If you have a validly signed lease and your landlord breaches that lease, what are your rights and remedies under Texas law? Landlord liability in this situation is governed by statute and further clarified by case law. The Texas Property Code states, “If the landlord of a tenant who is not in default under a […]
Category: Real Estate Law
What is Considered a Valid Property Description in a Texas Deed?
Not all real estate deeds are created equally. Formatting can vary from attorney to attorney, or even from individual to individual if you decide to draft the deed yourself. Generally speaking, a valid Texas deed must include all of the following: the names of the grantor and grantee involved in the transaction, their intent to […]
Proper Procedures for Remote Online Notarizations
The COVID-19 pandemic has certainly changed the world we live in today. For example, there has been an exponential increase in demand for remote closing options in the real estate industry. As a result, remote online notarizations have surged and continue to be in high demand due to their simple and convenient process. With that, […]
Fraudulent Inducement Involving Developer Deed Restrictions
In a prior blog post, we discussed the general concept of deed restrictions used by developers to control uses of a property and preserve value. As mentioned there, commercial deed restrictions are very often enforceable and upheld by courts. An example of such a commercial deed restriction would be an exclusive right to sell chicken […]
The Merger Doctrine in Texas
Anyone involved in most typical real estate transactions quickly becomes familiar with the sheer number of documents that have to be reviewed and approved before “closing” or finalizing the transfer of the property. Two of the most important documents are the sales contract (typically an earnest money contract) and the deed to the property. Now, […]
What “Having Your Name on the Deed” Really Means in Texas
Effective communication between attorney and client can be made more difficult when the general public’s understanding of a term differs from its legal definition, and “deed” is one of the worst offenders. Movies, television, and other media have created a widely shared misunderstanding of what a deed is, what it does, and what the consequences […]
Do Subsequent Purchasers of a Property Need to Sign a Correction Deed?
The Texas Property Code authorizes the correction of a material error in a recorded original instrument of conveyance—for example, a deed—by agreement. See Tex. Prop. Code § 5.029. To be effective, the instrument correcting the error must be executed by each party to the original instrument “or, if applicable, a party’s heirs, successors, or assigns.” […]
Acquiescence in Boundary Disputes
When involved in a boundary dispute, a landowner needs to know their legal rights and remedies, as well as the rights and remedies available to the party with whom the landowner is having a dispute. Adverse possession is a fairly well-known avenue for obtaining legal right to another’s real property, but a lesser-known method of […]
Partition of Mobile Homes and Other Personal Property in Texas
Partition lawsuits, or lawsuits to divide the ownership of a piece of jointly owned property, occur most frequently in Texas in the context of jointly owned real estate. Section 23.001 of the Texas Property Code gives a co-owner of a home, a plot of land, or other real property the right to petition a court […]
Texas Farm Animals Liability Act
The Texas Farm Animal Liability Act (FALA) began in 1995 as the Texas Equine Act, a narrow statute that protected horse owners from liability for participants’ injuries resulting from the inherent risks of interacting with horses. This statute was expanded in 2011 to cover not only horses, but “farm animals” generally. “Farm animals” are defined […]