• Be on the lookout for free energy efficiency upgrades under the Community Energy Efficiency Development (CEED) grant fund. They will be administered by municipal, Pueblo or tribal governments, the New Mexico Mortgage Finance Authority or community organizations.See the great model developed by the CEED Pilot Program. Get your local government to write a proposal. EMNRD Rules. Check here for EMNRD’s request for proposals.
• Low income homeowners and renters may get free weatherization from the New Mexico Energy $mart Weatherization Program Home.  Qualify if someone in your household receives Disability Income, Supplemental Security Income and/or Temporary Assistance to Needy Families. Services offered include insulation, duct repair and sealing, heating/cooling repair or replacement and other actions.
• The HOME Rehabilitation Program  provides heating and cooling energy-saving measures, repair or replacement of furnaces, ducting, water heaters, roof and mobile home replacement, code upgrades and utility connections. Click on the link to see qualification criteria.
• See if you qualify for Yes Housing rentals throughout the state.

• What should you do if you do not qualify for a rebate, tax credit or low-income program? Or if you qualify for a free heat pump for example, but need funding for an electrical panel upgrade? There are several financing options for homeowners that you might want to consider.  FHA loans for energy upgrades and renewable energy retrofits are in every state.
• This article from the Zero Energy Project is a good overview of many loan/mortgage sources for solar and energy efficiency home improvements.
• This is an overview of Energy Efficient Mortgages (EEMs) or green mortgages that allow existing or prospective homeowners to finance the cost of upgrades in new and existing homes. According to the Dept. of Energy, these mortgages take into account the lower utility bills that will come from the upgrades, and this may result in more favorable financing terms for the borrower. EEMs are sponsored by federally insured mortgage programs (FHA and VA) and the conventional secondary mortgage market. Lenders can offer conventional EEMs, FHA EEMs, or VA EEMs.
• Check with credit unions such as Nusenda or the Clean Energy Credit Union PV loans and other green loans.
• Homewise Home Improvement Loans. Homewise offers affordable financing services to help you maintain and improve your home. Make repairs or add energy efficient features such as electrical panel upgrades, heating and cooling, hot water heaters, windows or solar. Ask if you qualify for the Albuquerque Home Preservation Grant Program or other similar programs that helped this family.
• Look for community solar and solar coop opportunities, such as the San Juan County Solar, Storage, and EV Charging Co-op (closes March 2024) and Solarize Santa Fe to get reduced solar electricity rates.

• New Mexico’s Sustainable Building Tax Credit  offers residents refundable tax credits for ENERGY-STAR energy-saving installations, meaning even if you do not pay income taxes you qualify for the tax credits if your income falls below 200% of the federal poverty level. The credits themselves are also larger if your income qualifies or you live in affordable housing:  Heat pumps ($2,000), insulation (up to $2,000), windows/doors (up to $1,000),  heat pump water heater ($700) and EV Charger prep ($1,000).
  • 2024 federal poverty line values. For a household of 4, the Federal poverty line is $30,000, so 4-person families with incomes below $60,000 would qualify for the low income SBTC tax credit of $2,000 for a heat pump, for example. Four-person households above $60,000 would qualify for a $1,000 credit.

• Veterans Home Rehabilitation and Modification Program provides energy-related home repairs or accessibility modifications to eligible disabled veterans who lack the resources to do so

• Veterans may also qualify for $6,000 in efficiency upgrades through a VA Energy Efficient Mortgage.

If you need help paying your utility bill

 Xcel

PNM  Good Neighbor Fund

El Paso Electric List of New Mexico Assistance Agencies and Bright Hearts Fund.

For Jemez Mountain Electric Cooperative Members

New Mexico Gas HEAT NM

Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP)    [Solicitud para LIHEAP (PDF para completar/imprimir)]

Energy Assistance Rental Program  (Renters and Homeowners)

Community Response 2-1-1 National Support Hotline gives referrals to agencies and organizations. (or call 211)

Can I afford an EV?

If you decide you cannot afford to purchase an EV, look at the section on this webpage called Can I still drive an EV if I can’t afford to buy one?

• Starting in 2024, you may transfer the maximum allowable federal EV credit (30% up to $4,000) to a participating dealer at the time of sale and receive that amount as a down payment or instant discount even if you owe no federal taxes.  The dealer must be registered with the IRS Energy Credits Online system. The dealer will enter the EV VIN and some other information into the system to determine if the EV you want is eligible for the tax credit.  If so, make sure you get a confirmation of the IRS Seller Report  before you leave the dealership. You will have to file this with your taxes (even if you do not owe any federal taxes). If you do not transfer the credit to the dealer and wait to claim the credit in April, you may not receive the full allowable amount of the credit. Check with the dealer first to make sure they will take your tax credit transfer.
  • Example: You want to buy a used, 2022 Bolt for $24,000. The federal tax credit is 30% up to $4,000. $24,000 times 0.3= $7,200, but $4,000 is the maximum amount you can get. At the dealership if you transfer your tax credit you can use the $4,000 as a downpayment on a loan for $20,000 or buy the car outright for $20,000.
  • If you do not transfer the credit to the deal at the time of sale, you will only be allowed to take the credit of $4,000 if you owe that amount in federal taxes. If you only owe $1000, you will only be refunded $1,000.  If you owe not taxes you will not be able to claim the credit at all.
• The 2024 NM Clean Car Income Tax Credit is awaiting the Governor’s signature as of Feb. 25, 2024. If she signs, from 2024-2026 you could get an additional $2,500 off the price of a used EV. The amount for new EVs is $3,000. New EVs have to cost less than $55,000 and used EVs must be under $25,000.
• Combining the two tax credits means that a used $10,990 2015 Nissan Leaf (Caravan 2/14/24) would cost $5,193 and a $24,990 2016 Tesla S (Caravan 2/14/24) would cost $18,490.
• Using the Carvana car loan calculator, an average credit score and a 60 month loan, your monthly credit payments would be $116 for the Nissan Leaf.  However, we do not know that Carvana will participate in the 2024 EV tax credit program.
• To use federal tax credit, your modified adjusted gross income must be less than $150,000 for joint filers, $112,500 for head of household and $75,000 for single filers.

Beyond tax credits look for for extra savings on the Edmonds rebates site, COSTCO Auto Program and ENERGY STAR rebates page from manufacturers and banks. However to get the federal and state tax credits EVs must be purchased through a dealer.

For those living in PNM’s service area, the utility will offer a limited number of $4,000 EV rebates to qualifying low-income customers with incomes less than 200% of the Federal Poverty Level. EVs must cost less than $55,000.  

El Paso Electric will have a similar plan for 50 income-limited residents.

For the best used cars, check out:

• Car and Driver: Best Used EVs to Take Advantage of the $4000 Federal Tax Credit  (Jan 2024)
• Recurrent Auto article: Check if a car is eligible for used tax credit.  (Jan 2024)
• Autotrader: Great Affordable Used EVs (Oct 2023)
• Transport Evolved Video Want a well SUPPORTED Used EV? Buy these cars! (Oct 2023)

• • • Some EV companies offer home free charger with purchase.
    • Xcel low-income rebate is $2,500.
    • PNM low-income EV charger rebate is $2,500, but will go up to $3,500 in June 2024.  Multifamily income qualified community rebates are up to $5,000/charger port. PNM’s off-peak hours charging program should fill up your tank for ~$3.
    • El Paso Electric low-income EV charger rebate is $2,300. (200% Fed poverty level)
    • Your Rural Electric Coop may have rebates for chargers.
    • In selected communities, the IRA rebate program administered by New Mexico in 2024 or later will have rebates for electrical wiring costs up to $2,500, if you need to add a 240 volt line for charging.  There is also both a rebate and a tax credit for upgrading an electric panel if needed.  If there is an existing 240 volt line for a dryer, it can be shared for charging with a circuit splitter.
    • If you live in a rural or low-income community, there is an IRA tax credit of 30% up to $1,000 for a charging station.
    • The NM State tax credits are $500 or $1000 (<200% Federal poverty level) including installation.  Alternatively the 2024 NM Clean Car Income Tax Credit offers $400 for EV chargers.

If these incentives won’t work for you, you could look into these alternatives:

• • • Are you in Xcel’s service area?  For $12/month you can rent a charger they install through their  EV Accelerate At Home program.
    • If you already have a 240 volt line being used by another appliance, consider sharing it with a circuit splitter if an electrician will allow it to avoid wiring or panel upgrades.
    • Use Level 1 charging.
    • If you are renting, see our section for renters under electric cars and chargers.