Land for Sale in Chaffee County, CO

Chaffee County is in central Colorado along the upper Arkansas River, with 19,476 residents in the 2020 census (up from 17,809 in 2010) and 1,015 square miles. Salida is the county seat, with Buena Vista and Poncha Springs the other incorporated places. Many buyers here want to split a parcel, so this page spends its time on the rules for doing that: Colorado's 35-acre rule and the subdivision exemptions in the Chaffee County Land Use Code that took effect on January 1, 2025.

Chaffee County at a glance

County seat: Salida (a city). Towns: Buena Vista and Poncha Springs.
Census-designated places: Garfield, Johnson Village, Maysville, Nathrop and Smeltertown; unincorporated communities include Alpine, Granite, Hamilton, Princeton, Rockdale, St. Elmo and Stonewall.
2020 population 19,476; 1,014.95 square miles, of which 1.54 is water.
US 24, US 50 and US 285 and State Highways 291 and 306 serve the county.
Part of San Isabel National Forest, Browns Canyon National Monument and the Collegiate Peaks and Buffalo Peaks Wilderness areas lie in the county.

The Chaffee County land market

Land in Chaffee County runs from small lots in and around Salida, Buena Vista and Poncha Springs to valley ranch land and mountain parcels toward the national forest. Because the county includes national forest, a national monument and wilderness areas, some parcels can adjoin public land, which is a selling point for privacy and recreation and a due-diligence item for access: ask how the road reaches the parcel and whether it is a county road, a private road with a recorded easement, or a route across someone else's land.

Splitting a parcel: the 35-acre rule

Colorado's subdivision statute, C.R.S. 30-28-101(10), says that dividing land into parcels that each comprise 35 or more acres, with none intended for use by multiple owners, is not a subdivision under that part of the statute. That is why 35 acres is a common size for rural Colorado splits. It does not override zoning: a county can still set minimum lot sizes, access and water requirements, and the same statute lets a board of county commissioners exempt other divisions that are not within the purposes of the subdivision law. So a 35-acre tract is a starting point, and the Chaffee County Land Use Code decides what you can build on it.

Chaffee County's own exemptions (Land Use Code, effective January 1, 2025)

The county adopted a new Land Use Code on November 19, 2024, effective January 1, 2025 and amended September 16, 2025. Two limited exemptions matter to landowners. The agricultural subdivision exemption (Section 5.2.6.3) is meant to create one new lot from a single parcel while the rest keeps being used for agriculture or ranching. The approval criteria include that the property is used for agricultural or ranching purposes, that the remaining agricultural tract is at least 35 acres, that no other agricultural exemption was approved for any part of the property in the same calendar year, and that it has not already been used more than twice; a property can be divided this way three times before standard subdivision review applies. The new lot must meet the code, including minimum area, setbacks, easements and an access permit, and take access from a local road or minor collector unless that is shown to be infeasible. The heritage water subdivision exemption (Section 5.2.6.4) is for a property with an exempt well permitted before June 1, 1972: it allows one new lot or tract, the property cannot have been created through another subdivision exemption, and the plat carries notes that the remainder is not eligible for further exemptions. Local news coverage of earlier versions of these rules described them differently, so read the current code or ask Chaffee County Community Planning before you rely on either one.

Wildfire, hazards and short-term rentals

The Land Use Code has a section on wildfire hazard mitigation and a division on geologic and wildfire hazard areas, so ask the county whether a parcel falls in a mapped hazard area and what mitigation a new home would need. It also points short-term rentals to the county's Short-Term Rental Licensing Program (Appendix L). If you are buying land for a vacation rental, check the license rules before you price the lot.

Before you buy land in Chaffee County

Zoning district on the county zoning map and what the Land Use Code allows there, including minimum lot size.
Whether the parcel was already created by a subdivision exemption, and whether it can be split again.
Water: any well permit and its date, ditch or water rights that go with the land, and whether water is served by a town or district.
Legal access and road maintenance, and any access permit needed from the county or CDOT.
Wildfire and geologic hazard mapping, and flood zone.
Title, mineral rights and any recorded easements.

How to verify legal access to land Land due diligence checklist

Frequently asked questions

What is the 35-acre rule in Colorado?

C.R.S. 30-28-101(10) excludes from the definition of subdivision a division of land that creates parcels of 35 or more acres each, none intended for use by multiple owners. Zoning and other county rules still apply.

Can I split a lot off my Chaffee County land?

Possibly. Chaffee County's Land Use Code has agricultural and heritage water subdivision exemptions with specific conditions, and otherwise minor or major subdivision review applies. Ask Community Planning which one fits your parcel.