Evictions in Texas Justice Courts: The 2026 Rules
Evictions in Texas Justice Courts: The 2026 Rules
Information, not legal advice. Laws change; check the current statute or rule and talk to a Texas attorney before you act.
Texas rewrote its eviction process for 2026. Senate Bill 38 (89th Legislature, 2025) amended Property Code chapter 24, and the Texas Supreme Court rewrote Rule 510 of the Rules of Civil Procedure to match (Misc. Docket Nos. 25-9096 and 25-9105). The new rules apply to eviction suits filed on or after January 1, 2026. Cases filed earlier follow the old rules.
This article walks a landlord or investor through the new process. It also covers what an eviction filing tells you about a property.
Where evictions are filed
Evictions are filed in the justice court (JP court) for the precinct where the property is located (Property Code §24.004). The JP court decides only who gets possession. It does not decide title, and counterclaims and third-party suits are not allowed in the eviction case (§24.004(c)). A landlord may appear through an authorized agent who is not a lawyer, such as a property manager.
Step 1: The pre-suit notice
Which notice
Under amended Property Code §24.005, a tenant who defaults or holds over must get at least three days' written notice before the suit is filed, unless a written lease sets a shorter or longer period.
- If the only problem is unpaid rent, and the tenant was not late before the month of the notice, the notice must be a notice to pay rent or vacate. That gives the tenant the choice to pay.
- In other cases (a non-rent default, a holdover, or a tenant with earlier late payments), the landlord may give a plain notice to vacate.
How it's delivered
The new law allows delivery by:
- mail, including first-class, certified or registered mail, or a delivery service;
- delivery to the inside of the unit in a conspicuous place;
- hand delivery to a resident 16 or older; or
- email or other electronic means, only if the parties agreed in writing.
Taping the notice to the outside of the door is no longer an approved method. If the tenant actually received the notice, how it was delivered no longer matters.
Day counts include weekends and holidays. A last day on a weekend or holiday rolls to the next business day.
After a foreclosure
A former owner who stays after a foreclosure sale is a tenant at sufferance and gets a three-day notice to vacate. A residential tenant who is current on rent and not in default when the buyer takes over must get at least 30 days' written notice if the buyer won't continue the lease (Property Code §24.005(b)). Federal law also applies: after foreclosure of a federally related mortgage loan, the new owner must generally give bona fide tenants 90 days' notice and honor an existing lease to its end, unless the buyer will live there (Protecting Tenants at Foreclosure Act).
Step 2: Filing and service
The landlord files a sworn petition in the right JP court. Then:
- The citation must set the trial not less than 10 nor more than 21 days after the petition is filed (Rule 510).
- A sheriff or constable must make a diligent effort to serve the citation within 5 business days of filing. If service hasn't happened by then, the landlord may use another trained law enforcement officer, including an off-duty officer.
- Trial can't be held until 4 days after service.
Step 3: Trial, or summary disposition for squatters
In an ordinary nonpayment or holdover case, the court holds a trial within the 10-to-21-day window. It may postpone the trial by no more than 7 days unless both sides agree in writing.
New: summary disposition for forcible entry and detainer. When someone entered without permission (a "squatter" situation), the owner may file a sworn motion for summary disposition with the petition. The occupant has 4 days after service to respond. If there are no genuinely disputed facts, the court can enter judgment without a trial. If there are disputed facts, the court sets a trial within the 10-to-21-day window. This fast track does not apply to ordinary nonpayment cases.
Step 4: Appeal
Either side may appeal to county court within 5 days after the judgment is signed, by filing a bond, a cash deposit, or a Statement of Inability to Afford Payment of Court Costs (Rule 510.19). New requirements:
- A tenant who appeals must affirm, under penalty of perjury, a good-faith belief in a meritorious defense and that the appeal is not for delay.
- Rent goes into the court registry during the appeal in every case. The first payment is due within 5 days after the appeal is filed, then each rental period. Without a lease, the court sets the amount at no less than the greater of $250 or fair market rent.
- If rent isn't paid into the registry, the court must issue a writ of possession on request without a hearing.
- The county court must try the appeal within 21 days after it receives the transcript and papers.
Step 5: Writ of possession
If the tenant doesn't move out or appeal:
- No writ may issue before the 6th day after the judgment is signed, or the day after the appeal deadline, whichever is later.
- The writ must issue within 60 days of judgment (90 for good cause), and it can't be executed after day 90.
- The sheriff or constable must serve it within 5 business days. If not, the landlord may ask for a replacement writ to be served by another trained officer.
Self-help lockouts and utility shutoffs are restricted (Property Code ch. 92).
Timeline at a glance
| Step | Typical timing under the 2026 rules |
|---|---|
| Notice to vacate | 3 days unless the lease says otherwise |
| Trial | 10-21 days after filing; at least 4 days after service |
| Appeal window | 5 days after judgment |
| Earliest writ | 6th day after judgment, if no appeal |
| Writ served | within 5 business days of issue |
What eviction filings tell an investor
- For buyers of rentals: frequent filings at a property can signal a tired landlord: management trouble, deferred repairs, or an owner ready to sell. See absentee owners and tired landlords.
- Not for screening tenants. Using eviction records to decide whether to rent to someone is a consumer-report use regulated by the Fair Credit Reporting Act. See FCRA limits on property data.
How this shows up in Agentix Data
Agentix Data carries eviction filings from the Harris County justice courts and from the Fort Bend and Denton county court indexes, refreshed daily. Each is linked to the property where we can match it (Fort Bend and Denton by name only, marked "possible"). On our stacked lists an eviction adds a point, and repeated filings on an absentee-owned rental are a common tired-landlord pattern. The data is for real-estate marketing and research. It is not for tenant screening.
Sources
- SB 38, 89th Leg., R.S. (2025), enrolled text: https://capitol.texas.gov/tlodocs/89R/billtext/html/SB00038F.htm
- Texas Supreme Court, Misc. Docket No. 25-9105 (final Rule 510 and related amendments, effective Jan. 1, 2026): https://www.txcourts.gov/media/1461822/259105.pdf
- Texas Property Code ch. 24 (§§24.004, 24.005): https://statutes.capitol.texas.gov/Docs/PR/htm/PR.24.htm
- Texas Property Code ch. 92 (lockouts and utility interruption): https://statutes.capitol.texas.gov/Docs/PR/htm/PR.92.htm
- Texas Apartment Association, SB 38 FAQs (Nov. 24, 2025): https://www.taa.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/SB-38-Texas-Eviction-Reform-FAQs-11-24-25.pdf
- Protecting Tenants at Foreclosure Act (12 U.S.C. §5220 note), restored permanently in 2018; National Housing Law Project summary: https://www.nhlp.org/wp-content/uploads/2018.08-Restoration-of-the-PTFA-1.pdf
General information, not legal or financial advice.