Tools for Settling an Estate in Colorado

After a death in Colorado, the estate either qualifies for the simplified procedure for estates under $88,000 or goes through probate, where creditors have 4 months to file claims after notice.

All Planning ahead Settling an estate

25 tools for Colorado

How Much Does Probate Cost?

Probate on a $500,000 estate in Colorado costs an estimated $26,082. Attorney fees run 2% to 3.1% of the estate under a reasonable-compensation standard.

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How Much Can an Executor Charge?

Colorado pays executors reasonable compensation, typically 2.2% to 3.8% of the estate.

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Who Inherits Without a Will?

Without a will in Colorado, a surviving spouse takes the entire estate when every child of either spouse is a child of both, and descendants divide what passes to them per capita at each generation.

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What's Fair Trustee Compensation?

In Colorado, trustee compensation follows "reasonable compensation" (UTC § 708 or equivalent) unless the trust instrument sets a different amount.

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How Much Are Estate & Inheritance Taxes?

Colorado levies no estate or inheritance tax; only the federal estate tax applies above $15,000,000.

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How Many Death Certificates Do I Need?

In Colorado, certified death certificates come from the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment - Vital Records; the first copy costs $25, additional copies $20 each.

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Do I Need Probate?

In Colorado, estates with personal property of $88,000 or less skip probate with the Collection of Personal Property by Affidavit, 10 days after death.

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What Taxes Apply to My Inheritance?

Colorado imposes no inheritance or estate tax; probate assets arrive when the estate closes, 4 months to 6 months for a simple estate.

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How Does Step-Up in Basis Work?

Inherited assets in Colorado take a basis reset to fair market value on the date of death, and the gain on a later sale faces ordinary income tax at the state's regular rates.

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What Are the Estate Laws in My State?

Probate on a $500,000 estate in Colorado costs an estimated $26,082 and takes 4 months to 6 months for a simple estate, with attorney fees of typically 2% to 3.1% of the estate. Estates under $88,000 can use a small-estate procedure instead.

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What Are the Burial and Cremation Laws in My State?

Colorado allows you to name your own agent in a signed, written document, and that designation takes priority over the statutory order of next of kin who otherwise control disposition of the remains.

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How Do I Sign Estate Documents?

Find witness, notary, and remote signing requirements for all 50 states.

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Will My Estate Documents Transfer?

Check if estate planning documents signed in one state are valid in another.

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Can I Self-File Probate?

In Colorado, informal probate is available, and a self-represented executor can usually handle it for a simple, uncontested estate.

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How Do I Get Appointed as Executor?

In Colorado, the District Court of the county where the decedent lived appoints the personal representative and the Probate registrar in informal proceedings issues Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration; an informal (registrar) track is available.

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What Are the Creditor Claim Deadlines?

In Colorado, creditors have 4 months from first publication of the creditor notice to present claims; late claims are barred.

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What Happens When an Estate Is Insolvent?

When an estate owes more than it holds, Colorado pays the claims in 10 classes in statutory order, beginning with property held by decedent as fiduciary or trustee.

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How Do I Open an Estate Account When Someone Dies?

Compare estate-account opening requirements bank by bank: channels, required documents, and steps.

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How Do I Open a Trust Account at My Bank?

Compare trust-account requirements bank by bank: how a revocable trust account is opened or retitled, and what proves the trust.

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When Do I Have to Withdraw an Inherited IRA?

See which federal withdrawal rules apply to an inherited IRA, Roth IRA, or employer plan, the deadline year, and the missed-withdrawal tax.

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Settling an estate in Colorado means gathering the assets, notifying creditors, paying debts and taxes, and distributing what remains to the beneficiaries. Assets in a living trust settle privately without the court. An estate that needs probate takes 6 months to 9 months on average, and the creditor claim period of 4 months is the floor. In a probate case the inventory of estate assets is due within 90 days of appointment.

Colorado uses Petition for Formal Probate of Will and Formal Appointment of Personal Representative (JDF 920) (JDF 920), filed with the District Court of the county where the decedent lived. Probate registrar in informal proceedings issues Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration after the court grants the petition.

The creditor claim period of 4 months runs from the first publication of the creditor notice, which follows the executor's appointment. Distributing assets before the period has run can leave the executor personally liable for a claim that arrives later.

Colorado allows executors 'reasonable compensation' — around 2.2%–3.8% of a $500,000 estate, judging by what the states with statutory schedules pay. Courts consider the size and complexity of the estate, the time spent, and the executor's skill and experience. Executors can waive the fee entirely or accept a reduced amount.

Settling a trust in Colorado starts when the successor trustee accepts the role: the trustee obtains death certificates and an EIN for the now-irrevocable trust, notifies the beneficiaries within 60 days, takes inventory of the trust assets, settles the grantor's debts and taxes, and distributes what remains under the trust terms. The process runs privately, without probate court supervision.

Tools for Settling an Estate in Colorado

The tools on this page cover an administration from the first week to the last distribution. The first weeks are the death certificate count, the burial and cremation rules, and whether the estate needs probate at all. The executor tools follow the court track: what probate costs and how long it takes, whether the estate can be self-filed and at which county court, the creditor claim deadlines, what an executor can charge, how an estate account is opened at a specific bank, and what happens when the estate cannot pay its debts. The trustee tools cover the settlement of a trust and the trustee's compensation.

Colorado pays executors reasonable compensation, typically 2.2% to 3.8% of the estate. In Colorado, the inventory is due within 90 days of appointment, the personal representative is discharged automatically once the statutory period runs, and a simple estate closes in 4 months to 6 months.

SimplyTrust Editorial·Updated September 15, 2026

Legal Sources

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Data sourced from Colorado statutes and official state code. How we research.