New Mexico · Article CONDO
New Mexico Condominium Act (NMSA 47-7A-1 to 47-7D-20) — Plain-English Summary
Every section of this body of law translated into plain English for New Mexico board members and homeowners.
General provisions
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§47-7A-1
Names Articles 7A through 7D the Condominium Act. Condos created after May 19, 1982 live here. Subdivision HOAs live under Article 16. Pre-1982 condos stay u…
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§47-7A-11
If any part or application of this Act is held invalid, the remainder, and its application to other situations or persons, is not affected.
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§47-7A-12
If a contract or clause was unconscionable when made, the court may refuse to enforce the contract, enforce the remainder without that clause, or limit the c…
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§47-7A-13
Every contract or duty governed by this Act imposes an obligation of good faith in its performance or enforcement.
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§47-7A-14
Remedies are administered liberally so the aggrieved party is put in as good a position as if the other party had fully performed. Consequential, special, or…
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§47-7A-2
This Act applies to all condominiums created in New Mexico after its effective date (May 19, 1982). The Building Unit Ownership Act does not apply to post-19…
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§47-7A-3
Defines unit, common elements, limited common element, association, declarant, allocated interests, conversion building, development rights, time share, and …
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§47-7A-4
Except as this Act expressly allows, its provisions may not be varied by agreement and its rights may not be waived. A declarant may not dodge the Act or the…
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§47-7A-5
The association elects whether the entire property is taxed as a single parcel (the association is then deemed the owner and notifies unit owners of the tax …
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§47-7A-6
This Act does not invalidate local zoning, subdivision, or building-code law. A local ordinance may not prohibit the condominium form of ownership or impose …
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§47-7A-7
If a unit is taken, or a remnant is left that cannot be used as the declaration permits, the award compensates the unit owner for the unit and the common-ele…
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§47-7A-8
Law and equity — including corporations, real property, contract, agency, eminent domain, fraud, and mistake — supplement this Act to the extent they are not…
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§47-7A-9
This Act is a general act intended as unified coverage of its subject. Do not treat later legislation as impliedly repealing, amending, or expanding it if th…
Creation, alteration, and termination
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§47-7B-1
Create a condominium only by recording a declaration executed like a deed, in each county where any portion sits, indexed in the grantee's index under the co…
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§47-7B-10
To exercise a reserved development right the declarant records an amendment to the declaration that assigns identifying numbers to new units and reallocates …
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§47-7B-11
A unit owner may improve the unit if it does not impair structural integrity, mechanical systems, or support. Changing the appearance of common elements or t…
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§47-7B-12
Owners of adjoining units may relocate the boundary by a declaration amendment. Unless the executive board determines within 30 days that a proposed realloca…
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§47-7B-13
A unit may be subdivided into two or more units only if the declaration expressly permits it. The association then prepares, executes, and records an amendme…
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§47-7B-14
To the extent a unit or common element encroaches on another, a valid easement for the encroachment exists. It does not relieve a unit owner of liability for…
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§47-7B-15
If the declaration so provides, a declarant may maintain sales offices, management offices, and models in units or on common elements, and may maintain signs…
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§47-7B-16
Subject to the declaration, a declarant has an easement through the common elements reasonably necessary to discharge declarant obligations or exercise speci…
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§47-7B-17
Except for the listed officer/declarant/owner execution paths, amend the declaration only by vote or agreement of unit owners to which at least 67 percent of…
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§47-7B-18
Except for a taking of all units by eminent domain, terminate only by agreement of unit owners to which at least 80 percent of the votes are allocated, or an…
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§47-7B-19
The declaration may require that all or a specified number or percentage of mortgagees or beneficiaries of deeds of trust on the units approve specified acti…
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§47-7B-2
Unless the declaration says otherwise: finished surfaces of designated wall/floor/ceiling boundaries are part of the unit; the rest of those assemblies are c…
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§47-7B-20
The declaration may provide that the powers of the unit owners' association are exercised in whole or in part by a master association. If the declaration pro…
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§47-7B-21
Any two or more condominiums may be merged or consolidated into a single condominium by agreement of the unit owners. Unless the agreement otherwise provides…
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§47-7B-3
Declaration and bylaw provisions are severable. The rule against perpetuities does not defeat them. On a conflict, the declaration prevails except to the ext…
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§47-7B-4
A description that sets forth the condominium name, the declaration's recording data, the county, and the unit's identifying number is a sufficient legal des…
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§47-7B-5
The declaration must name the condominium (the word 'condominium' in the name or immediately after it) and the association, name every county, describe the r…
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§47-7B-6
For a leasehold condominium the declaration must state the lease recording data or attach the lease, the expiration date, a legal description, and whether un…
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§47-7B-7
The declaration allocates to each unit a fraction or percentage of the common elements and common expenses and a portion of the votes, and states the formula…
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§47-7B-8
Except for the fixtures automatically allocated by §47-7B-2, the declaration specifies which unit each limited common element serves. Do not alter that alloc…
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§47-7B-9
Plats and plans are part of the declaration. Separate plats and plans are not required if one instrument holds everything this section demands. Contemplated …
Management
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§47-7C-1
Organize a unit owners' association no later than the date the first unit is conveyed. Membership is exclusively all unit owners (or, after termination, form…
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§47-7C-10
If only one of several owners of a unit is present, that owner casts all votes allocated to the unit; if more than one is present, a majority in interest mus…
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§47-7C-11
Neither the association nor any unit owner except the declarant is liable for that declarant's torts on portions the declarant must maintain. Sue the associa…
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§47-7C-12
Convey or encumber portions of the common elements only if persons entitled to cast at least 80 percent of the votes, including 80 percent of the votes alloc…
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§47-7C-13
Starting no later than the first conveyance to a person other than a declarant, the association maintains, to the extent reasonably available: property insur…
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§47-7C-14
Unless the declaration provides otherwise, surplus funds after common expenses and reserve prepayment are paid to unit owners in proportion to common-expense…
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§47-7C-15
Until the association makes an assessment, the declarant pays all common expenses. After that, assessments are made at least annually on a budget adopted at …
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§47-7C-16
The association has a lien on a unit for assessments and fines from the time they become due, foreclosable like a mortgage. Fees, late charges, fines, and in…
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§47-7C-17
A money judgment against the association is not a lien on the common elements; it is a lien against all units at the time the transcript of judgment is recor…
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§47-7C-18
Keep financial records detailed enough to comply with the resale-certificate section. All financial and other records shall be made reasonably available for …
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§47-7C-19
A third person dealing with the association in its capacity as trustee may assume without inquiry that trust powers exist and are being properly exercised, a…
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§47-7C-2
Subject to the declaration, the association may adopt bylaws and rules, adopt budgets and collect assessments, hire and fire managing agents, sue, contract, …
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§47-7C-3
The executive board acts for the association except as the declaration, bylaws, or this Act provide. Declarant-appointed officers and directors owe fiduciary…
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§47-7C-4
Special declarant rights transfer only by a recorded instrument executed by the transferee. This section allocates successor and transferor liability, includ…
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§47-7C-5
After the owner-elected board takes office, the association may terminate without penalty — on not less than 90 days' notice — any management or employment c…
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§47-7C-6
Bylaws must provide for the number of executive-board members, officer titles, election by the board of a president, treasurer, and secretary, qualifications…
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§47-7C-7
Except as the declaration or the insurance section provides, the association maintains, repairs, and replaces the common elements; each unit owner does the s…
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§47-7C-8
A meeting of the association must be held at least once each year. Special meetings may be called by the president, a majority of the executive board, or uni…
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§47-7C-9
Unless the bylaws provide otherwise, an association quorum is persons entitled to cast 20 percent of the votes that may be cast for election of the executive…
Purchaser protection
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§47-7D-1
The purchaser-protection article applies to residential units subject to this Act. Neither a disclosure statement nor a resale certificate is required for a …
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§47-7D-10
Any deposit on a purchase or reservation from a person required to deliver a disclosure statement must be placed in escrow in New Mexico or the state where t…
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§47-7D-11
On a sale that requires a disclosure statement, before conveying the unit the seller must record or furnish releases of all liens affecting that unit and its…
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§47-7D-12
A conversion declarant (and a dealer offering units in such a condominium) must give each residential tenant and subtenant in possession notice of the conver…
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§47-7D-17
If a declarant or any other person subject to this Act fails to comply with the Act, the declaration, or the bylaws, any person or class of persons adversely…
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§47-7D-18
If an improvement is labeled NEED NOT BE BUILT on a plat or plan, or sits on land as to which the declarant reserved a development right, no promotional mate…
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§47-7D-19
The declarant shall complete all improvements labeled MUST BE BUILT on the plats and plans. The declarant is also liable for prompt repair and restoration, t…
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§47-7D-2
Before offering any interest in a unit to the public, a declarant prepares a disclosure statement. Responsibility may be transferred to a successor declarant…
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§47-7D-20
On a sale that requires a disclosure statement, a contract may be executed, but no interest in the unit may be conveyed until the declaration is recorded and…
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§47-7D-3
The disclosure statement must name the declarant and the condominium, describe the project and the number of units, include copies of the declaration (other …
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§47-7D-4
If the declaration reserves development rights, the disclosure statement must also state the maximum number of units and units per acre that may be created, …
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§47-7D-5
If ownership or occupancy may be in time shares, the disclosure statement must describe the interest, the number and identity of units, the total number of t…
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§47-7D-6
The disclosure statement for a conversion building must include a licensed architect's or engineer's statement of the present condition of structural compone…
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§47-7D-7
If an interest is currently registered with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, delivering the SEC-approved prospectus satisfies this Act's disclosu…
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§47-7D-8
Deliver the disclosure statement before conveyance and not later than the contract date. Unless it was given more than seven days before the contract was exe…
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§47-7D-9
On a resale that does not require a declarant disclosure statement, the unit owner furnishes the declaration (other than plats), bylaws, rules, and a resale …
Frequently asked about Article CONDO
- What is New Mexico Article CONDO?
- New Mexico Article CONDO — the New Mexico Condominium Act (NMSA 47-7A-1 to 47-7D-20) — is the body of law that governs how every New Mexico condo is structured, operated, and held accountable. It covers governance, voting, records, assessments, fining, and most of the day-to-day legal questions a board will face.
- How many sections are in Article CONDO?
- Article CONDO contains 69 sections in this reference. Each is summarized in plain English on its own page, with links to the official text at nmonesource.com.
- Is the summary on this site legal advice?
- No. These pages are plain-English summaries prepared by SoShiny for board members and managers. For binding legal advice or interpretation of how a section applies to your specific situation, consult a New Mexico-licensed attorney.
- How often does New Mexico Article CONDO change?
- The New Mexico Legislature can amend any chapter in any session. We update these summaries when we re-import the official text — see the 'Last updated' date on each section page.
- Does SoShiny enforce Article CONDO for me?
- No software 'enforces' a statute — but SoShiny is built around it. Voting, meeting minutes, records access, fining workflow, and audit trails are designed to meet this body of law's requirements out of the box, so the board can demonstrate good-faith compliance if challenged.
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