Valencia County, NM Sign Regulations: Window Signs (2026)

166, requires a permit for electrical or illuminated signs over 4 square feet, free-standing signs over 4 square feet, roof- or wall-mounted signs over 4 square feet, and portable or sandwich-board signs over 4 square feet, each reviewed under a Type A application with dimensioned drawings. Temporary window displays and temporary real estate "for rent/sale" signs are carved out of that permit requirement entirely, but only up to 8 square feet of surface area; a bigger banner-style window sign or real estate sign loses the exemption and must go through the same Type A review as any other commercial sign.

A window sign also stays exempt only while it meets the chapter's other no-permit conditions, such as staying free of commercial connotations for simple address numbers or being invisible from the public right-of-way and from property under different ownership. 166(B)(3) requires every sign, including those specifically excused from permitting, to be kept in good structural condition and neatly painted, and lets the Department order the repair or removal of any sign that becomes a safety hazard through poor upkeep. A sign left up with no legible message, or one that has become obsolete, for 3 months is deemed abandoned and can be removed by the County Road Superintendent or the Department.

The county's own definitions section designates the Valencia County Code Enforcement Department as the office charged with enforcing this chapter, so window and real estate sign complaints route there.