New Mexico HOA Laws: What Homeowners Need to Know in 2026

New Mexico’s Homeowner Association Act (NMSA 1978, 47-16) governs every homeowner association in the state, whenever formed, but not condominiums, which fall under the Condominium Act. The rule buyers feel first: the association’s disclosure certificate costs at most $300, and you may cancel within seven days of receiving it.

Which New Mexico statute governs your community

Under 47-16-15, the Act “shall apply to all homeowner associations created and existing within this state,” with two limits. First, 47-16-9 (proxy and absentee voting), 47-16-10 (financial audit) and 47-16-14 (attorney fees) do not apply to an association created before July 1, 2013 that has fewer than thirty lots, although any amendment to such an association’s community documents must comply with the Act. Second, the Act “does not apply to a condominium governed by the Condominium Act”; its “declaration” excludes condominium and time-share instruments (47-16-2(J)).

The recorded notice behind an association’s power to collect

Every association must record a notice of homeowner association with the county clerk: within thirty days after its declaration is recorded if organized after July 1, 2013, and before June 30, 2014 if organized earlier (47-16-4). Until it is recorded, the association’s authority “to charge an assessment, levy a fine for late payment of an assessment or enforce a lien for nonpayment of an assessment shall be suspended” (47-16-4(D)).

Liens, fines and the 14-day hearing notice

The association has a lien on a lot for assessments and for fines against the owner from the moment each comes due, and “the full amount” of an installment assessment is a lien from the first installment. The lien “may be foreclosed in like manner as a mortgage on real estate,” and the recorded declaration itself perfects it (47-16-6(B)–(C)). On an owner’s written request, the association must furnish within ten business days a recordable statement of unpaid assessments, binding on the association and board (47-16-6(D)).

Unless the community documents provide otherwise, the association may fine an owner, or suspend common-area privileges, for violations other than failure to pay assessments only after written notice and a chance to dispute. Before a fine or suspension, the board must give the person fourteen days’ written notice of a hearing before the board or a committee, or of the chance to submit a written statement. If a majority does not approve, nothing may be imposed. No notice or hearing is needed for a violation posing an imminent threat to public health or safety (47-16-18, as amended by Laws 2026, ch. 62, effective July 1, 2026).

The condominium lien in 47-7C-16 differs: it is “extinguished unless proceedings to enforce the lien are instituted within three years,” and it is subordinate to other liens “to the extent provided in the declaration.”

Board meetings, budgets and ten business days for records

• An annual meeting at least once every thirteen months, with written notice 10 to 50 days before; board meetings noticed at least 48 hours ahead along with drafts of proposed policy resolutions (47-16-17).
• Owners may attend and speak at open meetings; closing any part is limited to legal advice from the board’s or association’s attorney; pending or contemplated litigation; or personal, health or financial information about an individual member, employee or contractor (47-16-17(E)).
• Each owner gets the budget within thirty calendar days of adoption, plus a list of all fees and fines the association or its manager may charge (47-16-7(E)–(F)).

Records must be open during regular business hours within ten business days of a written request (47-16-5). The twelve categories in 47-16-5(C) run from the declaration and bylaws through five years of owner and board minutes (executive sessions excepted), bank statements and transaction registers, reserves, current contracts and insurance policies. Review is free and copies cost no more than ten cents a page. Missing the deadline creates a rebuttable presumption of willful noncompliance and entitles the owner to actual damages or $50 per calendar day from the eleventh business day, whichever is greater (since July 1, 2019).

Selling a lot: the disclosure certificate and the seven-day exit

Before closing the seller hands over the declaration (minus plats and plans), bylaws, covenants, rules and the association’s disclosure certificate (47-16-12(A)). The association must produce the certificate within ten business days of the owner’s written request and may charge up to $300, collected at closing and only if the sale closes (47-16-12(B), (H)). Its contents are the twelve items of 47-16-2(M): any right of first refusal or other restraint on resale; the monthly assessment and any unpaid regular or special assessment the seller owes; other fees owners pay; capital expenditures approved for this fiscal year and the next two; reserves, including amounts earmarked for approved projects; the latest balance sheet and income and expense statement, if any; the current operating budget; unsatisfied judgments and pending suits; insurance covering owners and the board; any recorded alterations to the lot that violate the declaration; the remaining term of any leasehold affecting the association; and a contact person.

Delivery is due no later than seven days before closing; the buyer then has seven days from receipt to cancel (47-16-11), by hand delivery or prepaid U.S. mail; all payments come back within fifteen days (47-16-13). The buyer owes no more in unpaid assessments or fees than the certificate shows, prorated to closing. Its figures for assessments and other fees are good for sixty days; after that, an update costs up to $50 and is due within three business days. Exempt from the certificate: transfers under court order, transfers by a government or governmental agency, foreclosures and deeds in lieu, and any deal the buyer can cancel at any time, for any reason, without penalty (47-16-12(F)).

Flags, solar collectors and home child care

An association may not adopt or enforce a flag restriction stricter than applicable federal or state law or county or municipal ordinance (47-16-16, since July 1, 2015). Under 3-18-32(B), a covenant in an instrument effective after July 1, 1978 that “effectively prohibits the installation or use of a solar collector is void and unenforceable.” Since July 1, 2026, an association may not effectively prohibit or unreasonably restrict use of a lot as a registered or licensed child care home, or charge such a home a fee not charged to every lot, apart from uniform fees tied to documented costs. Conflicting association rules yield to state licensing requirements as far as needed, with reasonable accommodations that do not materially impair the association’s protection of owners’ health, safety or property. Uniformly applied rules on parking and traffic, noise, safety, architecture, and use of common elements still bind it (47-16-18(B)–(D)).

New Mexico HOA questions

Can my association foreclose over fines?

Yes: the 47-16-6 lien covers fines as well as assessments and is foreclosed like a mortgage. The fine itself must first clear the notice and hearing steps in 47-16-18.

Does the Act reach a subdivision from the 1980s?

Yes. Only an association created before July 1, 2013 with fewer than thirty lots skips three sections, those on proxy and absentee voting, the three-year audit and attorney fees, and even its later document amendments must comply.

What if the board ignores my records request?

From the eleventh business day you may claim $50 per calendar day or your actual damages, whichever is greater.

More for New Mexico: New Mexico housing hub, New Mexico closing costs in 2026, New Mexico homeowner insurance, selling a house in an HOA, HOA glossary entry. Session law: 2026 SB 96.