Getting Your New Mexico HOA's Records

New Mexico's Homeowner Association Act lists specific records the association must make available and sets a dollar consequence for stalling. The Act "does not apply to a condominium governed by the Condominium Act" (§ 47-16-15(C)). For your specific situation, a licensed New Mexico attorney is the right resource. This is general information, not legal advice.

What records can I get from my HOA in New Mexico?

All the association's financial and other records. Under NMSA 1978, ch. 47, § 47-16-5, these include the declaration and bylaws, the member list, five years of association and board minutes (other than executive sessions), the current budget and assessments, financial statements and accounts, the most recent audit or review, current contracts, insurance policies, and electronic records of board action.

Under § 47-16-5(A), "[a]ll financial and other records of the association shall be made available during regular business hours for examination by a lot owner within ten business days of a written request." Under (B), the association "shall not charge a fee for making financial and other records available for review" and may charge "not more than ten cents ($.10) per page for copies." Subsection (C) says "financial and other records" includes:

• The declaration and bylaws, and the name, address and telephone number of the association's designated agent
• The names and addresses of all association members
• Five years of meeting minutes of association and board meetings (other than executive sessions), plus five years of records of actions taken by a committee in place of the board or on behalf of the association
• The operating budget for the current fiscal year
• Current assessments
• Financial statements and accounts, including bank account statements, transaction registers, association-provided service or utility records, and amounts held in reserve
• The most recent financial audit or review, if any
• All current contracts entered into by the association or the board on behalf of the association
• Current insurance policies
• Any electronic record of action taken by the board

The five-year window on minutes lets a member look back through enforcement history, not just the current year. Separately, § 47-16-7(F) requires the board to give all lot owners, with the annual budget, a statement "listing all fees and fines that may be charged to a lot owner by the association or any management company retained by the association," and § 47-16-7(E) requires a copy of the budget to go to all lot owners "[w]ithin thirty calendar days after adoption."

How long does a New Mexico HOA have to provide records?

Ten business days after the association receives a written request. Under NMSA 1978, ch. 47, § 47-16-5, missing that deadline creates a rebuttable presumption that the association willfully failed to comply, and a lot owner denied access is entitled to the greater of actual damages or $50 per calendar day, starting on the 11th business day.

If the association fails to provide access to financial and other records "within ten business days after receipt of a written request," § 47-16-5(D) provides that this "creates a rebuttable presumption that the association willfully failed to comply with the Homeowner Association Act."

What gives the deadline practical force is the dollar consequence. Under § 47-16-5, a lot owner denied access is entitled to "the greater of the actual damages incurred for the association's willful failure to comply with this subsection or fifty dollars ($50.00) per calendar day, starting on the eleventh business day after the association's receipt of the written request." Two months of stalling beyond the deadline can mean roughly $3,000 at the statutory rate, subject to the association's ability to rebut the presumption that its failure was willful.

Section 47-16-5 gives a start date for the per-day amount but states no end date or upper limit. The clock runs from when the association received the written request, so a dated, traceable request matters.

What owners may request

Because subsection (C) says the records "include" the listed items and subsection (A) covers "[a]ll financial and other records," the list is not the outer limit. Items owners may ask about include:

• Annual budgets, reserve studies, financial statements and audits
• Bank statements, vendor contracts, and bids
• The community documents, adopted rules, and the § 47-16-7(F) fee-and-fine statement
• Five years of board and member meeting minutes
• Current insurance policies and contracts
• Assessment ledgers and lien notices for the lot

Records can also bear on other disputes, such as questioning a fine or the assessment lien.

For the recorded documents themselves

The recorded community documents are available from the county clerk's office. Because in New Mexico the recorded documents can shape the association's fining authority (§ 47-16-18) and recording the declaration perfects the association's lien (§ 47-16-6), the recorded declaration bears on both.

What people generally do

For owners seeking New Mexico records, the statute points to these items:

• The 10-business-day deadline runs from a written request (§ 47-16-5(A), (D)).
• The per-day amount runs from the association's receipt of that request, so the date of receipt can matter.
• Review is free; copies cost no more than ten cents a page (§ 47-16-5(B)).
• The $50-per-day amount begins on the 11th business day.
• If no response arrives, a licensed New Mexico attorney is the resource — both the rebuttable presumption and the dollar penalty are then in play.

Sources

• NMSA § 47-16-5 — Record disclosure to members; updated information
• NMSA § 47-16-7 — Board members and officers; duties; budget
• NMSA § 47-16-15 — Applicability