New Mexico calls on residents to take advantage of funds and not be evicted from their homes

NEW MEXICO – The state of New Mexico calls on residents to take advantage of available funds for those who cannot pay their rent due to the ravages of the Covid-19 pandemic.

This is a resource that supports both tenants and landlords and it is estimated that there is more than US $ 100 million for this purpose.

New Mexico senator Martín Heinrich and representative Melanie Stansbury were visiting the state and invited residents to enroll in the program, which is intended for people who lost much of their financial resources due to the pandemic.

Stansbury said the funds are available to households that do not generate more than 80% of the median household income in their respective counties.

For example, if a person lives in Bernalillo County and their income is US $ 38,750 or less they can qualify, also a family of four, whose current income is less than US $ 55,300 can be eligible for the benefit.

The representative said that it is important to help the people who need it most, as she stated that, as a child, she experienced many deprivations, even had to sleep in a tent in the backyard of a friend’s house, due to that his mother had an accident and lost her job.

Those interested in obtaining this support can do so through the website: https://www.renthelpnm.org/ and there they can choose one of the three assistance options, in this case: tenant, landlord and community partner.

Whoever is a tenant must demonstrate that they rent a house to an owner or company in the state of New Mexico, verify that they have been economically affected by the pandemic and be within the economic range that the program asks for to help.

As well as showing that you are at risk of losing your home and that you have a rent or utility debt since March 30, 2020.

If eligible, the state will pay the rent, utility bills such as electricity and gas, as well as water and sewer, in addition to providing support for cleaning the site.

For landlords, the program can pay up to 12 months of past due rent and up to 3 months of future rent, since the objective is to ensure that no one is left without a roof.