Rent Affordability for A Licensed Practical Nurse in New Mexico

A typical licensed practical nurse in New Mexico earns about $54,711 a year, which supports approximately $1,368 a month in rent under the 30% rule. Below, every tracked New Mexico city is ranked by how local rent compares against that affordability ceiling.

As of May 2026. 4 of 17 cities tracked stay within the 30% rule; 13 are rent-burdened on this salary.

CityMedian rent% of incomeAffordability
Portales, NM$862/mo18.9%very comfortable
Clovis, NM$1,206/mo26.5%affordable
Farmington, NM$1,341/mo29.4%affordable
Silver City, NM$1,350/mo29.6%affordable
Roswell, NM$1,399/mo30.7%stretched
Las Cruces, NM$1,424/mo31.2%stretched
Albuquerque, NM$1,486/mo32.6%stretched
Hobbs, NM$1,497/mo32.8%stretched
Alamogordo, NM$1,546/mo33.9%stretched
Carlsbad, NM$1,568/mo34.4%stretched
Santa Teresa, NM$1,598/mo35%stretched
Ruidoso, NM$1,700/mo37.3%stretched
Rio Rancho, NM$1,857/mo40.7%rent-burdened
Santa Fe, NM$1,932/mo42.4%rent-burdened
Los Lunas, NM$2,025/mo44.4%rent-burdened
Artesia, NM$2,583/mo56.7%severely rent-burdened
Los Alamos, NM$2,645/mo58%severely rent-burdened
Methodology: Salary is the BLS-derived state estimate for New Mexico. Rent is the latest ZORI monthly value for each city. Affordability uses the 30% rule (rent ≤ 30% of gross income).