Landlord Rights in Texas: What the Law Actually Lets You Do

Texas gives landlords more room than most states: you set the rent, choose the tenant, charge a late fee, keep lawful deposit deductions, claim a lien for unpaid rent and evict through a fast justice-court process. The catch is that almost every one of those rights is conditional. Texas hands landlords a long list of rights, and almost every one comes with a paperwork condition. Miss the lease clause, the written notice or the signed acknowledgment, and the same statute that gave you the right hands the tenant a penalty instead.

This guide is the positive counterpart to our list of what a landlord cannot do in Texas. That post catalogues the prohibitions. This one walks through what the Property Code affirmatively lets you do, quotes the section that grants each right, and names the condition that keeps it yours. It is written for owners with single-family rentals in Houston, Katy, Sugar Land, Cypress, Pearland and The Woodlands, but the statutes are statewide.

Last reviewed: September 2026. This is general information for property owners, not legal advice. Texas statutes change every legislative session and courts keep interpreting them. Confirm the current text with a Texas-licensed attorney before you rely on any figure here in a live dispute.

What rights does a landlord have in Texas?

A Texas landlord has the right to price, select, charge, deduct, secure and recover, each subject to a statutory condition. A landlord right, in the sense used here, is a power the Texas Property Code grants the owner of a rental that a tenant cannot waive away and a court will enforce, provided the owner has met the procedural condition attached to it.

Most of those rights live in Chapter 92 of the Property Code, titled "Residential Tenancies." The landlord lien sits in Chapter 54, the duty to mitigate after abandonment sits in Chapter 91, the eviction lawsuit sits in Chapter 24, and the limit on city rent control sits in the Local Government Code. For the full structural map of those chapters, see our guide to Texas landlord-tenant law.

Two practical points frame everything that follows. First, Texas law is state law: there is no City of Houston landlord code layered over Chapter 92, so a house in Katy and a house in Kingwood run under the same rights. Second, several of these rights are only as strong as your lease. A generic online lease often omits the exact clauses that switch the rights on.

Texas landlord rights at a glance

Every right below comes with a condition, and the condition is where owners lose. Use this table as the checklist, then read the section that applies.

Your right	Where it lives	The condition that keeps it yours	If you skip the condition
Set the rent at market	Local Gov’t Code §214.902	None for ordinary leases; cities can cap rent only after a disaster finding plus the governor’s approval	Not applicable
Reject an applicant	§92.3515	Printed tenant selection criteria at application, with a signed acknowledgment	Refund the application fee and any application deposit
Charge a late fee	§92.019	Written lease notice, reasonable amount, rent unpaid two full days	$100 plus three times the fee plus attorney’s fees
Deduct from the deposit	§92.104	Charges the tenant is liable for under the lease; no normal wear and tear; itemized list	Deposit penalties under §92.109
Decline tenant-caused repairs	§92.052(b)	Condition caused by the tenant, an occupant, family member or guest, not normal wear and tear	Full repair duty and tenant remedies
Lien on property for unpaid rent	§54.041, §54.043	Lien clause underlined or in conspicuous bold print in the lease	Contractual lien is not enforceable
Change locks on a delinquent tenant	§92.0081	Lease authorizes it, advance written notice, new key on request regardless of payment	One month’s rent plus $1,000 plus damages, costs and attorney’s fees
Evict	Ch. 24	Written notice to vacate, then a justice court suit	Self-help eviction penalties
Act inside a retaliation window	§92.332	A listed non-retaliatory ground, such as rent delinquency, documented in the file	Retaliation penalties under §92.333

Can a Texas landlord charge any rent they want?

Yes, for practical purposes: no Texas city can cap your rent except in a declared disaster with the governor’s approval. Texas Local Government Code Section 214.902(a) provides that a city's governing body "may, by ordinance, establish rent control if: (1) the governing body finds that a housing emergency exists due to a disaster as defined by Section 418.004, Government Code; and (2) the governor approves the ordinance." Section 214.902(b) requires the city to continue or discontinue rent control "in the same manner that the governor continues or discontinues a state of disaster."

That is a disaster valve, not a housing policy lever. Houston, Pasadena, Sugar Land, Pearland and every other city in Harris, Fort Bend and Montgomery counties leave the rent number to you and the market. What the law does not do is tell you what the market will bear. Pricing a Cypress four-bedroom $200 over the leased comps costs you a month of vacancy, which is more than most rent increases recover in a year. Our Houston average rent report covers current levels.

The freedom to set rent does not extend to changing it mid-lease. A fixed-term lease fixes the rent unless the lease itself provides otherwise; the notice rules for a rent change are covered in our guide to Texas rent increase laws.

The right to choose your tenant

You can reject an applicant for criminal history, rental history, income, credit or an inaccurate application, provided you disclosed those criteria in writing first. Property Code Section 92.3515(a) requires that, at the time an applicant is given a rental application, the landlord "shall make available to the applicant printed notice of the landlord's tenant selection criteria and the grounds for which the rental application may be denied," including the applicant's criminal history, previous rental history, current income, credit history, or failure to provide accurate or complete information.

The statute builds in a proof mechanism. Under §92.3515(b) the applicant signs an acknowledgment that the notice was made available; if the acknowledgment is not signed, there is a rebuttable presumption the notice was not given. Section 92.3515(d) allows the acknowledgment to be part of the application itself "if the notice is underlined or in bold print."

The consequence of skipping it is specific. Under §92.3515(e), if the landlord rejects an applicant without having made the notice available, "the landlord shall return the application fee and any application deposit." Written criteria also do a second job: applying the same published standard to every applicant is the practical backbone of complying with federal fair housing law, which limits the grounds on which you can choose. Our tenant screening guide covers how we set those criteria.

The right to charge a late fee

Texas lets you charge a late fee once rent is two full days late, capped by a reasonableness safe harbor of 12 percent of monthly rent for most single-family homes. Section 92.019(a) says a landlord may not collect a late fee 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 has remained unpaid two full days after the date the rent was originally due."

Section 92.019(a-1) defines reasonable. A fee is reasonable if it is not more than 12 percent of the rent for the rental period for a dwelling in a structure with not more than four dwelling units, or 10 percent for a structure with more than four units. A higher fee is reasonable only if it is not more than the landlord's uncertain damages related to the late payment, which is a fact you would have to prove.

Monthly rent (single-family home)	12% safe-harbor ceiling on the total late fee
$1,800	$216
$2,200	$264
$2,800	$336

Two drafting points matter. Section 92.019(b) allows an initial fee plus a daily fee, but "the combined fees are considered a single late fee," so the daily accrual counts toward the ceiling. And §92.019(c) makes a landlord who violates the section liable for "the sum of $100, three times the amount of the late fee collected in violation of this section, and the tenant's reasonable attorney's fees." Section 92.019(e) confirms the fee rules do not affect your separate right to terminate the lease or take other action the lease or law permits.

The right to deduct from the deposit

You can keep the part of the deposit that covers what the tenant owes you under the lease, but never normal wear and tear, and only with an itemized list. Section 92.104(a) states that "before returning a security deposit, the landlord may deduct from the deposit damages and charges for which the tenant is legally liable under the lease or as a result of breaching the lease." Section 92.104(b) adds that the landlord "may not retain any portion of a security deposit to cover normal wear and tear."

Section 92.104(c) requires the landlord to return the balance "together with a written description and itemized list of all deductions," with one narrow exception: no itemization is required if the tenant owes rent at surrender and there is no controversy about the amount owed. The refund and itemization are due on or before the 30th day after the tenant surrenders the premises. The penalty structure and the bad-faith presumption are covered in our guide to Texas security deposit law for landlords.

For Houston owners the practical fight is almost always over wear and tear versus damage: sun-faded blinds on a west-facing Katy bedroom are wear and tear; a pet-chewed door frame is damage. Dated move-in and move-out photos decide those disputes.

The right to refuse tenant-caused repairs

During the lease, you have no statutory duty to repair a condition the tenant, their household or their guests caused, unless it is normal wear and tear. Section 92.052(b) provides: "Unless the condition was caused by normal wear and tear, the landlord does not have a duty during the lease term or a renewal or extension to repair or remedy a condition caused by: (1) the tenant; (2) a lawful occupant in the tenant's dwelling; (3) a member of the tenant's family; or (4) a guest or invitee of the tenant."

That is a meaningful right, but it is narrower than it sounds. The general duty in §92.052(a) still applies to conditions that materially affect the physical health or safety of an ordinary tenant once proper notice is given, and the hot-water device must supply water of at least 120 degrees Fahrenheit. If the air conditioning fails in a Pearland August, you do not get to argue causation first and fix it later. In practice, most owners repair promptly and recover the cost through the lease and the deposit where the tenant caused the damage. The operational side is in our guide to Texas landlord repair laws.

The landlord lien for unpaid rent

Texas gives residential landlords a lien on a tenant's nonexempt property for unpaid rent, but the lease clause that makes it enforceable has to be underlined or in bold. Section 54.041 states: "A landlord of a single or multifamily residence has a lien for unpaid rent that is due. The lien attaches to nonexempt property that is in the residence or that the tenant has stored in a storage room."

Section 54.043(a) is the condition: "A contractual landlord's lien is not enforceable unless it is underlined or printed in conspicuous bold print in the lease agreement." A lien clause set in the same type as the rest of the lease is not enforceable. Exempt property is excluded by statute, and seizure itself is tightly regulated, so treat the lien as a right you use only with a current, compliant lease and professional advice on the specific facts. It is not a substitute for an eviction.

Can a Texas landlord change the locks?

Yes, on a tenant who is behind on rent, but only if your lease authorizes it, you give advance written notice, and you hand over a new key on request even if the tenant does not pay. Section 92.0081(b) bars a landlord from intentionally preventing a tenant from entering the dwelling except by judicial process, with narrow exceptions that include "changing the door locks on the door to the tenant's individual unit of a tenant who is delinquent in paying at least part of the rent."

Section 92.0081(d) sets the conditions: the right must be in the lease, the tenant must actually be delinquent, and the landlord must give advance written notice with specific contents, including the tenant's right to receive a key to the new lock at any hour regardless of whether the tenant pays. Section 92.0081(f) makes that key obligation unconditional. The notice timing and delivery rules are detailed and easy to get wrong, so read the current statute before you rely on this remedy.

This is the right most likely to backfire. Under §92.0081(h), a tenant can recover "one month's rent plus $1,000, actual damages, court costs, and reasonable attorney's fees," or terminate the lease. Because the tenant gets a key regardless of payment, a lock change is a pressure tool, not a way to regain possession. Possession comes from a court.

The right to evict, through court only

You have the right to remove a tenant who defaults or holds over, and in Texas the only lawful route is a written notice to vacate followed by an eviction suit in justice court. Chapter 24 of the Property Code governs the suit. For a Houston address that means the justice of the peace court for the precinct where the property sits, and a Houston mailing address does not tell you the county: parts of Katy, Missouri City, Pearland and The Woodlands fall outside Harris County.

Eviction procedure changed for suits filed on or after January 1, 2026, and the notice delivery and day-counting rules are exactly where an owner's case gets dismissed. Rather than restate those mechanics here, our walkthrough of the eviction process in Houston covers the timeline, notices, courts and published fee schedules, and our Texas notice to vacate guide covers the notice itself.

When a complaint does not freeze you

A tenant's repair request or code complaint opens a six-month retaliation window, but the statute lists reasons you can still evict or terminate inside it. Section 92.331 bars a landlord, within six months after a protected tenant action, from retaliating by filing an eviction, decreasing services, increasing rent or terminating the lease, among other acts.

Section 92.332 is the landlord's side of that rule. Under §92.332(a) the landlord is not liable if it proves the action was not made for purposes of retaliation, and rent increases made under an escalation clause in a written lease are not retaliation. Section 92.332(b) then lists situations in which an eviction or lease termination is not retaliation, including when the tenant is delinquent in rent when the landlord gives notice to vacate; when the tenant, a family member or a guest damages property or threatens personal safety; and when the tenant has materially breached the lease other than by holding over.

The operational rule is short: before any renewal decision inside six months of a complaint, write the non-retaliatory business reason in the file, dated. The exposure if you get it wrong, under §92.333, is one month’s rent plus $500 plus damages and attorney’s fees.

When a tenant walks out mid-lease

You keep your claim for the rent the tenant owes, but Texas requires you to try to re-rent the home rather than let the balance run. Section 91.006(a) states: "A landlord has a duty to mitigate damages if a tenant abandons the leased premises in violation of the lease." Section 91.006(b) makes any lease provision that waives that duty void.

In practice, the right to recover unpaid rent after abandonment is only as good as your record of reasonable re-leasing effort: the listing date, the asking rent relative to comps, the showings and the applications. An owner who leaves a Spring house empty for four months at an above-market price will struggle to collect those four months from the departed tenant.

The Houston add-on: the flood disclosure

Every Texas landlord must give a written floodplain and flood-history notice before the lease is signed, and in the Houston area it is the disclosure owners most often get wrong. Property Code Section 92.0135(b) requires written notice stating whether the landlord is or is not aware that the dwelling is in a 100-year floodplain, including the statement that most tenant insurance policies do not cover flood loss. Section 92.0135(d) requires a second notice if the landlord knows flooding damaged the dwelling within the five years before the lease is signed. Section 92.0135(e) requires both notices to be in a separate written document given at or before execution of the lease.

A 100-year floodplain, as the statute defines it, is an area FEMA designates as a flood hazard area with a 1 percent or greater chance of flooding in any year. The remedy for skipping the notice is significant: under §92.0135(f), if the tenant suffers a substantial loss to personal property from flooding, defined as a loss of at least half the property's market value, the tenant can terminate the lease within 30 days of the damage, and §92.0135(g) requires a refund of prepaid rent within 30 days of termination. The requirement has applied since January 1, 2022.

This is a condition on your rights, not a separate right: a correct notice is what keeps a flood event from also becoming a lease termination. Check your address on the FEMA flood map every time you re-lease, because maps change. Insurance questions are separate; our guide to landlord insurance in Texas explains why a standard landlord policy does not cover flood.

Five ways owners forfeit their own rights

1. Using a lease without the switching clauses. The lock-change right, the enforceable lien and the late fee all require specific lease language, and the lien clause must be underlined or in conspicuous bold under §54.043(a).
2. Skipping the selection-criteria acknowledgment. Without a signed acknowledgment, §92.3515(b) presumes the notice was not given, and a rejected applicant gets the fee back.
3. Letting the daily late fee run past the ceiling. Under §92.019(b), the initial and daily fees are one fee. A modest daily charge can quietly cross 12 percent of rent in the second week.
4. Treating a lock change as an eviction. The tenant gets a key regardless of payment under §92.0081(f). Only a court restores possession.
5. Burying the flood notice in the lease. Section 92.0135(e) requires a separate written document. Paragraph 38 of a 40-page lease does not meet that standard.

Where a manager fits in

None of these rights is hard to understand. What makes them hard to keep is that each one depends on a document being right, on time, every tenancy. That is a workflow problem more than a knowledge problem.

Flat Fee Landlord manages single-family rentals across Houston, from inside the Loop to Katy, Sugar Land, Cypress, Pearland and The Woodlands. The lease we use carries the conspicuous-type clauses these rights depend on, applicants get written selection criteria with a signed acknowledgment, the floodplain notice goes out as a separate document before signing, and renewal decisions near a tenant complaint carry a written reason in the file. See our Houston property management page for everything that is included.

We charge a flat monthly fee rather than a percentage of rent: $139 (Basic) / $179 (Preferred) / $349 (Concierge), annual billing. Your management cost should not rise just because your rent did. Eviction coordination is an included benefit on the Preferred and Concierge plans, on annual billing, for tenants we placed, with filing fees, court costs, attorney fees and constable invoices billed at cost.

Get your free rental analysis and we will send you a current market rent range for your Houston-area address, with the leased comps behind it.

Frequently asked questions

What rights does a landlord have in Texas?

Texas landlords can set the rent at any level the market will bear, choose tenants against written selection criteria, charge a reasonable late fee once rent is two full days late, deduct lawful charges from a security deposit, decline to repair damage the tenant caused, claim a lien on nonexempt property for unpaid rent, change the locks on a delinquent tenant under strict conditions, and evict through a justice court. Almost every one of those rights depends on a written lease term or a written notice.

Is there rent control in Texas?

Not on ordinary terms. Local Government Code §214.902(a) lets a city establish rent control only if its governing body finds a housing emergency exists due to a disaster and the governor approves the ordinance, and §214.902(b) ties the ordinance to the governor’s disaster declaration. Houston, Harris County and the surrounding cities do not set your rent.

How much can a Texas landlord charge for a late fee?

Under §92.019(a), a late fee requires written notice in the lease, a reasonable amount, and rent unpaid two full days after it was due. Section 92.019(a-1) treats a fee as reasonable if it is not more than 12 percent of monthly rent in a structure with four or fewer units, or 10 percent in a structure with more than four. A violation costs $100 plus three times the fee plus attorney’s fees.

Can a landlord change the locks for nonpayment in Texas?

Only if the lease authorizes it, the tenant is actually delinquent, and the landlord gives advance written notice under §92.0081(d). The landlord must give the tenant a key to the new lock regardless of payment under §92.0081(f). A violation can cost one month’s rent plus $1,000, actual damages, court costs and attorney’s fees.

Does a Texas landlord have to repair damage the tenant caused?

Not during the lease term. Section 92.052(b) removes the repair duty for conditions caused by the tenant, a lawful occupant, a family member or a guest, unless the condition is normal wear and tear. The landlord can still repair it and, where the lease makes the tenant liable, deduct the cost at move-out under §92.104(a).

Can a Texas landlord keep the security deposit?

Only the part covering damages and charges the tenant is legally liable for under the lease, per §92.104(a), never normal wear and tear under §92.104(b), and with a written itemized list under §92.104(c). The refund and itemization are due on or before the 30th day after the tenant surrenders the premises.

Does a Texas landlord have to disclose flooding?

Yes. Section 92.0135 requires a written floodplain notice and, where the landlord knows the home flooded in the prior five years, a flood-history notice, both in a separate document at or before lease signing. Skip it, and a tenant who suffers a substantial flood loss can terminate the lease.

Can I evict a tenant who just complained about repairs?

Sometimes. Section 92.331 bars retaliation for six months after a protected action, but §92.332(b) lists grounds that are not retaliation, including rent delinquency when the notice to vacate is given, a material lease breach other than holding over, and property damage or threats to safety by the tenant, a family member or a guest. Document the reason before you act.

Sources and last reviewed

• Texas Local Government Code §214.902, Rent Control — texas.public.law/statutes/tex._local_gov’t_code_section_214.902
• Texas Property Code §92.3515, Tenant Selection Criteria — texas.public.law/statutes/tex._prop._code_section_92.3515
• Texas Property Code §92.019, Late Payment of Rent; Fees — texas.public.law/statutes/tex._prop._code_section_92.019
• Texas Property Code §92.104, deductions and itemization — texas.public.law/statutes/tex._prop._code_section_92.104
• Texas Property Code §92.052, Landlord’s Duty to Repair or Remedy — texas.public.law/statutes/tex._prop._code_section_92.052
• Texas Property Code §54.041, landlord lien for unpaid rent — texas.public.law/statutes/tex._prop._code_section_54.041
• Texas Property Code §54.043, contractual lien must be conspicuous — texas.public.law/statutes/tex._prop._code_section_54.043
• Texas Property Code §92.0081, Removal of Property and Exclusion of Residential Tenant — texas.public.law/statutes/tex._prop._code_section_92.0081
• Texas Property Code §92.332, Nonretaliation — texas.public.law/statutes/tex._prop._code_section_92.332
• Texas Property Code §91.006, Landlord’s Duty to Mitigate Damages — texas.public.law/statutes/tex._prop._code_section_91.006
• Texas Property Code §92.0135, floodplain and flooding notice — texas.public.law/statutes/tex._prop._code_section_92.0135

All statutory text above was fetched and verified on September 27, 2026. The 30-day deposit deadline, the §92.331 six-month window and the §92.333 penalty are restated from our Texas landlord-tenant law guide, which quotes those sections directly. Laws change; confirm the current text before relying on any figure here.