If you’re considering buying a home in New Mexico, popularly referred to as the Land of Enchantment, you’re in luck: the state offers some of the lowest effective property taxes in the country. Homeowners in New Mexico pay a median annual property tax of $1,557, which is approximately $1,200 less than the US average. Similarly, the state average effective property tax rate equals 0.73%.
The primary reason why property taxes in New Mexico stay so low is that the state has set a 3% annual cap on the amount a property’s taxable value can increase. That means that even as home prices rise, property taxes will remain steady.
How the New Mexico Property Tax Works
In New Mexico, real estate taxes are fully dedicated to supporting local governments and services. Nearly half of property tax money is directed to county and city governments, with approximately 30% going to schools. Other winners include hospitals and community colleges.
Taxes are based on the market value of property, which each county’s assessor calculates annually. Taxes in one year are based on the previous year’s market value, so your 2024 taxes will be based on the 2023 worth of your home.
The tax-deductible value of home real estate within New Mexico is one-third of its appraised value. This means that if your home’s market value is $180,000, the taxable value is $60,000 less any exemptions. The most widely claimed exemption is the “head of family” exemption, which decreases taxable value down $2,000 for any homeowner who offers the majority of financial support to his or her household.
A value cap is one of the primary ways New Mexico restricts property tax increases. The valuation cap limits the annual growth in appraised value to 3%. Thus, if your home’s value was $200,000 the previous year, it can’t be more than $206,000 for the current year. The cap is lifted when the property is sold or improved.
Read more: Nevada Property Tax: Key Highlights
What are the New Mexico Property Tax Rates?
In New Mexico, tax rates are represented in mills, which equal one dollar of tax for every $1,000 of taxable value. For instance, if your taxable value after exemptions is $40,000 and your mill rate equals 20 mills (i.e., $0.020), your taxes would be $800. Rates vary by city, county, school district, and special district.
Property taxes are tough to compare between places because they all have distinct rates. For this reason, we compare effective tax rates. An effective tax rate is the annual amount paid expressed as a percentage of the current house value.
| County | Median Home Value | Median Annual Property Tax Payment | Average Effective Property Tax Rate |
| Bernalillo | $205,500 | $2,419 | 1.18% |
| Catron | $162,400 | $607 | 0.37% |
| Chaves | $115,400 | $748 | 0.65% |
| Cibola | $88,800 | $641 | 0.72% |
| Colfax | $108,900 | $660 | 0.61% |
| Curry | $132,400 | $701 | 0.53% |
| De Baca | $130,000 | $680 | 0.52% |
| Doña Ana | $153,600 | $1,174 | 0.76% |
| Eddy | $161,100 | $762 | 0.47% |
| Grant | $127,100 | $598 | 0.47% |
| Guadalupe | $100,500 | $597 | 0.59% |
| Harding | $87,500 | $287 | 0.33% |
| Hidalgo | $91,800 | $490 | 0.53% |
| Lea | $138,600 | $703 | 0.51% |
| Lincoln | $172,800 | $1,120 | 0.65% |
| Los Alamos | $322,200 | $2,172 | 0.67% |
| Luna | $84,700 | $509 | 0.60% |
| McKinley | $66,700 | $1,860 | 2.79% |
| Mora | $104,300 | $517 | 0.50% |
| Otero | $120,800 | $759 | 0.63% |
| Quay | $68,500 | $384 | 0.56% |
| Rio Arriba | $172,900 | $849 | 0.49% |
| Roosevelt | $111,700 | $558 | 0.50% |
| San Juan | $211,700 | $1,851 | 0.87% |
| San Miguel | $155,000 | $1,128 | 0.73% |
| Sandoval | $138,300 | $810 | 0.59% |
| Santa Fe | $294,800 | $1,889 | 0.64% |
| Sierra | $120,100 | $642 | 0.53% |
| Socorro | $117,900 | $737 | 0.63% |
| Taos | $249,000 | $1,132 | 0.45% |
| Torrance | $115,500 | $724 | 0.63% |
| Union | $93,800 | $527 | 0.56% |
| Valencia | $151,600 | $1,188 | 0.78% |
Source: SmartAsset
Bernalillo County
Bernalillo County, New Mexico’s largest county by population, also has some of the state’s highest property tax rates. The county’s average effective property tax rate being 1.18%, the second highest in the state.
Albuquerque, the county and state’s largest city, with a total 2022 mill rate of 41.685 mills for housing properties. 10.589 mills were allocated to educational districts, 11.293 mills to the city administration, and 8.474 mills to the county. A tax benefiting the University of New Mexico Hospital accounted for 10.054 mills.
Find out more: Publication 530 (2023), Tax Information for Homeowners | Internal Revenue Service
Doña Ana County
This southern New Mexico county’s property taxes are somewhat lower than the state average. The county’s average annual property tax payment is $1,174. That is around $400 less than the state median and $1,600 lower than the national median.
Doña Ana County’s major city is Las Cruces, the second largest in the state. The mill rate for Las Cruces was 31.365 mills in 2022, significantly lower than the mill rate in Albuquerque, the state’s largest city.
Santa Fe County
If you want to live in New Mexico with low property taxes, Santa Fe County could be an excellent option. The county’s average effective property tax rate being 0.64%, the tenth-highest in the state. At that rate, a $282,600 home would have annual taxes of $1,808. Santa Fe’s total 2022 millage rate stood at 23.717 mills.
Sandoval County
Sandoval County, located north of Bernalillo County and Albuquerque, has New Mexico’s third highest average property tax rate. Sandoval County’s average effective property tax rate is 0.87 percent.
Read more: Arizona Property Tax: Get to know your tax
Where to Go for New Mexico Property Tax Help
If you need further help with New Mexico real estate taxes or general New Mexico state tax information, visit XOA TAX Live Service. We will match you with a tax specialist who is familiar with your state. Without having to visit an office, you can have your taxes done by a professional tax specialist.
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