Can a New Mexico HOA Foreclose Over Dues?

New Mexico's lien rules sit in two parallel statutes — one for HOAs, one for condos. The Homeowner Association Act "does not apply to a condominium governed by the Condominium Act" (§ 47-16-15(C)). Both create real liens, and both contain features owners need to understand before the dispute escalates. For your specific situation, a licensed New Mexico attorney is the right resource. This is general information, not legal advice.

Can a New Mexico HOA put a lien on my home?

Yes. Under NMSA ch. 47, § 47-16-6, a New Mexico HOA has a lien on a lot for any assessment or fine from the time it becomes due, so the lien is automatic. If the association has not recorded its notice of homeowner association, § 47-16-4(D) suspends its authority to enforce a lien for unpaid assessments until it does.

Under the New Mexico Homeowner Association Act, the association has a lien on a lot "for any assessment levied against that lot or for fines imposed against that lot's owner from the time the assessment or fine becomes due." Two important features:

• The lien is automatic — it arises when the assessment or fine becomes due
• The lien expressly reaches fines as well as assessments
• It depends on a recorded notice: under § 47-16-4(D), if an association fails to record its notice of homeowner association, its "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 until the notice of homeowner association is recorded"

That makes a contested fine something to address through the § 47-16-18 hearing process before it gets folded into a growing lien claim.

Is there a minimum debt before a New Mexico HOA can foreclose?

No. Under NMSA ch. 47, § 47-16-6, the HOA lien may be foreclosed in like manner as a mortgage, and the Homeowner Association Act sets no minimum dollar amount, minimum months-delinquent period, or fines-only bar. A 2025 bill, HB 440, proposed those limits but never became law.

Section 47-16-6 of the Homeowner Association Act provides that the association's lien "may be foreclosed in like manner as a mortgage on real estate," and that "[r]ecording the declaration constitutes notice recorded in the office of the county clerk … and perfection of the lien" — so recording the declaration is what perfects the lien.

New Mexico's HOA Act does not set a minimum dollar amount, a minimum months-delinquent period, or a fines-only bar before an association may foreclose. (A 2025 bill, HB 440, proposed exactly those limits — no foreclosure on debt under $5,000, under 12 months delinquent, or consisting solely of fines — but after a House committee reported it with a do-pass recommendation on February 22, 2025, it went no further and never became law.) Because the HOA lien in New Mexico reaches both assessments and fines and can be foreclosed like a mortgage, the § 47-16-18 fine-dispute process is the statutory route for contesting a fine before it is folded into a lien. Unlike the condo provision below, the HOA Act sets no time limit after which the lien is extinguished.

Section 47-16-6 also runs the other way: on written request, the association must furnish a recordable statement of the unpaid assessments against the lot "within ten business days," and that statement "is binding on the association and the board."

Can a New Mexico condo association put a lien on my unit?

Yes. Under NMSA ch. 47, § 47-7C-16, a Condominium Act association's assessment lien also reaches fees, charges, late charges, fines and interest unless the declaration provides otherwise. Recording the declaration perfects the lien with no further recording of a claim of lien required, and the lien may be foreclosed in like manner as a mortgage on real estate.

The Condominium Act "applies to all condominiums created within this state after the effective date of that act" (§ 47-7A-2(A), enacted in 1982). An older condominium stays under the Building Unit Ownership Act unless "a resolution to that effect is approved by a majority of the unit owners and is then recorded" (§ 47-7A-2(B)). For condominiums under the Condominium Act, the lien provision in § 47-7C-16 gives the association several distinctive features:

• The lien reaches fines and charges. Under (A), "[u]nless the declaration otherwise provides, fees, charges, late charges, fines and interest charged pursuant to Section 47-7C-2 NMSA 1978 are enforceable as assessments under this section."
• Recording the declaration perfects the lien. "Recording of the declaration constitutes record notice and perfection of the lien. No further recordation of the claim of lien for assessment under this section is required." The lien is in place from the start.
• Equal priority among association liens. "Unless the declaration otherwise provides, if two or more associations have liens for assessments created at any time on the same real estate, those liens have equal priority."
• Foreclosed like a mortgage. "The association's lien may be foreclosed in like manner as a mortgage on real estate."
• Subordination by declaration. "To the extent provided in the declaration, the lien established by this section shall be subordinate to other liens or encumbrances" (H).
• Three-year limitations period. "A lien for unpaid assessments is extinguished unless proceedings to enforce the lien are instituted within three years after the full amount of the assessments becomes due."
• Fee-shifting. A judgment in a lien enforcement action "may include costs and reasonable attorney's fees for the prevailing party" — which cuts in both directions.

How long does a New Mexico condo lien last?

Generally three years. Under NMSA ch. 47, § 47-7C-16, a condo lien for unpaid assessments is extinguished unless proceedings to enforce it are instituted within three years after the full amount becomes due. Only the lien ends: the section does not bar actions to recover the sums or the association taking a deed in lieu of foreclosure.

The three-year limitations period in § 47-7C-16 is worth circling. Only the lien ends, though: under § 47-7C-16(E), the section "does not prohibit actions to recover sums for which Subsection A of this section creates a lien or prohibit an association from taking a deed in lieu of foreclosure."

What people generally do

In a New Mexico assessment-debt situation, the statutes point to these items:

• A written payoff and the association's records under § 47-16-5 show exactly what is owed.
• Disputed fines and undisputed assessments are treated separately — though in New Mexico the lien reaches both.
• For condo communities, the date of each unpaid assessment matters against the 3-year limitations period in § 47-7C-16.
• The fee-shifting provision in § 47-7C-16 cuts both ways.
• A licensed New Mexico attorney is the resource while options remain open.

Sources

• NMSA Chapter 47, Article 16 — Homeowner Association Act (§§ 47-16-4, 47-16-15, 47-16-18)
• NMSA § 47-16-6 — HOA lien; foreclosure in like manner as a mortgage
• NMSA §§ 47-7A-2, 47-7C-16 — Condominium Act applicability; lien for assessments