Buying or selling in Denver
A buyer’s guide to the City and County of Denver: one set of records, the sewer line and floodplain, historic districts, schools, rail and short-term rentals.
Denver is a consolidated city and county, so one government holds the records that are split between a city and a county elsewhere in the metro. The assessor, the treasurer, the clerk and recorder, zoning and building permits all sit with the City and County of Denver. That keeps the jurisdiction question simple and moves the homework onto the house itself: its permit history, its sewer line, and whether it sits in a historic district or a floodplain.
One government, one set of records
The Denver Assessor's Office locates, appraises and records every property in the city, the Treasury Division of the Department of Finance collects the property tax, and the Denver Clerk and Recorder records deeds. There is no second county office to check.
Community Planning and Development reviews, permits and inspects development across the city. Its e-permits portal searches permit records, and Denver Maps shows the zoning for an address. Pull the permit history on any house with a finished basement, an addition or a converted garage. Work that should have been permitted and was not is a question for the seller before your inspection objection deadline, not after closing.
The sewer line, the water and the floodplain
Denver Water serves the City and County of Denver, and outside the city it provides residential water through contracts with local distributors. The sewer is split differently: the city is responsible only for the public sewer mains, and the service line from the house to the main belongs to the owner.
That makes a camera scope of the sewer line one of the most useful additions to an inspection on an older house, particularly one under mature trees. The guide to buying a 1970s house covers the line along with the wiring, panel and asbestos questions older houses raise.
Denver also runs a floodplain program and publishes flood information for property owners. A house in a mapped floodplain can need flood insurance for a loan and a floodplain permit for some work, so check the address before you offer rather than after.
Historic districts and landmarks
Denver's Landmark Preservation office publishes a list of historic districts, a list of individually designated landmarks and a landmark map, and it runs a design review process for historic properties with its own design guidelines. Designation attaches to the address, and a listing may not mention it.
If your plans include an addition, replacement windows or a new garage, find out whether the house is designated before you offer, and read the guidelines that would apply. The Denver homes for sale page goes further into the eras of Denver housing and what each asks of an inspection.
Schools, rail and short-term rentals
Denver Public Schools is the district for Denver addresses. Its SchoolChoice site covers boundary schools and enrollment zones, and the district, not a listing, is the authority on which schools an address maps to. Here is how to check which school district an address is in.
Several RTD rail lines start at Denver Union Station downtown, including the W Line west to Lakewood and Golden and the G Line northwest to Arvada.
Denver licenses short-term rentals only at the host's primary residence, which the city defines as the place a person's habitation is fixed and their usual place of return. A house you will not live in generally cannot be licensed for short stays, so check the current rules before a purchase depends on that income.
Current listings in Denver
For more Denver listings and the checks that matter by address, see Homes for sale in Denver.
What the Denver market is doing
Common questions about Denver
Which MLS covers homes for sale in Denver, Colorado?
Denver listings are published through REcolorado, so a portal wired to a different Colorado MLS sees Denver inventory second-hand, late or incompletely. The listings on this Denver page are read from the REcolorado IDX feed, which updates through the day.
Sources
The Denver guide above is checked against these, last reviewed September 11, 2026. Confirm a specific Denver address with the office named.
- City and County of Denver, How City Government Works
That Denver is a consolidated city and county.
- Denver Assessor's Office
That the assessor locates, appraises and records all real and personal property in Denver.
- Denver Treasury Division, Property Taxes
That the Treasury Division of the Department of Finance collects Denver property taxes.
- Denver Clerk and Recorder
That the Clerk and Recorder handles recording of deeds and other documents for Denver.
- Denver Community Planning and Development
That the department reviews, permits and inspects development citywide, its e-permits portal for permit records, and Denver Maps for zoning.
- Denver Water, service area
That Denver Water serves Denver and provides residential water outside the city through contracts with distributors.
- Denver Wastewater Management, FAQ
That the city is responsible only for the public sewer mains, not the private service line.
- Denver Department of Transportation and Infrastructure, Flood Information
The city's floodplain program and flood information for property owners.
- Denver Landmark Preservation, Historic Landmarks and Districts
The city's lists of historic districts and individual landmarks and its landmark map.
- Denver Landmark Preservation
That the office runs a design review process for historic properties, with design guidelines.
- Denver Public Schools, Boundary Schools and Enrollment Zones
The district's information on boundary schools and enrollment zones.
- RTD, W Line facts and figures
That the W Line runs from Denver Union Station through Denver, Lakewood and Golden.
- City of Arvada, G Line
That the G Line runs from Denver Union Station through northwest Denver to Arvada.
- Denver Business Licensing, Short-term rental FAQ
That a short-term rental license is available only at the host's primary residence, and how the city defines it.