In court-decided eviction outcomes for La Cienega, NM, tenants prevail in roughly 34.7% of contested cases. A higher number means landlords face stronger tenant defenses, longer calendars, and more required documentation, and landlord-friendliness drops as this rises.
Timeline
80d
filing → judgment
From the moment an unlawful-detainer notice is filed in La Cienega, NM until a money judgment is entered, a contested eviction takes about 80 days on average. Longer timelines mean more lost rent and higher carry costs for landlords.
Cost range
$2.6–7.3k
legal + lost rent
A typical eviction in La Cienega, NM costs landlords $2,640 to $7,257 all-in, covering court filing fees, process-server costs, attorney time, and lost rent during the calendar between filing and possession.
Average rent
$1,139
22% stretched on rent
Average gross rent in La Cienega, NM is $1,139 per month per the U.S. Census American Community Survey (5-year 2023). 22% of renter households here spend more than 30% of pre-tax income on rent, the federal cost-burden threshold.
Renters
20.2%
of households
20.2% of occupied housing units in La Cienega, NM are renter-occupied (vs owner-occupied). A higher renter share usually correlates with more eviction filings, more turnover, and a more active rental market.
Poverty
7.0%
4.4% unemp.
7.0% of La Cienega, NM residents live below the federal poverty line, and unemployment runs at 4.4%. Both feed into the economic-stress sub-score in our Eviction Risk Score model because rent payment problems track poverty + joblessness more reliably than any other single signal.
Time machine
Scrub 50 years
197619861996200620162026
2026
● LIVE · today◀ REPLAY · historical
Nine-axis profile
9-axis profile · today
Shape of the risk surface
1 landlord · 10 tenant
Sub-scores · with sparkline
Where the score comes from
1 → 10 scale
Local political climate
Dem margin +48.9% (2024)
7.9
Regional political climate
County-weighted neighbor mix
7.9
State political climate
New Mexico legislature & governorship
3.9
Economic stress
7.0% poverty · 4.4% unemp.
5.0
Supply constraint
$1,139 average · 20.2% renters
6.1
Rent Control risk
22.3% of income on rent
3.9
Eviction process difficulty
80 days filing → judgment
4.1
Tenant organizing strength
20.2% renters
5.2
Housing court bias
County bench composition
4.0
Geographic context
Risk heat across La Cienega and the region
Click any city to see its score
How La Cienega compares
Risk score vs. peers, county, state, and the U.S.
Rank in Santa Fe County
Elevated
#19of 45 cities
#19 of 45 cities in Santa Fe County for landlord eviction risk.
Rank in New Mexico
Moderate
#246of 518 cities
#246 of 518 cities in New Mexico for landlord eviction risk.
vs. county · state · U.S.
Score story
Six-stop tour of the risk profile
3.4
/ 10 · LOW
The verdict
A Low-tier market.
Composite 3.4/10. Mid-range market; standard documentation usually wins. The 50-year curve shows a slow, steady climb.
50-yr trend+1.4 over 50 yr
197620012026
Steady ratchet · no large swings
80d
Typical timeline
The money
What renting (and evicting) looks like.
Rent published at $1,139/mo. A contested eviction takes 80 days and costs $2,640–$7,257 per case.
50-yr trendCalendar drag rising since '15
197620012026
Court-clerk data lands in the next release.
20.2%
Renters
The renters
Who you'll be renting to.
Out of 3,543 residents, 20.2% rent. 22% are spending 30%+ income on rent, 7.0% below the poverty line.
50-yr trendRenter share rising
197620012026
ACS 1970-present · once the migration overlay is in.
7.9
Local + regional
The politics
Mid-range climate. Not a coastal market.
Local & regional political climate score 7.9 and 7.9 (Dem margin +48.9% (2024)). State climate at 3.9, a mid-range statehouse.
50-yr trendTracks county vote margin
197620012026
Built on 50-yr presidential margins back to 1976.
3.9
State politics
The process
Moderate calendar, moderate friction.
State political climate 3.9/10 sets the legislative ceiling for landlord remedies, and it shows up in the process. Eviction process difficulty reads 4.1, housing court bias 4, rent-control risk 3.9. Standard process speed for the state.
50-yr trendProcess difficulty +-0.9 since '00
197620012026
Court-clerk data lands in the next release.
5
Economic stress
The stress
Economic pressure is the background risk.
Economic stress: 5. Supply constraint: 6.1. The numbers behind those: 7.0% poverty, 4.4% unemployment, 22% of income on rent.
50-yr trendTwo visible dips · '08 + COVID
197620012026
Mirrors BLS unemployment series.
US eviction landscape · timeline × all-in cost
La Cienega sits in the slow & expensive quadrant
Bubble size = population · color = risk score
La Cienega · 80d · ~$4.9k all-in ($62/day) · score 3.4National average: 58d · $4.6k all-inHover any bubble for stats · click to openColor: 0–4 4–7 7–10
Landlording in La Cienega, New Mexico, presents a manageable operating environment for documented landlords. The Eviction Risk Score is 3.4/10 (LOW tier), drawn from the nine sub-axes shown above, covering rent-control exposure, eviction-process difficulty, housing-court bias, tenant-organizing strength, supply constraint, economic stress, and local, regional, and state political climate. This is not a quick-fix market: it's a Mid-tier market where lease drafting, screening discipline, and well-documented notices materially change outcomes.
La Cienega is a city of 3,543 residents where 20.2% of occupied units are renter-occupied, and the typical renter spends 22.3% of income on rent. At an average rent of $1,139/month, the typical renter household here spends more than the federal 30% threshold on housing, a leading indicator of payment volatility and a precondition for the kinds of tenant defenses that show up most often in housing court.
01Process
How La Cienega eviction process actually works
Eviction process difficulty here reads 4.1/10, a number that combines statutory complexity (notice categories, just-cause rules, mandatory pre-filing disclosures) with operational realities (court calendar length and clerk responsiveness). The typical contested filing in La Cienega closes 80 days after the initial notice. For non-payment of rent the first step is a properly-formatted, properly-served pay-or-quit notice; for material lease breaches it's a cure-or-quit; for tenancies under just-cause protection an at-fault grounds notice (or a no-fault notice with statutory relocation assistance) is required.
The slow part of La Cienega's timeline is usually the calendar, not the motion practice. Housing court bias scores 4/10 here, meaning judges read borderline procedural defects in the tenant's favor more often than the national norm. The practical implication: every notice and every proof of service needs to be airtight before it gets filed.
02Cost
What it costs (and how long it takes)
An all-in eviction in La Cienega runs $2,640 to $7,257 per case once you account for filing fees, attorney time, lost rent during pendency, sheriff lockout, and unit turnover. That range is wide because the upper bound assumes a tenant answer plus motion practice, common when housing court bias is high. The lower bound assumes a default judgment after proper service.
For landlords running the numbers on holding costs vs. cash-for-keys: if your projected timeline times your monthly rent already exceeds the high-end cost number, cash-for-keys at 1–2 months' rent is typically the economically rational choice. With 80 days of typical timeline and $1,139/month in lost rent, that crossover happens fast here.
03Operations
Security deposits, screening, and lease terms
Tenant organizing strength scores 5.2/10 in La Cienega, and the city has limited rent control exposure (3.9/10). Operations practice that survives audit in this environment looks like:
Screening discipline. Document income (verified at 2.5 to 3x rent), credit (with a clear minimum), and prior-tenancy reference checks, but do not screen on protected categories or source-of-income where banned. Keep a written, consistent screening criteria document for every applicant.
Lease specificity. Use a state-specific lease that names every term clearly: rent due date, late fees within statutory caps, deposit handling, smoke and CO disclosure, lead paint disclosure (pre-1978 stock), and a clean attorney's-fees clause.
Security deposit handling. Itemize deductions within the statutory window. Photograph move-in/move-out condition. In New Mexico, deposit cap and refund window are statute, so exceed them at your own risk.
Mid-tenancy documentation. Keep date-stamped records of every rent receipt, every habitability request, every notice served. The day you need them in court is too late to start.
04Strategy
What an everyday landlord should actually do here
If you own one to four units in La Cienega: hire a property manager who knows the local court. The pricing differential between self-managing and hiring out is small relative to the cost of one botched eviction in a LOW tier market. If you own five or more: build relationships with a local landlord-side attorney before you need one, since retainer fees are negligible compared to emergency-rate billing when an eviction is already moving.
The avoidable mistakes here are all upstream of the filing: weak screening, an informal lease, sloppy rent receipts, and notice templates pulled off the internet that don't match New Mexico's statutory language. Fix those four, and most cases settle or default. Skip them, and a $7,257 all-in fight is the realistic worst case.
04bPractical traps
Local traps to avoid in La Cienega
Trap · PRACTICAL TRAP
Cost-versus-timeline trade-off: at 80 days and roughly $7,257 on the high end, cash-for-keys at $2,902 to $4,354 typically beats the legal route for non-aggravated cases. Default judgment frequency is high under NMSA 47-8 UORRA.
04Eviction filings
Live filings tracking · Eviction Lab
Princeton Eviction Lab Tracking System, state-level (no county tracker available). Last update 2026-05-01.
In the most recent month, 1,016 eviction cases were filed across the tracker's coverage area, 0.91× the historical baseline (below baseline). Past 12 months: 12,651 filings. Pandemic-era cumulative: 74,831.
1,016Past month
12,651Past 12 months
0.91×vs baseline (past mo)
21.2%Repeat-tenant filings
Notice requirement: at least three days notice (in some cases more). Filing fee: minimum filing fee of $77 (depending on the court level).
Last 36 months of filings2023-05-01 – 2026-04-01
Filings climbed 5% over the past 12 months.
Source: Eviction Lab Tracking System, Princeton University. Open Data Commons Attribution license.
05FAQ
Frequently asked questions
Q1
Can I evict a tenant in La Cienega without a reason?
Yes, if you have a month-to-month tenancy, you can terminate it with a 30-day written notice without needing a specific "just cause" under New Mexico law, provided it's not discriminatory or retaliatory. For fixed-term leases, you generally need a lease violation to evict.
Q2
How much does it cost to file an eviction in Santa Fe County?
The initial court filing fees for an eviction complaint in Santa Fe County Magistrate Court are typically under $100. This doesn't include costs for service of process, attorney fees, or sheriff lockout fees.
Q3
What is the most common mistake landlords make during eviction in New Mexico?
The most common mistake is failing to properly serve the initial notice (like the 3-day pay-or-quit) or getting the notice period wrong. Any error here can lead to the case being dismissed, forcing you to restart the entire process.
Q4
How long do I have to return a security deposit in New Mexico?
You must return a tenant's security deposit, or an itemized list of deductions, within 30 days after the tenancy ends and the tenant vacates the property.
Q5
Is there rent control in La Cienega, NM?
No, there is no statewide rent control in New Mexico, and currently, La Cienega does not have any local rent control ordinances. However, always stay informed about potential changes at the state or county level. Check our New Mexico tenant protections guide for updates.
A 3.4/10 places La Cienega in the 58th percentile of New Mexico cities on the Eviction Risk Score index. The score is the average of the nine sub-axes, all calibrated on a national 1 to 10 scale where 1 is most landlord-friendly and 10 is most tenant-protective. The 50-year reconstruction shows this score has climbed steadily since 1976, a structural drift driven by court-calendar growth, rent-control adoption, and the rise of tenant-side legal aid. The trajectory matters more than the snapshot: the score is the climate, not the weather.
Cities with similar eviction risk to La Cienega (3.4/10)
Same risk band nationally · click any city for its full breakdown.
