Title PR, Property Code

Sec. 92.005. ATTORNEY'S FEES. (a) A party who prevails in a suit brought under this subchapter or Subchapter B, E, or F may recover the party's costs of court and reasonable attorney's fees in relation to work reasonably expended. (b) This section does not authorize a recovery of…

Sec. 92.006. WAIVER OR EXPANSION OF DUTIES AND REMEDIES. (a) A landlord's duty or a tenant's remedy concerning security deposits, security devices, the landlord's disclosure of ownership and management, or utility cutoffs, as provided by Subchapter C, D, E, or G, respectively, ma…

Sec. 92.007. VENUE. Venue for an action under this chapter is governed by Section 15.0115, Civil Practice and Remedies Code. Acts 1983, 68th Leg., p. 3632, ch. 576, Sec. 1, eff. Jan. 1, 1984. Amended by Acts 1989, 71st Leg., ch. 332, Sec. 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1989; Acts 1989, 71st Le…

Sec. 92.008. INTERRUPTION OF UTILITIES. (a) A landlord or a landlord's agent may not interrupt or cause the interruption of utility service paid for directly to the utility company by a tenant unless the interruption results from bona fide repairs, construction, or an emergency. …

Sec. 92.0081. REMOVAL OF PROPERTY AND EXCLUSION OF RESIDENTIAL TENANT. (a) A landlord may not remove a door, window, or attic hatchway cover or a lock, latch, hinge, hinge pin, doorknob, or other mechanism connected to a door, window, or attic hatchway cover from premises leased …

Sec. 92.009. RESIDENTIAL TENANT'S RIGHT OF REENTRY AFTER UNLAWFUL LOCKOUT. (a) If a landlord has locked a tenant out of leased premises in violation of Section 92.0081, the tenant may recover possession of the premises as provided by this section. (b) The tenant must file with th…

Sec. 92.0091. RESIDENTIAL TENANT'S RIGHT OF RESTORATION AFTER UNLAWFUL UTILITY DISCONNECTION. (a) If a landlord has interrupted utility service in violation of Section 92.008, the tenant may obtain relief as provided by this section. (b) The tenant must file with the justice cour…

Sec. 92.010. OCCUPANCY LIMITS. (a) Except as provided by Subsection (b), the maximum number of adults that a landlord may allow to occupy a dwelling is three times the number of bedrooms in the dwelling. (b) A landlord may allow an occupancy rate of more than three adult tenants …

Sec. 92.011. CASH RENTAL PAYMENTS. (a) A landlord shall accept a tenant's timely cash rental payment unless a written lease between the landlord and tenant requires the tenant to make rental payments by check, money order, or other traceable or negotiable instrument. (b) A landlo…

Sec. 92.012. NOTICE TO TENANT AT PRIMARY RESIDENCE. (a) If, at the time of signing a lease or lease renewal, a tenant gives written notice to the tenant's landlord that the tenant does not occupy the leased premises as a primary residence and requests in writing that the landlord…

Sec. 92.013. NOTICE OF RULE OR POLICY CHANGE AFFECTING TENANT'S PERSONAL PROPERTY. (a) A landlord shall give prior written notice to a tenant regarding a landlord rule or policy change that is not included in the lease agreement and that will affect any personal property owned by…

Sec. 92.0131. NOTICE REGARDING VEHICLE TOWING OR PARKING RULES OR POLICIES. (a) This section applies only to a tenant in a multiunit complex, as that term is defined by Section 92.151. (b) If at the time a lease agreement is executed a landlord has vehicle towing or parking rules…

Sec. 92.0132. TERM OF PARKING PERMIT. A landlord who issues a parking permit to a tenant: (1) must issue the permit for a term that is coterminous with the tenant's lease term; and (2) may not terminate or suspend the permit until the date the tenant's right of possession ends. A…

Sec. 92.0135. NOTICE FOR DWELLING LOCATED IN FLOODPLAIN. (a) In this section: (1) "100-year floodplain" means any area of land designated as a flood hazard area with a one percent or greater chance of flooding each year by the Federal Emergency Management Agency under the Nationa…

Sec. 92.014. PERSONAL PROPERTY AND SECURITY DEPOSIT OF DECEASED TENANT. (a) Upon written request of a landlord, the landlord's tenant shall: (1) provide the landlord with the name, address, and telephone number of a person to contact in the event of the tenant's death; and (2) si…

Sec. 92.015. TENANT'S RIGHT TO SUMMON POLICE OR EMERGENCY ASSISTANCE. (a) A landlord may not: (1) prohibit or limit a residential tenant's right to summon police or other emergency assistance based on the tenant's reasonable belief that an individual is in need of intervention or…

Sec. 92.016. RIGHT TO VACATE AND AVOID LIABILITY FOLLOWING FAMILY VIOLENCE. (a) For purposes of this section: (1) "Family violence" has the meaning assigned by Section 71.004, Family Code. (2) "Occupant" means a person who has the landlord's consent to occupy a dwelling but has n…

Sec. 92.0161. RIGHT TO VACATE AND AVOID LIABILITY FOLLOWING CERTAIN SEX OFFENSES OR STALKING. (a) In this section, "occupant" has the meaning assigned by Section 92.016. (b) A tenant may terminate the tenant's rights and obligations under a lease and may vacate the dwelling and a…

Sec. 92.0162. RIGHT TO VACATE AND AVOID LIABILITY FOLLOWING TENANT'S DEATH. (a) A representative of the estate of a tenant who dies before the expiration of the tenant's lease and was, at the time of the tenant's death, the sole occupant of a rental dwelling may terminate the ten…

Sec. 92.017. RIGHT TO VACATE AND AVOID LIABILITY FOLLOWING CERTAIN DECISIONS RELATED TO MILITARY SERVICE. (a) For purposes of this section, "dependent," "military service," and "servicemember" have the meanings assigned by 50 App. U.S.C. Section 511. (b) A tenant who is a service…

Sec. 92.018. LIABILITY OF TENANT FOR GOVERNMENTAL FINES. (a) In this section, "governmental entity" means the state, an agency of the state, or a political subdivision of the state. (b) A landlord or a landlord's manager or agent may not charge or seek reimbursement from the land…

Sec. 92.019. LATE PAYMENT OF RENT; FEES. (a) A landlord may not collect from a tenant a late fee for failing to pay any portion of the tenant's rent unless: (1) notice of the fee is included in a written lease; (2) the fee is reasonable; and (3) any portion of the tenant's rent h…

Sec. 92.0191. STATEMENT OF LATE FEES. A tenant may request that the landlord provide to the tenant a written statement of whether the tenant owes a late fee to the landlord and, if so, the amount of the late fee. On request of the tenant, the landlord shall provide the statement …

Sec. 92.020. EMERGENCY PHONE NUMBER. (a) A landlord that has an on-site management or superintendent's office for a residential rental property must provide to a tenant a telephone number that will be answered 24 hours a day for the purpose of reporting emergencies related to a c…

Sec. 92.021. LIABILITY OF CERTAIN GUARANTORS UNDER LEASE. (a) A person other than a tenant who guarantees a lease is liable only for the original lease term except that a person may specify that the person agrees to guarantee a renewal of the lease as provided by Subsection (b). …

Sec. 92.023. TENANT'S REMEDIES REGARDING REVOCATION OF CERTIFICATE OF OCCUPANCY. If a municipality or a county revokes a certificate of occupancy for a leased premises because of the landlord's failure to maintain the premises, the landlord is liable to a tenant who is not in def…

Sec. 92.024. LANDLORD'S DUTY TO PROVIDE COPY OF LEASE. (a) Not later than the third business day after the date the lease is signed by each party to the lease, a landlord shall provide at least one complete copy of the lease to at least one tenant who is a party to the lease. (b)…

Sec. 92.025. LIABILITY FOR LEASING TO PERSON WITH CRIMINAL RECORD. (a) A cause of action does not accrue against a landlord or a landlord's manager or agent solely for leasing a dwelling to a tenant convicted of, or arrested or placed on deferred adjudication for, an offense. (b)…

Sec. 92.026. POSSESSION OF FIREARMS OR FIREARM AMMUNITION ON LEASED PREMISES. Unless possession of a firearm or firearm ammunition on a landlord's property is prohibited by state or federal law, a landlord may not prohibit a tenant or a tenant's guest from lawfully possessing, ca…

Sec. 92.051. APPLICATION. This subchapter applies to a lease executed, entered into, renewed, or extended on or after September 1, 1979. Acts 1983, 68th Leg., p. 3632, ch. 576, Sec. 1, eff. Jan. 1, 1984.

Sec. 92.052. LANDLORD'S DUTY TO REPAIR OR REMEDY. (a) A landlord shall make a diligent effort to repair or remedy a condition if: (1) the tenant specifies the condition in a notice to the person to whom or to the place where rent is normally paid; (2) the tenant is not delinquent…

Sec. 92.053. BURDEN OF PROOF. (a) Except as provided by this section, the tenant has the burden of proof in a judicial action to enforce a right resulting from the landlord's failure to repair or remedy a condition under Section 92.052. (b) If the landlord does not provide a writ…

Sec. 92.054. CASUALTY LOSS. (a) If a condition results from an insured casualty loss, such as fire, smoke, hail, explosion, or a similar cause, the period for repair does not begin until the landlord receives the insurance proceeds. (b) If after a casualty loss the rental premise…

Sec. 92.055. CLOSING THE RENTAL PREMISES. (a) A landlord may close a rental unit at any time by giving written notice by certified mail, return receipt requested, to the tenant and to the local health officer and local building inspector, if any, stating that: (1) the landlord is…

Sec. 92.056. LANDLORD LIABILITY AND TENANT REMEDIES; NOTICE AND TIME FOR REPAIR. (a) A landlord's liability under this section is subject to Section 92.052(b) regarding conditions that are caused by a tenant and Section 92.054 regarding conditions that are insured casualties. (b)…

Sec. 92.0561. TENANT'S REPAIR AND DEDUCT REMEDIES. (a) If the landlord is liable to the tenant under Section 92.056(b), the tenant may have the condition repaired or remedied and may deduct the cost from a subsequent rent payment as provided in this section. (b) The tenant's dedu…

Sec. 92.0562. LANDLORD AFFIDAVIT FOR DELAY. (a) The tenant must delay contracting for repairs under Section 92.0561 if, before the tenant contracts for the repairs, the landlord delivers to the tenant an affidavit, signed and sworn to under oath by the landlord or his authorized …

Sec. 92.0563. TENANT'S JUDICIAL REMEDIES. (a) A tenant's judicial remedies under Section 92.056 shall include: (1) an order directing the landlord to take reasonable action to repair or remedy the condition; (2) an order reducing the tenant's rent, from the date of the first repa…

Sec. 92.058. LANDLORD REMEDY FOR TENANT VIOLATION. (a) If the tenant withholds rents, causes repairs to be performed, or makes rent deductions for repairs in violation of this subchapter, the landlord may recover actual damages from the tenant. If, after a landlord has notified a…

Sec. 92.060. AGENTS FOR DELIVERY OF NOTICE. A managing agent, leasing agent, or resident manager is the agent of the landlord for purposes of notice and other communications required or permitted by this subchapter. Acts 1983, 68th Leg., p. 3639, ch. 576, Sec. 1, eff. Jan. 1, 198…

Sec. 92.061. EFFECT ON OTHER RIGHTS. The duties of a landlord and the remedies of a tenant under this subchapter are in lieu of existing common law and other statutory law warranties and duties of landlords for maintenance, repair, security, habitability, and nonretaliation, and …

Sec. 92.062. LEASE TERM AFTER NATURAL DISASTER. If a rental premises is, as a practical matter, totally unusable for residential purposes as a result of a natural disaster such as a hurricane, tornado, flood, extended freeze, or widespread windstorm, a landlord that allows a tena…

Sec. 92.101. APPLICATION. This subchapter applies to all residential leases. Acts 1983, 68th Leg., p. 3639, ch. 576, Sec. 1, eff. Jan. 1, 1984. Amended by Acts 1995, 74th Leg., ch. 744, Sec. 1, eff. Jan. 1, 1996.

Sec. 92.102. SECURITY DEPOSIT. A security deposit is any advance of money, other than a rental application deposit or an advance payment of rent, that is intended primarily to secure performance under a lease of a dwelling that has been entered into by a landlord and a tenant. Ac…

Sec. 92.103. OBLIGATION TO REFUND. (a) Except as provided by Section 92.107, the landlord shall refund a security deposit to the tenant on or before the 30th day after the date the tenant surrenders the premises. (b) A requirement that a tenant give advance notice of surrender as…

Sec. 92.1031. CONDITIONS FOR RETENTION OF SECURITY DEPOSIT OR RENT PREPAYMENT. (a) Except as provided in Subsection (b), a landlord who receives a security deposit or rent prepayment for a dwelling from a tenant who fails to occupy the dwelling according to a lease between the la…