Public Housing Agencies Serving Las Cruces, New Mexico

Public Housing Agencies operate federally assisted affordable housing programs at local levels on behalf of HUD. Notably, housing agencies are responsible for managing Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher, Public Housing, and Project-Based Voucher waiting lists within their jurisdiction.

Las Cruces, New Mexico Affordable Housing Data

Income Based Apartments in Las Cruces, New Mexico

Las Cruces features 749 income based apartments. Tenants of income based apartments typically pay no more than 30% of their income towards rent and utilities.

Low Rent Apartments in Las Cruces, New Mexico

There are 702 rent subsidized apartments that do not provide direct rental assistance but remain affordable to low income households in Las Cruces.

Housing Choice Vouchers in Las Cruces, New Mexico

On average, Section 8 Housing Choice vouchers pay Las Cruces landlords $500 per month towards rent. The average voucher holder contributes $300 towards rent in Las Cruces.

The maximum amount a voucher would pay on behalf of a low-income tenant in Las Cruces, New Mexico for a two-bedroom apartment is between $804 and $982.

2023 Las Cruces, New Mexico Fair Market Rents and Housing Choice Voucher Payment Standards

Fair Market Rents can be used to better understand the average housing costs of an area. Fair Market Rents are used by HUD to establish payment and rent standards for federal rental assistance programs like the Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher Program.

Sourced from federal housing data and AffordableHousingOnline.com research.

Las Cruces, NM Affordable Housing Snapshot

Total Affordable Apartment Properties	24
Total Low Income Apartments	1,451
Total Housing Units with Rental Assistance	749
Percentage of Housing Units Occupied By Renters	44.57%
Average Renter Household Size	2.56
Average Household Size	2.55
Median Household Income	$41,330 ±$1,707
Median Rent	$743 ±$30
Percentage Of Renters Overburdened	50.55% ± 4pp
Total Population	101,164

Population and Household Demographics

Las Cruces is a city in Dona Ana County, New Mexico with a population of 101,164. There are 38,925 households in the city with an average household size of 2.55 persons. 44.57% of households in Las Cruces are renters.

Income and Rent Overburden in Las Cruces

The median gross income for households in Las Cruces is $41,330 a year, or $3,444 a month. The median rent for the city is $743 a month.

Households who pay more than thirty percent of their gross income are considered to be Rent Overburdened. In Las Cruces, a household making less than $2,477 a month would be considered overburdened when renting an apartment at or above the median rent. 50.55% of households who rent are overburdened in Las Cruces.

Area Median Income In Las Cruces

Affordable housing program eligibility is always determined by one's income. Each household's income is compared to the incomes of all other households in the area. This is accomplished through a statistic established by the government called the Area Median Income, most often referred to as AMI. The AMI is calculated and published each year by HUD.

HUD often uses an area larger than a city to determine the AMI because HUD anticipates those searching for housing will look beyond individual cities during their housing search. For Las Cruces, the AMI is calculated from all households within Dona Ana County.

In Las Cruces, HUD calculates the Area Median Income for a family of four as $59,600

Most affordable housing programs determine eligibility based on the percent of AMI a given household's income is. Among the programs that determine eligibility based on the AMI are Section 8, HOME, LIHTC, Section 515, 202 and 811.

Rental Assistance in Las Cruces

Rental assistance is a type of housing subsidy that pays for a portion of a renter’s monthly housing costs, including rent and tenant paid utilities. This housing assistance can come in the form of Section 8 Housing Choice Vouchers, project-based Section 8 contracts, public housing, USDA Rental Assistance (in Section 515 properties) as well as HUD Section 202 and 811 properties for elderly and disabled households.

Income Qualifications for HUD Rental Assistance in Las Cruces