Eviction notices in Texas are better served with the requisite knowledge and understanding. This would not only help the parties concerned, but also foster a smooth and transparent process.
For landlords, understanding the Texas eviction laws would help them regain possession of their property while avoiding unnecessary delays or legal consequences.
On the other hand, it also helps tenants to avoid wrongful tenancy termination and also protect their legal rights.
Additionally, the eviction laws also spell out the responsibilities of both parties in a rental agreement. In other words, each party owes a duty that must be fulfilled or may lead to a fallout.
This article aims to shed light on the intricacies of eviction notices in Texas. It also aims to provide a comprehensive guide on the legal processes associated with evictions in Texas.
Eviction Laws in the State of Texas
The primary legislation that governs Texas eviction notices is the Texas Property Code. This Code provides for the landlord-tenant relationship, their rights, obligations, and responsibilities.
Tex. Prop. Code § 92.006 particularly covers the duties of a landlord and tenant. For example, the duty to make repairs as necessary, put the rental unit in a safe and habitable condition, the right of the tenant to vacate, etc.
Tex. Prop. Code § 92.331 also prohibits any form of retaliatory acts from the landlord to the tenant. Therefore, tenants can exercise their legal rights without fear of any retaliatory eviction or acts.
Over time, the provisions of this Code have been repealed, amended or modified to protect the rights of the parties and ensure that the provisions are aligned with the economic circumstances of the state.
The eviction laws in Texas currently give room for extended notice periods, moratoriums, and so much more.
Types of Rental Agreements in Texas
There are different types of rental agreements in Texas. These are;
- Standard Residential Lease Agreement: This is a legally binding rental contract between a landlord and tenant. It outlines the terms for renting a residential property for a fixed term.
- Month-to-Month Lease Agreement: This is a lease agreement that grants the tenant possession of the rental unit with no definite expiration date. The tenant pays rent every month, and the tenancy automatically renews itself every month. However, either party may terminate the lease by notice.
- Sublease Agreement: This type of lease agreement allows the tenant (sublessor) to sublet the rental premise to another tenant (sublessee). However, this is usually done with the consent of the landlord.
- Roommate Agreement: This is a written contract between two or more persons living in the same space. This type of contract outlines the terms and conditions for living together, such as the living arrangement, house chores, rent payment, etc.
- Commercial Lease Agreement: This is a type of lease agreement used to acquire possession of a commercial property. This covers spaces such as retail stores, shops, offices, factories, etc.
- Rent-to-Own Agreement: This is a binding rental agreement allowing the tenant to rent the rental unit with an option to purchase the property at a later date.
Grounds for Eviction
In Texas, there are various grounds on which the landlord can terminate a tenancy agreement before its expiration date. These grounds are;
Failure to Pay Rent:
Rent is considered late a day after its due. However, the lease agreement may provide for a grace period, which the landlord must honor.
Where the tenant fails to pay the rent due, the landlord is entitled to serve an eviction notice under Texas law. To begin the eviction process, he must serve a written Notice to Vacate, also known as a 3-day Notice to Pay or Quit.
The landlord is not obligated to give the tenant a chance to pay the rent due. He may also give the tenant a shorter or longer notice timeline, where it is stipulated in the lease agreement.
Additionally, the landlord may also charge a late rent fee. However, the lease agreement must give room for this fee.
The eviction notice must state the amount of the unpaid rent and the timeframe in which the tenant is to pay the rent or move out.
Where the tenant fails to pay the rent (where given the opportunity) or leave the rental premises after the date stipulated in the notice, the landlord can file an eviction lawsuit in court.
Violation of Lease Terms:
Lease agreements vary from one party to another. However, it’s important that both parties adhere to the terms of the lease for the entire tenancy duration.
In a case where the tenant fails to follow the terms of the lease, the landlord can legally evict such tenant by serving a 3 day eviction notice under Texas law.
Examples of some common violations are;
- Damage to the rental property by the tenant, members of his family, or guests;
- Affecting the quiet enjoyment of other tenants or neighbors;
Smoking in a non-smoking premise; - Keeping pets in a premise where it is unauthorized;
Holding over; etc.
Where the lease agreement provides for it, the landlord may serve a longer or shorter eviction notice timeline.
In addition, the landlord isn’t required to give the tenant the chance to fix the violation. Therefore, he may choose to allow it or not.
Illegal or Criminal Activity:
Landlords in Texas can evict a legal tenant if he or she engages in any criminal or illegal misconduct. He can do this by terminating the tenancy agreement by serving a 3-day eviction notice under Texas law.
However, the landlord must have clear proof of such illegality.
Examples of some illegal activities in Texas are;
- Theft, assault, and violence;
- Subletting without the landlord’s permission;
- Engaging in the creation, distribution, or consumption of illegal drugs.
Health or Safety Violations:
Texas State laws take the health and safety of persons and the environment quite seriously.
Therefore, where the tenant fails to keep the rental premise in a clean and habitable condition, it is seen as a lease violation and therefore warrants eviction.
However, the landlord may give the tenant room to fix the violation before serving an eviction notice.
Unless otherwise agreed in the lease agreement, a landlord can evict such tenancy agreement by serving a 3-day eviction notice under Texas law.
End of Lease or No Lease:
The eviction notices in Texas for tenants without a lease are no different from other notice requirements.
In Texas, a landlord can evict a tenant who does not have a lease (“tenant at will”) or has a lease that has terminated and continues to remain on the premises (“holdover tenant”).
Expected otherwise agreed to in the lease agreement, the landlord can serve a 3 day eviction notice to a holdover tenant under Texas law. The notice should inform the tenant of the lack of lease agreement.
If the tenant fails to leave after the stipulated timeline, the landlord may proceed to file a forcible detainer suit.
For tenants at will, the landlord can evict them without serving an eviction notice. A court order is sufficient to drive such a tenant out of the premises through a law enforcement agent.
Property Foreclosure:
If the rental property is being foreclosed in a tax sale, the buyer must give the tenant notice of his intention to not renew the tenancy agreement. But to be applicable, the tenant must not default on his obligations.
The buyer must serve a 30 day eviction notice under Texas law to the tenant. This notice shall inform the tenant of the non-renewability of the tenancy agreement and the rental foreclosure.
Types of Eviction Notices in Texas
There are various types of eviction notices in Texas. The required notices depend on the particular circumstances of the case.
Eviction notices in Texas are the formal documents used by a landlord to legally evict a tenant in the rental property. It is the first step to regaining possession of the rental unit.
Eviction Notices with Cause
In Texas, landlords can terminate a tenancy agreement early if the tenant defaults in paying rent when due or commits a lease violation.
In this case, the landlord can only evict such a tenant by serving a proper written notice, also called a ‘Notice to Vacate’.
If a tenant violates a term in the lease agreement or fails to pay due rent, the landlord can serve a 3 day eviction notice under Texas law.
The notice must inform the tenants that the tenancy will end, and that he or she must vacate the rental premises before the specified date.
This three-day timeline may be longer or shorter if an otherwise date is agreed upon in the lease agreement. In the absence of that, then the notice timeline must therefore be at least three days.
After serving the notice, if the tenant fails to pay the due rent or fix the violation (whichever is applicable) and also decides not to leave the rental premises after the stipulated timeline given in the notice, the landlord can file an eviction lawsuit.
Eviction Notices without Cause
Under Texas eviction laws, landlords can only terminate a tenancy agreement early for a just cause. This cause may be due to a lease violation, failure to pay rent, and others.
However, there are certain times when the landlord can evict a tenant without cause. The method for evicting such a tenant depends on how often the tenant pays rent.
In Texas, eviction notices without a cause frequently transpire where the landlord does not wish to renew the tenancy agreement at the end of the term.
For a month-to-month tenancy, if the landlord does not wish to renew the tenancy agreement, he can terminate it by serving a 30 day eviction notice under Texas law.
However, if another notice timeline is stated in the lease agreement, then the landlord must follow it.
But for week-to-week tenancy or otherwise, the tenancy agreement can end on the date agreed upon in the lease agreement or based on the frequency of their rent payment. For example, if a tenant pays rent every 10 days, then they must be given a 10-day eviction notice.
On the other hand, eviction notices are not mandatory for fixed-term tenants. If the landlord wishes to terminate the tenancy agreement for a fixed-term lease, he must wait till the end of the tenancy term.
He can reasonably expect the tenants to move once it comes to the end of the term. Unless the lease agreement requests for it, the landlord is not required to give notice to the tenant to evict the rental premises.
If the tenant fails to move out after the tenancy agreement comes to an end, they become a holdover tenant. In this case, the landlord can evict such a tenant by filing a 3 day eviction notice in Texas.
If the tenant fails to vacate the rental premises after 3 days, the landlord can file an eviction lawsuit to drive him/her out.
Eviction Process in Texas
The eviction process in Texas takes various forms and methods. Serving an eviction notice is the first step to commencing an eviction proceeding.
Here are the steps to take when commencing an eviction lawsuit in the State of Texas.
Issuance of Eviction Notice
The eviction process in Texas begins with serving the tenant an eviction notice, explicitly stating the grounds for the eviction, such as nonpayment of rent or lease violation.
The landlord can serve a 3 day eviction notice under Texas law for non-payment of rent or lease violations (as explained above).
The Texas eviction law is quite strict on how the notice must be served and what such notice must contain.
In essence, the notice must contain the amount of time the tenant has to move out or fix the violation he caused before an eviction lawsuit is filed.
The landlord can serve the notice on the tenant by;
- Delivering it in person to the tenant or someone in the tenant’s household who is 16 years or older;
- Affixing the notice to the inside of the main entry door;
- Regular mail, certified mail, or registered mail, with return receipt;
- Affixing it to the outside of the main entrance door AND mailing it on the same day to the tenant. This method can only be done where it is nearly impossible to serve the notice through the second or third method (stated above). In this case, the notice must be enveloped with the proper markings.
It’s important that landlords retain copies of the notice as proof of service. These are vital documents in any eviction suit. It helps to prove that the landlord has followed the proper eviction process under the Texas eviction laws.
Filing an Eviction Lawsuit
After the period given in the notice has elapsed, the landlord can go ahead to file a lawsuit in the justice court where the rental property is located.
The landlord would file a forcible detainer suit in court, and prepare the following documents;
- The names and information of the landlord and tenant (s)
- Address and description of the rental property
- Reason/Cause of eviction
- Proof of Service
- Details on the tenant’s stay in the rental unit
- Copy of the lease agreement
- Tenant’s rental application form
- Tenant’s involvement in the military (if applicable)
The landlord can also request immediate possession of the rental unit under Texas eviction law. In this case, the landlord must additionally file a sworn statement and post a bond in cash with an amount approved by the judge.
The essence of this immediate possession is that it fast-tracks the eviction proceeding. However, it is risky.
If the landlord wins the lawsuit, he can immediately regain possession of the rental property in a short time. But if the tenant wins the lawsuit or the writ is revoked on appeal, the money in the bond would cover all the tenant’s expenses, including court fees, attorney fees, etc.
To request for an ‘immediate possession’ by the landlord, he must also send a Notice Of Request to the tenant stating the intricacies behind the filing.
The landlord must also pay the prescribed fee when filing for an eviction lawsuit. The fee may vary from $46 to $100 depending on the county of the court. They may be asked to pay an additional $130 for the writ of possession and $22 if a jury trial is requested.
Serving the Summons and Complaint
After the claim has been filed, the court would issue a summons and a copy of the petition which must be served on the tenant. These documents must be served at least 6 days before the trial.
The sheriff or constable may serve the tenant through any of the following methods;
- Personal Service: The documents may be delivered to the tenant in person;
- Substituted Service: The document can be given to a member of the tenant’s household, who is 16 years or older.
If the above methods have been unsuccessfully tried twice, the judge may allow the next method to be used.
- Posting and Mailing: The documents can alternatively be served by slipping them through a mail slot, slipping them under the front door, or affixing them to the front door. In addition to this, the Sheriff must also mail the documents to the tenant by first-class mail.
Landlords must also pay a server fee, often $30, but may vary by county.
It’s important that the summon and a copy of the petition are properly served on the tenant. Where the wrong document is filed or the right document is served improperly, it may lead to a dismissal of the case.
In Texas, tenants are not required to file a written response to the summon. But they may do so if they disagree with the landlord’s claim. In such a case, they can rely on any of the defenses (as explained below).
Although the tenants are not obligated to file a response, they must however appear for the court hearing or risk getting a default judgment against them.
Either party may request for continuance (delay) for at least seven days. If both parties require a longer continuance (more than seven days), they must equally agree in writing.
Court Hearing and Judgment
A court hearing is set for 10 – 21 days from the filing of the complaint by the landlord. However, these given days may be shortened to as little as 10 days if the landlord files for immediate possession.
If the tenant files a response relying on any of the defenses (below), the landlord may try to settle the matter out of court. In this case, he must request for a nonsuit.
However, where the hearing proceeds, the landlord may establish a strong argument backed with indisputable evidence to win the lawsuit. The reason is because the burden of proof lies on the landlord.
The landlord may use the following evidence to prove his claim; a copy of the lease agreement, bank statement, witnesses (in case of lease violation), pictorial representation of the violation, etc.
The tenant must also establish an argument to dispute the claim of the landlord.
The judge would listen to the claims of both parties and make a ruling in favor of the party with the strongest and most reliable argument under the law.
If either party wins the lawsuit, the other party can request an appeal five days after the ruling.
However, if the tenant wins the lawsuit, the court may allow him/her to remain in the rental unit until the tenancy agreement expires. In some cases, the landlord may incur some court fees, and other charges.
Tenant Defenses
The tenant may rely on the following defenses to rebut the claim of the landlord during the eviction proceedings.
- Self-Help Eviction: In Texas, it is illegal for a landlord to resort to any form of self-help remedies. Examples of these self-help remedies are; turning off utilities in the rental, changing locks of the rental property, or any other act done to frustrate the tenant out of the rental.
- Improper Notice: If the landlord had improperly served the notice or did not wait long enough before filing an eviction lawsuit, it could lead to a dismissal of the suit. In this case, the landlord would have to redo the entire process from the beginning.
- Retaliatory Eviction: It is illegal under Texas eviction laws for a landlord to serve an eviction notice because the tenant had exercised their legal rights. Under Section 92.331 of the Texas Property Code, the landlord can not retaliate against a tenant where in good faith, he exercises his legal right, reports a housing or building violation, requests the landlord to make a repair, or joins a tenant’s organization. Furthermore, the landlord can not retaliate by serving an eviction notice, depriving the tenant of use of the premises, decreasing the use of service, raising rent, or engaging in an act materially affecting the tenant’s rights.
- Landlord’s Failure to Maintain Premises: Texas law makes it mandatory for property owners to keep the rental unit in a safe and habitable condition. Although he is not required to fix damages caused by the tenant, he must however make necessary repairs when due. Therefore, where the tenant fails to pay the rent in full due to money expended in fixing repairs which the landlord ought to have done, the court may waive the unpaid amount.
- Full Payment of Rent: In the case of evictions based on nonpayment of rent, if the tenant has made full payment of the rent, he may use it as a defense against the eviction.
- Discrimination: It is illegal for a landlord to evict a tenant based on gender, family status, race, religion, nationality, etc. Where this is proved, the judge would make a ruling in favor of the tenant.
- Emergency Situations: During emergencies, the governmental body may promulgate some legislation to deal with evictions mostly based on non-payment of rent. An example of a similar provision is the Federal CARES Act which was promulgated during COVID-19 to help mitigate the harshness of the economy for renters.
- Waiver/Agreement Disputes: If the landlord had agreed to a waiver with the tenant and still goes ahead to file an eviction lawsuit, the tenant may use such agreement as a defense against the proceedings. For example, where a landlord has agreed to accept partial payment from the tenant, and later on, proceeds to file a lawsuit. The tenant may use such an agreement to rebut the landlord’s claim of non-payment of rent. It’s best if such an agreement is recorded in writing.
Issuing a Writ of Possession
Provided no appeal is made or the landlord wins the appeal, the Writ of Possession will be issued.
The writ is issued on request when the landlord wins the eviction lawsuit. It is issued six days after the court judgment, but no less than thirty days after. – Tex. R. Civ. P., Part V, Rule 749
The landlord must request for the writ from the court even after the judgment has been given in his favor.
If the landlord had requested immediate possession, the tenant only has seven days from when he/she receives the Notice of Request to vacate the rental unit.
Questions like – ‘Do you have 30 days after eviction notice in Texas?’. The answer is no. Once the writ is issued and served, the tenant has only 24 hours to leave the rental premises.
Executing the Eviction
The landlord can choose to execute the writ if the tenant remains in the rental unit after judgment has been given in favor of the landlord.
After requesting the writ, he must give the Sheriff/Constable, who will further serve the writ to the tenant. This writ is a final notice to the tenant to move out of the rental unit within 24 hours or be forcibly led out by the Sheriff.
If the tenant remains in the rentals after 24 hours, the Sheriff may forcibly evict the tenant and return possession of the property to the landlord.
The landlord is not obligated to store the personal property of the tenant left behind in the rental. In some cases, the writ may authorize the officer to keep the tenant’s personal property in a warehouse storage, at no cost to the landlord.
The tenant should however be notified by first class mail of the storage, with details on the address and tel-number of the warehouse. The property must be redeemed by the tenant by paying the prescribed fee within 30 days, or it may be sold.
Additionally, the tenant’s personal property can also be left outside the rental unit, but not when the weather is unfavorable and it should not be left to obstruct the public walkway. If the tenant doesn’t claim it within a reasonable timeframe, the property may be sold by any legal means.
Eviction Notice by States
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FAQs
The eviction process in Texas takes about 1 – 3 months in total. However, this also depends on whether the suit is appealed and the overall circumstances of the case. If you’re wondering how to file an eviction notice in Texas, this article will guide you on your next step.
To begin an eviction process, the landlord must first serve an eviction notice under Texas laws. If the tenant fails to comply with the provision of the notice, the landlord can move to file an eviction lawsuit. Afterward, the summons and complaint will be delivered to the tenant and a court hearing will be set. If the landlord wins the lawsuit, the tenant must vacate the rental unit or be forcibly led out by the sheriff. You can read more details on the Texas eviction process in this guide.
The total cost of evicting a tenant in Texas varies. It usually depends on the legal fees, county of the court, jury trial, and lots more. However, the total cost may range from $1500 to $11,000 (more or less).
Each party must be represented by a legal practitioner who understands the intricacies of Texas eviction laws. While some landlords may attempt to handle the eviction process on their own, the process can be too complex to handle without any prerequisite knowledge.
Illegal evictions in Texas refer to unlawful or wrongful removal of the tenant from the rental unit by the landlord. This may take various forms such as self-help methods, retaliatory evictions, etc.
Rich is an Entrepreneur, Real Estate Investor, and Lawyer licensed in Texas. He enjoys family, community, and work. He started Landlord Guidance in 2012 to help fellow landlords, and teach them that being fair and ethical with their tenants is the true path to long-term success.
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