City to soon track lodger’s tax payments

The city of Las Cruces will soon track owners of short-term rental properties and will know who has not paid the city’s 5% lodger’s tax.

The city passed the tax in 2020 but has not had a way to track who is paying. But the city is implementing a new software that will allow it to assess when the tax is not paid starting May 25, Lorena Lozano, director of marketing, said.

“We just like to remind people (about the tax), especially new people that may have moved here over the last five years. As this was implemented in January of 2020, you could imagine if new people moved here, they probably don’t know about the lodger’s tax,” Lozano said.

The tax is used to promote the city, including city events and promotional activities for tourists. Lozano said the city has made paying the tax easier.

“Another reason we put out the reminder is because we started accepting registrations and payment online to make the process easier for those with short term rentals,” she said.

How is this enforced?

The software will host data of registered and non-registered short-term rental for tracking payments and non-payments, according to the city of Las Cruces communications director Mandy Guss.

“Lodgers tax is a self-reported tax. The short-term rentals would have to inquire with state and local government on regulations for compliance. The city does periodic reminders of this requirement,” Guss said.

The new registration and pay site that will begin in May will monitor multiple short-term rental sites to identify and determine if a property was rented.

“Even though there are several properties listed, very few are rented on a continuous basis. If the service flags a property as a non-complaint, a letter is then sent out as there are many reasons it may not be available besides rental,” she said.

One example provided was if the rental property is removed off the site because the owners may have temporarily removed the listing.

“Also, through the system, a letter is sent out to the identified short-term rental properties reminding them of lodgers tax requirements and also introducing/reminding them of the new online system,” Guss said.

How do I register?

Residents who own short-term rental properties were supposed to begin paying the lodgers tax since Jan. 1, 2020.

Short-term rental property owners  must first create an online account at lascrucesnm-self.govplatform.com.

The online user will be prompted to ask questions about the property such as location and size. They will then need to pay a $50 registration fee.

Renters must report and pay taxes by the 25^th of each month for the month prior. Now, if the property was not rented during that period, renters are required to input zero.

What happens if I fail to pay?

People who are late with payments will be required to pay a 10% late fee or $100, whichever is greater.

Renters will also need to pay a one percent interest penalty on any unpaid monthly balances, according to the city website.

If renters fail to pay the late fee, the city is authorized to audit short-term rental properties.

People with questions may contact the city at shorttermrental@lascruces.gov or call 575-541-2444.

Updated: This story was updated at 5 p.m., April 1 to reflect that the director of marketing is Lorena Lozano, not Leslie Lozano.