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Can I lock out somebody
who is not paying their rent or get in trouble
if I do?
Refer to: Texas Property
Code: 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 to a
tenant or remove furniture, fixtures, or
appliances furnished by the landlord from
premises leased to a tenant unless the landlord
removes the item for a bona fide repair or
replacement. If a landlord removes any of the
items listed in this subsection for a bona fide
repair or replacement, the repair or replacement
must be promptly performed.
(b) A landlord may not
intentionally prevent a tenant from entering the
leased premises except by judicial process
unless the exclusion results from:(1) bona fide
repairs, construction, or an emergency; (2)
removing the contents of premises abandoned by a
tenant; or (3) changing the door locks of a
tenant who is delinquent in paying at least part
of the rent.
(c) If a landlord or a
landlord's agent changes the door lock of a
tenant who is delinquent in paying rent, the
landlord or the landlord's agent must place a
written notice on the tenant's front door
stating: (1) an on-site location where the
tenant may go 24 hours a day to obtain the new
key or a telephone number that is answered 24
hours a day that the tenant may call to have a
key delivered within two hours after calling the
number; (2) the fact that the landlord must
provide the new key to the tenant at any hour,
regardless of whether or not the tenant pays any
of the delinquent rent; and (3) the amount of
rent and other charges for which the tenant is
delinquent.
(d) A landlord may not
intentionally prevent a tenant from entering the
leased premises under Subsection (b) (3) unless:
(1) the tenant is delinquent in paying all or
part of the rent; and (2) the landlord has
locally mailed not later than the fifth calendar
day before the date on which the door locks are
changed or hand-delivered to the tenant or
posted on the inside of the main entry door of
the tenant's dwelling not later than the third
calendar day before the date on which the door
locks are changed a written notice stating: (A)
the earliest date that the landlord proposes to
change the door locks; (B) the amount of rent
the tenant must pay to prevent changing of the
door locks; and (C) the name and street address
of the individual to whom, or the location of
the on-site management office at which, the
delinquent rent may be paid during the
landlord's normal business hours.
(e) A Texas landlord may not
change the locks on the door of a tenant's
dwelling under Subsection (b) (3) on a day, or
on a day immediately before a day, on which the
landlord or other designated individual is not
available, or on which any on-site management
office is not open, for the tenant to tender the
delinquent rent.
(f) A Texas landlord who
intentionally prevents a tenant from entering
the tenant's dwelling under Subsection (b) (3)
must provide the tenant with a key to the
changed lock on the dwelling without regard to
whether the tenant pays the delinquent rent.
(g) If a landlord arrives at
the dwelling in a timely manner in response to a
tenant's telephone call to the number contained
in the notice as described by Subsection (c) (1)
and the tenant is not present to receive the key
to the changed lock, the landlord shall leave a
notice on the front door of the dwelling stating
the time the landlord arrived with the key and
the street address to which the tenant may go to
obtain the key during the landlord's normal
office hours.
(h) If a landlord violates
this section, the tenant may: (1) either recover
possession of the premises or terminate the
lease; and (2) recover from the landlord a civil
penalty of one month's rent plus $500 (subject
to change), actual
damages, court costs, and reasonable attorney's
fees in an action to recover property damages,
actual expenses, or civil penalties, less any
delinquent rent or other sums for which the
tenant is liable to the landlord.
(i) If a landlord violates
Subsection (f), the Texas tenant may recover, in
addition to the remedies provided by Subsection
(h), an additional civil penalty of one month's
rent.
(j) A provision of a lease
that purports to waive a right or to exempt a
party from a liability or duty under this
section is void.
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