Evicting a tenant is just one of the many struggles of being a landlord. At some point, every landlord will find themselves with the difficult task of evicting a tenant. While there are many reasons to evict a tenant, some may not be considered legal or allowed by Texas law. So if you’re facing a major decision of evicting a tenant, understanding how eviction works and the legal reasons to do so may help you feel less anxious in starting the eviction process.
Landlords cannot simply evict tenants right away even if the tenant habitually creates a mess in their rental home. Instead, a landlord can only evict a tenant for lawful reasons stated in your state’s Landlord/Tenant Law. That’s why it’s important to become familiar with the following legal reasons to evict a tenant in Texas.
1. Not Paying Rent
Failure to pay rent is the most common reason for eviction. Unless the lease agreement says otherwise, you can evict a tenant for nonpayment of rent after giving three days’ notice to move out. Keep in mind, though, that the number of days the rent can be late varies from state to state. Because eviction is a legal process, you’ll need to send out a Notice to Pay or Quit, which serves as a warning for tenants to clean up their act or risk facing eviction.
Apogee Properties Tip: Make sure your lease agreement outlines a late rent policy including the grace period for late rental payments and fees. Don’t forget to keep a record of all payments received whether it’s on time or late.
2. Using Property for Illegal Purposes
A tenant can be legally evicted if they are using your property for illegal purposes such as distributing illegal substances out of the property, or using a residential unit for any commercial activities even if the business is a legitimate one. In most states, a landlord can terminate a lease with 24-hours’ notice, or less, for criminal or drug-related activity. In the same way, Texas allows immediate termination of lease for tenants convicted of public indecency.
Apogee Properties Tip: Be sure to serve the tenant with a Notice to Quit, notifying them that you are filing an eviction because they’ve used the property for illegal purposes.
3. Violation or Breaching of the Lease Agreement
Before allowing a tenant to your rental property, they must have agreed to the terms in your lease agreement. If they breach the terms in the lease, you must first present a Notice to Quit before filing for the eviction. Below are commonly-breached lease terms:
- Violating a pet policy
- Unapproved Occupants
- Subletting the rental property
- Repeated Neighborhood Complaints
Apogee Properties Tip: Protect yourself with a rental agreement that has been checked and approved by an attorney to make sure you’re in compliance with state law and that you’ve covered your bases.
4. Fixing Property Damage for Health or Safety Violations
If your property has a known health or safety violation that must be remedied immediately, you may be able to evict a tenant especially if the damage requires tenants to vacate the premises. In this case, the landlord must provide the tenant with a Notice to Quit far in advance of the intended date of eviction. Relocation assistance must often be provided to tenants who are being evicted under these circumstances. Similarly, tenant damage that goes above and beyond normal use is another reason to get your tenant to move out.
Apogee Properties Tip: Perform walk-throughs of the property with your tenant at the time of move-in to make sure you and the tenant are aware of the state of your property before move-in.
If you have decided to take your rental property off the market because you’re moving in or an immediate family member will live in the property, you may want to check to see what the law is for your state to ensure that you’re in compliance. Remember that state laws vary when it comes to withdrawing your property to live in it, or retiring the property from residential use.
In Texas, remember that you can’t evict a tenant without giving the tenant a written notice. If you find yourself in one of the situations above, you should start the eviction process and if you’re unsure where to start, your first step is by reading up on the laws in your state, or if your property is in Houston, the eviction process in Texas. The eviction process can be stressful, so it’s best to be aware of your state’s laws in order to avoid the costly mistakes of eviction.
Are you ready to become a landlord, but still uncertain about handling evictions legally? You may benefit from hiring a local Houston property manager. Apogee Properties is a full-service property management company in Houston providing premier property management services throughout the Houston area since 2009 – from tenant screening, collecting rent, handling maintenance and evictions if needed.
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Apogee Properties is Houston’s leading real estate management company. We work and live in Houston and our property managers are local. We’ve been in business for more than a decade providing comprehensive property management services in the Houston region ranging from a studio condo to a multi-family million dollar estate.
Apogee looks forward to hearing from you and sharing what we can offer to your Houston property. Contact us today to learn more about our property management services, and what we can do for you and your rental property.
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Readers of this website should contact their attorney to obtain advice with respect to any particular legal matter. No reader, user, or browser of this site should act or refrain from acting on the basis of information on this site without first seeking legal advice from counsel in the relevant jurisdiction. Only your individual attorney can provide assurances that the information contained herein – and your interpretation of it – is applicable or appropriate to your particular situation.
We provide support for rental property management in Houston and the surrounding areas and have legal counsel on retainer, and if you have a future need for commercial or residential management, we can help you. In a case of an eviction, only your lawyer can advise you.
