NEW HOMES FOR NEW MEXICO PROGRAM

HB0168

HOUSE BILL 168

57th legislature - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - second session, 2026

INTRODUCED BY

Cristina Parajón

AN ACT

RELATING TO HOUSING; CREATING THE NEW HOMES FOR NEW MEXICO
PROGRAM; PROVIDING FOR PROGRAM ADMINISTRATION BY THE NEW MEXICO
MORTGAGE FINANCE AUTHORITY; PROVIDING LOANS TO ELIGIBLE HOME
BUYERS; PROVIDING FOR REPAYMENT; MAKING AN APPROPRIATION.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO:

SECTION 1.
[
NEW MATERIAL
] NEW HOMES FOR NEW MEXICO
PROGRAM CREATED--PROGRAM REQUIREMENTS--REPAYMENT.--

A. As used in this section:

(1) "authority" means the New Mexico mortgage
finance authority;

(2) "eligible builder" means a residential
home builder that meets eligibility criteria for participation
in the program;

(3) "eligible buyer" means a person seeking to
purchase residential property that meets eligibility criteria
for participation in the program;

(4) "high-cost county" means Los Alamos, Santa
Fe or Taos county;

(5) "program" means the new homes for New
Mexico program; and

(6) "starter home" means a home built by an
eligible builder to be purchased by an eligible buyer that
meets eligibility criteria established by rules promulgated
pursuant to this section.

B. The "new homes for New Mexico program" is
created in the authority to provide loans for eligible buyers
to purchase starter homes from eligible builders. The
authority shall promulgate rules to carry out the provisions of
this section.

C. The authority shall create an account for any
money designated for the program. Loans for the program shall
be provided from the account, and the account may consist of
subaccounts as the authority deems necessary. Money from
repayment of a loan granted pursuant to this section shall be
deposited into the account and provided to future eligible
buyers.

D. The authority may grant a loan to an eligible
buyer to purchase a starter home from an eligible builder;
provided that the eligible buyer:

(1) has not owned a home prior to acceptance
into the program;

(2) earns a current annual income that is
below one hundred twenty percent of the area median income in
the county in which the starter home being purchased will be
located, for a family of four, as determined by the United
States department of housing and urban development; and

(3) resides in the starter home as the
eligible buyer's primary residence.

E. The authority shall solicit competitive bids for
eligible builders to participate in the program in accordance
with the provisions of the Procurement Code. A competitive bid
submitted pursuant to this subsection shall include:

(1) the number of homes the builder proposes
to build;

(2) the projected price of each home;

(3) marketing and sales strategies; and

(4) a time line for completing the homes.

F. The authority shall promulgate rules to provide
for:

(1) administration of the program;

(2) criteria for applications;

(3) eligibility criteria for eligible builders
and eligible buyers;

(4) criteria for starter homes built by
eligible builders;

(5) criteria for loan disbursement and
repayment;

(6) procedures to connect eligible buyers and
eligible builders; and

(7) periodic verification that the starter
home purchased pursuant to this section remains the eligible
buyer's primary residence.

G. Applications for loans to purchase starter homes
pursuant to this section shall be submitted to the authority on
forms provided by the authority and shall include:

(1) documentation that the applicant earns a
current annual income that is below one hundred twenty percent
of the area median income in the county in which the starter
home being purchased will be located, for a family of four, as
determined by the United States department of housing and urban
development; and

(2) other documentation required by the
authority in rules promulgated pursuant to this section.

H. Loans granted pursuant to this section shall:

(1) not exceed fifty thousand dollars
($50,000) per household for a starter home located outside the
jurisdictional boundaries of a high-cost county or seventy-five
thousand dollars ($75,000) per household for a starter home
within the jurisdictional boundaries of a high-cost county;

(2) bear an annual interest rate of zero
percent; and

(3) be repaid upon:

(a) the sale of the property purchased
with a loan granted pursuant to this section; or

(b) the failure of the eligible buyer to
occupy the property purchased with a loan granted pursuant to
this section as the eligible buyer's principal residence.

I. A qualified builder shall:

(1) not build a starter home that exceeds one
thousand eight hundred square feet;

(2) not build a starter home on a lot that
exceeds five thousand square feet;

(3) complete construction on a starter home
within three years of program selection; and

(4) build starter homes that are affordable to
a qualified buyer.

SECTION 2.
APPROPRIATION.--Ten million dollars
($10,000,000) is appropriated from the general fund to the
department of finance and administration for expenditure in
fiscal year 2027 and subsequent fiscal years for expenditure by
the New Mexico mortgage finance authority to conduct the new
homes for New Mexico program. Any unexpended balance remaining
at the end of a fiscal year shall not revert to the general
fund.