Tenants Celebrate Court Approval Of Settlement With Usda And Landlord, Maintaining Protections And Saving Deeply Affordable Long-Term Housing

ESPAÑOLA, NM—Tenants of La Vista Del Rio Apartments celebrated a court-approved settlement with the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and their current landlord, Villas de Avenida Canada, to maintain tenant protections and restore local housing affordability. The National Housing Law Project (NHLP) and the New Mexico Center on Law and Poverty (NMCLP) represented the current and former tenants of La Vista Del Rio Apartments in Española, one of the few affordable housing options in the region. 

Tenants suffered years of uninhabitable conditions, illegal rent increases, and abrupt evictions due to the negligence of their former landlord and USDA. The class settlement, which was approved by the court on January 29, 2026, ensures that the tenants’ housing remains deeply affordable, reinstates critical Section 515 tenant protections, and offers rural housing vouchers to qualifying current and former residents of the apartments.

“Families deserve safe, stable homes they can afford,” said Sovereign Hager, Public Benefits Director for the New Mexico Center on Law and Poverty. “This settlement puts real protections back in place, keeps La Vista Del Rio affordable for the long term, and sends a clear message that no one gets to ignore the law or profit by pushing families out of their homes.”

Under the settlement terms, class members living at La Vista Del Rio apartments will:

• Have their rents capped at 30% of household income;
• Have their homes rehabilitated to make sure that they meet state and federal habitability requirements;
• Be protected from eviction and lease nonrenewal absent good cause; and
• Have the right to meet with the landlord about any adverse actions taken against them before an eviction can be filed.

In 2023, the USDA illegally allowed La Vista Del Rio Apartments to exit the Section 515 program, a federal loan program that provides affordable housing in rural areas. Despite legal requirements that it be maintained as affordable housing, Bosley Management Inc., sold the complex to investors and sent illegal notices to tenants advising that the landlord was closing the property. Families endured years of neglect and unsafe living conditions while the landlord collected millions in rent and USDA subsidies. Many were forced to leave their homes due to the conditions and unlawful threats by the landlord. Last fall, tenants settled with Bosley Management Inc., which resulted in class members receiving financial compensation. 

This settlement comes amid a broader housing crisis in Española and across the country. While illegal business practices by corporate landlords run rampant, New Mexican families are priced out of the communities they’ve been a part of for generations. 

“In the midst of a nationwide housing crisis, it’s our government’s duty to hold landlords accountable, especially those who have promised to provide affordable housing in exchange for federal funding and tax breaks. The federal government has a legal obligation to protect families of color from unlawful harassment, discrimination, and displacement. This settlement is a win for Espanola tenants, providing immediate justice and longer-term affordability. It’s both necessary and possible for communities to save deeply affordable housing,” said Natalie N. Maxwell, Managing Attorney for the National Housing Law Project. 

Read the full text of the final settlement here.

The New Mexico Center on Law and Poverty works with low-income New Mexicans to improve living conditions, increase opportunities, and protect the rights of people living in poverty. We envision a New Mexico that is vibrant with opportunities, and where all people’s human rights—including for food, housing, healthcare, a living wage, education, and equal access to justice—are met.