limited to streets, lower-cost housing, parks, and community centers. The other half goes to open space preservation and access outside the town's 1991 boundary.
A Vote Taken One Year Before the Door Closed
Crested Butte's first transfer tax passed in 1979. It was built around how long the seller had owned the property: 0% after 10 or more years of ownership, rising to 5% for a sale within the first year. In 1991, voters replaced that sliding scale with a flat 3%, split between capital and open space.
The next year, Colorado voters approved TABOR. Article X, Section 20(8)(a) says it plainly: "New or increased transfer tax rates on real property are prohibited." So Crested Butte can't raise its 3%, and towns without a transfer tax can't add one.
Mt. Crested Butte is on the second list. During a May 2024 council discussion reported by the Crested Butte News, town attorney Gerry Dahl said the town could not propose a real estate transfer tax because the state constitution had eliminated new ones in the early 1990s.
Crested Butte isn't unusual among resort towns. The Colorado Sun reported in 2022 that voters in 12 mountain communities approved transfer taxes in the 1970s and 1980s, before TABOR. The towns it named include Aspen, Avon, Breckenridge, Telluride, and Vail. Crested Butte and Mt. Crested Butte share one ski area and sit on opposite sides of that 1992 cutoff.
Mt. Crested Butte Sends the Bill to the Guest
With transfer taxes off the table, Mt. Crested Butte pays for housing through lodging. The town lists a 4.9% excise tax on short-term rentals, in addition to its 5% sales tax, for a combined lodging rate of 18.8%. The guest pays it. Depending on who handles reservations, the homeowner or property manager remits it, and Airbnb and some VRBO bookings remit directly. According to the Crested Butte News, the excise revenue goes to the town's community housing fund, not its general fund.
Ballot Issue 2A would add 5% to that excise, for a total of 9.9%, starting January 1, 2027. The increase applies only to rentals under 30 days on properties the Gunnison County Assessor classifies as residential. The cap is $2.5 million in the first year, with proceeds dedicated to creating and keeping community housing. In council debate, councilmember Bruce Nation argued that residential rentals shouldn't have a tax advantage over hotels. He also said the council would rather see short-term rentals near the base area and transit than in residential neighborhoods.
The measure targets one specific kind of owner: someone who rents a residentially assessed home by the night. A Mt. Crested Butte owner who never rents short term wouldn't see 2A in their own costs.
Why Crested Butte Wants a Second Revenue Line
A tax collected only when property sells rises and falls with sales volume. Crested Butte's audited statements show $2,534,386 in transfer tax revenue for 2024. A June 1, 2026 staff report puts 2025 at about $3.31 million and projects about $2.25 million for 2026. From 2012 through 2025 the average was $3.14 million, with a low of $1.3 million in 2019 and a high of $4.2 million in 2021. Staff call the revenue "highly volatile" and say it "cannot be relied upon for recurring operations."
That volatility is the background for Ballot Question 2B. It's an annual excise tax on residential parcels that aren't a primary residence and on vacant land, with every dollar going to the Capital Fund. Paired with the transfer tax, it would add a yearly carrying cost to the one-time closing cost, and the yearly cost doesn't depend on whether anyone sells.
| Crested Butte, Ballot Question 2B | Mt. Crested Butte, Ballot Issue 2A | |
|---|---|---|
| Who it reaches | Owners of residential parcels that aren't a primary residence, plus vacant land | Short-term guests at residentially assessed rentals under 30 days |
| Structure | Flat yearly amount by total residential square footage | Adds 5 points to the 4.9% STR excise, for 9.9% total |
| Amounts | Under 1,200 sq. ft.: $1,400. 1,200 to 2,200 sq. ft.: $2,400. Over 2,200 sq. ft.: $3,400. Vacant land: $3,000. Indexed to inflation. | Rate-based, applied to the rental charge |
| First-year revenue stated | $1.25 million in fiscal 2027 | Up to $2.5 million, beginning January 1, 2027 |
| Where it goes | Capital Fund | Community housing |
The Longevity Question Came Back
The 1979 tax rewarded long ownership. Forty-seven years later, the same idea is the main open question in 2B.
For months, Crested Butte's council discussed exempting long-time second-home owners based on how many years they've owned in town. As the Crested Butte News reported, the council said those exemptions could total about $250,000. That's why the ballot allows up to $1.25 million in the first year against an intended net of about $1 million.
A court challenge argued that the ballot title didn't tell voters an exemption was planned. At an August 26 special meeting, the council voted to keep the ballot language as written, and it also agreed not to adopt an implementation ordinance before the election. The Crested Butte News reported that the challenge was withdrawn the next day. Town attorney Karl Hanlon told the council that, with no ordinance before November 3, voters would be voting on exactly the ballot language as it stands.
So the published question has no exemptions in it. Exemptions, if there are any, would come later in an ordinance the council has said it would take up only if voters approve. How primary residence would be defined is also unsettled. An August 5 report described the town manager's goal as primary occupancy by an owner or renter for at least six months, and said the approach had moved away from a strict day count.
Separately, the town's long-range finance page mentions a possible General Fund property tax rebate for homes held by the same individual or family for 25 years or more, averaging about $180 per residence. It's described as under consideration, not adopted.
The Gunnison County TABOR notice includes both arguments. The supporting summary calls 2B a reasonable contribution toward town infrastructure that could discourage homes from sitting vacant. The opposing summary says exemptions and who ultimately pays are still unclear, and raises legal and administrative costs.
Questions Buyers Ask About This
Does Mt. Crested Butte charge any fee when a home sells? The town attorney said in 2024 that the town could not propose a real estate transfer tax. The town does charge a $1,441 impact fee on building permits. That's a development charge, not a charge on sales.
Could Crested Butte raise its transfer tax instead of passing 2B? TABOR prohibits increased transfer tax rates. What the council has discussed is reallocating the existing 3%, for example shifting part of the open space half toward capital or housing. That would redirect money without raising new revenue.
Is a deed-restricted home in Crested Butte exempt from the 3%? The code has no blanket exemption for deed-restricted homes. In December 2025 the council clarified an existing exemption so the town wouldn't pay transfer tax twice when it buys a deed-restricted unit to update its restrictions before resale.
When would a 2B bill first arrive? The ballot names fiscal 2027 as the first full year of collection. No town source we found gives a billing date.
If you're weighing a purchase on either side of the town line before or after November 3, Michelle Rampelt can show you how the transfer tax, the ballot outcomes, and your rental plans would affect what you actually pay to own there. Let's Connect.
This article is general information, not legal, tax or financial advice. Consult a qualified professional about your situation.
