A New Mexico rental agreement is a legal contract between a landlord overseeing a rental property and a tenant using the property. New Mexico landlord-tenant law governs and regulates these agreements.
New Mexico Rental Agreement Types
A New Mexico roommate agreement is a legal contract between two or more people (“co-tenants”) who share a rental property according to rules they set, including for things like splitting the rent. This agreement binds the co-tenants living together, and doesn’t include the landlord.
New Mexico Required Lease Disclosures
- Landlord’s Name and Address (required for all leases) – New Mexico leases must contain the landlord’s name and address, or that of their authorized agent. This allows required communication (for example, about repairs) to happen in a smooth way. Typically includes additional contact information, such as phone numbers and email addresses.
- Late Fee Disclosure (required for some leases) – New Mexico limits late fees. Fee amounts cannot be more than 10% of the overdue balance. A fee that isn’t written in the lease can’t be enforced.
- Lead-Based Paint Disclosure (required for some leases) – Landlords must provide an EPA-approved disclosure and informational pamphlet to tenants renting any property built before 1978.
To learn more about required disclosures in New Mexico, click here.
New Mexico Landlord Tenant Laws
- Warranty of Habitability – New Mexico landlords can only rent out habitable property. This means providing certain basic health and safety features like heat, plumbing, and electricity. Landlords must repair any issues within seven days of proper notice from the tenant. Failure to repair lets a tenant sue the landlord, terminate the lease, or withhold a portion of the rent.
- Evictions – New Mexico landlords may evict for rent default, lease violations, or illegal acts, among other things. Before filing eviction, landlords must serve tenants with prior notice to pay, comply, or quit, depending on the eviction type. This means most evictions in New Mexico take between one week to more than one month.
- Security Deposits –New Mexico limits a security deposit to one month’s rent for property rentals under one year. There is no cap on leases of one year or more. If the landlord collects a deposit greater than one month’s rent, the tenant has a right to standard interest on the deposited funds. When the lease ends, the landlord has 30 days to return any unused portion of a tenant’s deposit.
- Lease Termination – New Mexico lets tenants end a month-to-month lease with 30 days of advance notice. Terminating a fixed-term lease usually requires active military duty, landlord harassment, uninhabitable property, or domestic abuse.
- Rent Increases and Fees – New Mexico doesn’t limit the amount of a rent increase. Before an increase, a landlord must give the tenant 30 days of advance notice. Late rent fees are limited to 10% of the owed amount. New Mexico requires a civil lawsuit for returned checks not paid within 10 days. A landlord may recover $100-$500 in damages per check.
- Landlord Entry – New Mexico landlords may enter rental property for reasonable business purposes, like repairs, inspections, and property showings. Advance notice before entering is 24 hours by default. There are exceptions for emergencies and certain landlord repairs and inspections.
- Settling Legal Disputes – New Mexico lets small claims courts hear landlord-tenant disputes, as long as the amount in controversy is under $10,000. The state does not allow evictions in small claims. The statute of limitations for most landlord-tenant issues is four years.
To learn more about landlord tenant laws in New Mexico, click here.
Additional Resources
- New Mexico State Renter’s Guide – New Mexico’s state Department of Health hosts this guide. It provides information useful to both landlords and tenants on the specifics of laws around leases and other rental situations.
Sources
- 1 N.M. Stat. § 56-14-1
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In any civil action against a person for drawing any worthless check, the plaintiff may recover from the defendant damages in the amount equal to one hundred dollars ($100) or triple the amount for which the check is drawn, whichever is greater; provided that damages recovered under this section shall not exceed the amount of the check by more than five hundred dollars ($500) and may be awarded only if:(1) the plaintiff made written demand of the defendant for payment of the amount of the check not less than ten days before commencing action; and(2) the defendant failed to tender to the plaintiff prior to the commencement of the action an amount of money not less than the amount demanded.
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