Opportunity Enterprise – Commercial Development

The OERF application consists of two parts:

Part 1 is an initial screening to determine eligibility for financing. Applicants must provide sufficient evidence that other means of financing their project are unavailable or insufficient. Part 1 must be submitted two days before the application deadline.

Part 2 is the project and financing application. The project information will be scored and prioritized based on the specific criteria in the OERB Evaluation and Prioritization Policy. The financing information will be reviewed for financial soundness and ability to repay the loan.

Businesses whose projects are prioritized by the OEHDRB in the project application review will be eligible for consideration of a loan. The loan applications will be underwritten in order of prioritization.

Please note that being prioritized high enough to be recommended for funding does not guarantee your business will receive a loan. NMFA will underwrite your application according to statute and policies to determine eligibility and ability to repay the loan.

We recommend you review the scoring matrix in the OERB Evaluation and Prioritization Policy  to determine if your project is a good fit for this program and if your application would be competitive.

  When can I apply?

• Round 5 will open on July 1, 2025 and close on August 15, 2025.
• The remainder of the loan fund is available for Round 5.
• Additional application rounds will be offered if funds are still available after Round 5.

Is there a benefit to applying early?

The loan fund amounts are limited as listed below, therefore applying in an earlier round would avoid the funds already being allocated to a given county or sector.

• No more than 25% of the total fund to any one county;
• No more than 25% of the total fund to any one project;
• No more than 50%  of the total fund to any one sector.

There is no benefit to applying early within a round. All applications will be reviewed and prioritized after the round closes.

How do I apply?

• The application is available online at nmfinance.com.
• The application system requires that you set up an account, which will allow you to save your application in progress. This means you can work on your application, save your work, and return to the application to complete it and submit it.
• If you already have an account, please use your existing log-information.

 What is an Authorized Officer?

The application must be submitted by an Authorized Officer. An Authorized Officer is the person authorized by the applicant as having the requisite power and authority to sign the Officer’s Certificate and legally bind the applicant to its obligations under the Loan Agreement.

How are “Urban” and “Rural” defined?

• Urban is a community with a population of  60,000 or greater and Class H counties (e.g. Los Alamos)
• Rural is a community with a population under 60,000

• The interest rate will be equal to 60% of the Wall Street Journal prime rate on the date the loan is approved, but will be no less than 3%. The interest rate is fixed for the term of the loan.
• The loan term will be no more than thirty years.
• Interest-only payments will be due the first three years.
• After the third year, principal and interest payments will be due monthly.
• The loan may be paid off in advance with no pre-payment penalty.
• Additional loan terms and information are found in the rules and policies.

Loan amounts are not to exceed $17,500,000.

Loan funds may be used for purchasing, planning, designing, building, surveying, improving, operating, furnishing, equipping or maintaining land, buildings or infrastructure.

The funds must be used to create or expand economic development opportunities within the state.

The application process will require documents evidencing project readiness, creditworthiness, and any other information requested by OERB and NMFA. Required documents may include but are not limited to the following:

• Certification from opportunity enterprise partner that proceeds will be used for an Enterprise Development Project
• Ownership structure of the Eligible Applicant (for each owner detailing name, address, percentage ownership);
• Eligible Applicant legal entity type and all entity formation documents, including a certificate of good standing from the New Mexico Secretary of State, if applicable;
• Sources and uses of investment;
• Project planning documents including site and design plans and project budget;
• Copy of any license, zoning, permitting or other regulatory requirements, as applicable;
• Business plan or feasibility study and five-year proforma financial statements;
• Complete list of outstanding loan(s) to the Eligible Applicant, member, partner or stockholder of the Eligible Applicant;
• Authorization to obtain a credit report of the Eligible Applicant and the guarantor, as applicable;
• Current balance sheet and year-to-date profit and loss statement for the Eligible Applicant, dated not more than 90 days prior to the date of Application, a fiscal year-end balance sheet, and the Applicant’s profit and loss statement for the prior three years or audited financial statements, as applicable;
• Federal income tax return for the prior two years on all guarantors and co-borrowers, as relevant;
• Copies of the Eligible Applicant’s federal income tax returns for the prior three years if the balance sheets and profit and loss statements are not audited by a certified public accountant;
• Sufficient evidence that other means of financing the proposed project are unavailable or insufficient; and
• If the Eligible Applicant is a newly created entity formed for the sole purpose of developing or operating the proposed Enterprise Development Project, the Applicant shall provide the information for the Eligible Applicant’s existing entities, if any, the Eligible Applicant personally; and
• Any other information requested by the NMFA to evaluate the Application.

• Project applications are reviewed for completeness by NMFA staff.
• Eligible projects with complete applications are scored and ranked according to the criteria in the Opportunity Enterprise Review Board Evaluation and Prioritization Policy.
• The ranked project applications are reviewed by the Opportunity Enterprise and Housing Development Review Board, which prioritizes the projects recommended for financing.
• Projects recommended for financing will be underwritten by NMFA according to NMFA’s policies to assess the applicant’s ability to repay the loan. Underwriting will be done in order of prioritization.
• Please note that the loan application review process will involve a thorough examination of documents and information provided. Applicants may be asked for additional information during the review and underwriting process.

Applications will be scored and ranked according to the Opportunity Enterprise Evaluation and Prioritization Policy.

Equity Requirement: Applicants are required to contribute a minimum of 10% of the loan amount in the form of owner contributions, cash or in-kind, or down payment.

Collateral; Loan-to-Value Requirement: Collateral must be in the form of real property, e.g. land, buildings, and equipment. The loan-to-value ratio will be up to 85%.

Guarantees: All loans will require personal and/or corporate guarantees from one or more of the following persons:

− a partner, or member of the Applicant
− a joint venturer with the Applicant
− any stockholder of the Applicant
− the parent corporation or a partner, member, or stockholder of the parent corporation if the Applicant is a subsidiary

All applicants will be required to authorize NMFA to obtain credit reports on all owners and guarantors.

• No more than $17,500,000 of the total fund may be awarded to a single project.
• No more than 25% of the total fund may be invested in one county.
• No single industry as defined by the two-digit NAICS code may constitute more than 50% of the total fund.

Businesses that applied in previous rounds may apply in subsequent rounds. You must resubmit your application to be considered in subsequent rounds.

The program Evaluation and Prioritization Policy has been revised to better meet the legislative intent of the program, with a particular focus on encouraging spec development to increase the inventory of commercial facilities in communities working to attract businesses.

Spec development means that the prospective tenant or tenants may not yet be known. To better evaluate spec development projects whose tenant is not known, criteria in the policy related to a specific future tenant have been revised or eliminated.

The developer is not intended to be the primary occupant of the commercial facility. OE policy states that the developer may occupy only 30% of a proposed development project.

Prospective applicants are encouraged to review the revised Evaluation and Prioritization Policy to determine if their project would score well based on the criteria in the policy.

Information obtained by the NMFA regarding applicants for enterprise assistance or housing assistance is confidential and not subject to inspection pursuant to the Inspection of Public Records Act, Section 14-2-1 to 14-2-12, NMSA 1978 (“IPRA”), provided that nothing shall prevent the NMFA from disclosing certain information, including non-confidential portions of the application, as permitted by the Opportunity Enterprise and Housing Development Act, Section 6-34-1 to 6-34-15, NMSA 1978, as amended and supplemented from time time.

OERF borrowers will be required to submit quarterly financial statements, and a detailed reporting package that will include:
• Latest complete financial statements
• Business performance report including rent rolls
• Brief narrative on project completion status, project budget, business performance including occupancy data and rent rolls, (as applicable), and economic impact including job creation metrics
• Certification that all representations, warranties and covenants remain true and correct
• Certification that there has been no change in business ownership/change in control

NMFA reserves the right to request additional information for monitoring purposes

See below for terms related to the Opportunity Enterprise Commercial Development Program as defined in the Evaluation and Prioritization Policy:

“Act” means the Opportunity Enterprise Act, Sections 6-34-1 through 6-34-15, NMSA 1978, as the same may be amended and supplemented.

“Board” means the Opportunity Enterprise Review Board created by the Act.

“Economic Development Opportunities” means the advancement of an environmentally sustainable economic development goal of the state as determined by the authority, in coordination with the NMEDD, and includes the creation of jobs, the provision of needed services and commodities to diverse communities across the state and the increase of tax and other revenue collections resulting from the project.

“Enterprise Assistance” means opportunity enterprise financing, an opportunity enterprise lease or an opportunity enterprise loan.

“Enterprise Development Project” means a commercial real estate development project primarily occupied by businesses unrelated to the opportunity enterprise partner that involves the purchase, planning, designing, building, surveying, improving, operating, furnishing, equipping or maintaining of land, buildings or infrastructure to create or expand economic development opportunities within the state.

“Fund” means the Opportunity Enterprise Revolving Fund.

“NMEDD” means the New Mexico Economic Development Department.

“NMFA” means the New Mexico Finance Authority.

“Opportunity Enterprise Partner” or “Partner” means a domestic corporation, a general partnership, a limited liability company, a limited partnership, a public benefit corporation, a nonprofit entity or other private business entity or combination thereof that the authority determines is or will be engaged in an enterprise that creates or expands economic development opportunities within the state and is eligible for enterprise assistance pursuant to the Act.

“Policy” means this Opportunity Enterprise Evaluation and Prioritization Policy.

“Application” means a form and supporting materials submitted to NMFA by an Opportunity Enterprise Partner that seeks enterprise assistance. The application must be on forms provided by NMFA and will be comprised of two parts: a Project Application, the information from which is available to the public, and a Financing Application, which may contain confidential or proprietary information that may be excepted from the Inspection of Public Records Act.

“Rural” (non-urban community) means a municipality with a population of less than 60,000 according to the most recent federal decennial census or the unincorporated area of a county not including Class H counties.

“Urban” means a continuously built-up area with a population of 60,000 or more. Urban areas may include one or more municipalities or census designated places.

“Unrelated – Opportunity Enterprise Partner” or “Partner” means that the business ownership relationship between the developer and the tenant is limited. The developer or a third-party will not have control/ownership of the tenant. A Partner (Developer) should not have more than 30% affiliation with the tenant.

“Unrelated – Percentage of Occupancy” Percentage of occupancy means that the project developer/partner should not have more than 30% ownership of intended tenant or 30% occupancy of the proposed project.

How are “Urban” and “Rural” defined?

• Urban is a community with a population of 60,000 or greater and Class H counties (e.g. Los Alamos)
• Rural is a community with a population under 60,000

Can a business apply for more than one project? Can a business be funded for more than one project?

Opportunity Enterprise Partners, including any person with an ownership interest in an Opportunity Enterprise Partner, may only participate in one Project application per application round and may not receive more than one assistance in a calendar year.

The Opportunity Enterprise Revolving Fund is governed by the Opportunity Enterprise Review Board in partnership with the New Mexico Economic Development Department, and is administered by the NMFA.