Subletting laws and regulations in Texas - 2026

The tenant who signed your Pflugerville lease took a job in Denver in March. The woman answering the door now pays him $1,700 a month by app transfer, and he keeps the $200 spread.

You never screened her or approved her. You never signed anything with her, either.

Under the Texas Property Code, that arrangement has breached the lease since the day she moved in. Accepting rent after learning of the sublease may put your right to end the lease at risk, especially if your lease lacks an enforceable non-waiver clause.

Texas subleasing law in one paragraph: consent is mandatory

The subleasing laws Texas applies to residential tenants fit in a single sentence of the Property Code:

Sec. 91.005. SUBLETTING PROHIBITED. During the term of a lease, the tenant may not rent the leasehold to any other person without the prior consent of the landlord.

Texas subletting statute

The default answer is no. Your tenant needs your permission before anyone else pays to live in the unit, and "prior" means before the subtenant arrives, not after you discover her. The rule holds even when the lease never mentions subletting. Texas courts read § 91.005 into every lease by operation of law, first in Young v. De La Garza (Dallas Court of Civil Appeals, 1963) and again in Cedar Contracting, Inc. v. Hernandez (Austin Court of Appeals, 2014). Young v. De La Garza The statute still carries only its original 1983 enactment note, and the official statutes site is current through the 89th Legislature's second called session of 2025, so the 2025 session left it untouched. Official statute status

Consent does not release the original tenant. A tenant who subleases "take[s] on the duties of a landlord" toward the subtenant while remaining your tenant under the head lease, according to TexasLawHelp's sublease guidance from January 2026. If the subtenant stops paying, your tenant still owes you the rent. That obligation ends when the lease term ends or when you sign a written release, and no statute supplies a release for you. Everything else a lease can and cannot do under Texas law sits on top of § 91.005.

The statutes that apply: Sec. 91.005, Sec. 94.057 and your lease clause

Two statutes govern subletting in Texas, and which one controls depends on whether the tenant rents a dwelling or a manufactured home lot. Section 91.005 covers ordinary residential and commercial leases. Section 94.057, part of Property Code Chapter 94, covers manufactured home lot tenancies and runs in the opposite direction:

Sec. 94.057. ASSIGNMENT OF LEASE AND SUBLEASE. (a) A landlord may prohibit a tenant from assigning a lease agreement or subleasing the leased premises if the prohibition is included in the lease agreement. (b) If the landlord permits a tenant to assign a lease agreement or sublease the leased premises, the lease agreement must specify the conditions under which the tenant may enter into an assignment or sublease agreement.

Manufactured-home sublease statute

The two sections differ on where the restriction comes from:

• Feature | § 91.005 (general leases) | § 94.057 (manufactured home lots)
• Default rule | Subletting prohibited by statute unless the landlord consents | Landlord may prohibit only if the lease says so
• Covers assignment? | No; the text addresses subletting only | Yes; both assignment and sublease
• Writing requirement | None stated | Prohibition and any conditions must appear in the lease
• Source of the restriction | The statute itself, read into every lease | The lease agreement

If you rent lots in a manufactured home community and your lease is silent on subletting, you have no statutory prohibition to fall back on. Put the clause in the lease or accept that the tenant can sublease. Section 94.057 requirements

For a house or apartment, the parties can use the lease clause to set the details the statute leaves open. The Texas Apartment Association lease form revised in October 2025 (Form 25-A/B-1/B-2), Paragraph 17, reads: "You may not assign this Lease or sublet your apartment." and "You agree that you won't rent, offer to rent or license all or any part of your apartment to anyone else unless otherwise agreed to in advance by us in writing." TAA lease form

That language adds assignment and requires consent in writing. It also covers licensing part of the unit, which reaches an Airbnb listing of a spare bedroom.

Your own lease agreements can go further. In Cedar Contracting v. Hernandez, the Austin Court of Appeals upheld a paragraph stating "any assignment or sublease without such consent is void" and affirmed termination of the lease effective on the landlord's notice. Cedar Contracting decision The statute's phrase "during the term of a lease" contains no carve-out for periodic leases, so a month-to-month tenant needs consent as well. Your other legal obligations under the lease continue to run regardless of who is sleeping in the unit.

What happens if you sublet without permission in Texas

An unauthorized sublease gives the landlord the right to end the lease, but the lease does not end on its own. The San Antonio Court of Appeals put it this way in Reynolds v. McCullough (1987): "The effect of a sub-leasing of a leased premises, without the consent of the lessor, is to give to the lessor the right to forfeit the lease. It does not have the effect of nullifying the lease ipso facto." Reynolds v. McCullough You have to elect the forfeiture and give notice. With a Cedar Contracting style "void" clause, termination takes effect when your notice lands. Cedar Contracting ruling

The subtenant's legal position is weaker than the tenant's. Without your consent, "the subtenant is a trespasser and occupies the attitude of a stranger to the landlord," and "[n]o privity of contract exists under a sublease between sublessee and original lessor," per Digby v. Hatley (San Antonio Court of Civil Appeals, 1978). Digby v. Hatley The subtenant cannot enforce the head lease against you, and you have no contract claim against her.

Once you terminate the lease, you may pursue the remedies below.

• You can evict both occupants in one case. Property Code § 24.002(a)(1) covers "a tenant or a subtenant wilfully and without force holding over after the termination of the tenant's right of possession," and the writ of possession under § 24.0061 instructs the officer to tell "the tenant and all persons claiming under the tenant" to leave. Texas eviction statutes
• You can pursue money damages under one of the four elections the Texas Supreme Court listed in Austin Hill Country Realty, Inc. v. Palisades Plaza, Inc. (1997): keep the lease alive and sue for rent as it comes due; treat the breach as repudiation, retake the unit, and sue for the present value of future rent less the lease's market value; retake and relet, then sue for the shortfall; or declare forfeiture and release the tenant from future rent if the lease allows it. Austin Hill Country decision
• You can recover attorney's fees under § 24.006 if either your written lease provides for them or you sent a written demand to vacate by registered or certified mail at least 10 days before filing that warned fees could be recovered. A tenant who wins gets fees on the same trigger. Section 24.006 text

Nobody goes to jail for subletting a private-market Texas rental without permission. The Property Code treats it as a breach of contract, and every remedy above runs through civil court.

Criminal exposure appears only where the sublease also involves a lie to a government program. A Section 8 tenant who conceals a subtenant can face charges under Texas Penal Code § 32.46 (securing execution of a document by deception) or § 37.10 (tampering with a governmental record). In United States v. Reagan, the Fifth Circuit upheld a 12-month federal sentence for a Dallas Housing Authority participant who improperly received $41,832 in Section 8 payments over five years. Texas fraud statute Reagan criminal decision Short-term rental violations in Houston and San Antonio are misdemeanors, but the ordinances set fines of $100 to $500 per violation, not confinement. Houston STR ordinance

Can your landlord say no to a sublease?

Yes, and a Texas landlord needs no reason unless the lease promises one. Section 91.005 contains no word like "reasonable" or "unreasonable." In Reynolds v. McCullough the court rejected the California approach outright: "A lessor may contract, by provision in the lease, not to unreasonably withhold his consent to an assignment or sublease of the premises. Absent this promise, we hold that there is no implied covenant by the lessor to act reasonably in withholding his consent." Reynolds consent standard

The Eastland Court of Appeals adopted the same rule in Trinity Professional Plaza Associates v. Metrocrest Hospital Authority. The Texas Supreme Court confirmed the pattern in Barrow-Shaver Resources Co. v. Carrizo Oil & Gas, Inc. (2019): "Texas courts have declined to read a reasonableness standard into consent provisions that failed to articulate a standard by which consent could be withheld." Trinity Professional Plaza Barrow-Shaver decision The Texas Tech Law Review describes this as Texas departing from the Restatement of Property and the national trend. Texas Tech analysis

The exception is contractual. If your lease says consent "shall not be unreasonably withheld," courts enforce it. In Corman v. Fabrique, Inc. (1989), a tenant sued for unreasonable refusal of a sublease, won at trial, and the Dallas Court of Appeals affirmed. Corman v. Fabrique The current TAA form has no such qualifier. Current TAA form

My position: keep the flat prohibition in your lease, then evaluate each request as if you had promised to be reasonable. The reason is § 91.006. An arbitrary refusal is lawful, but if the tenant leaves anyway you must use "objectively reasonable efforts to fill the premises," and a tenant who can show you turned down a qualified replacement has the makings of a failure-to-mitigate defense.

The Austin Hill Country court added that the replacement tenant "must be suitable under the circumstances," so refusing someone with no income or a recent eviction costs you nothing. Suitable-tenant standard

Tenants have one counter, and it comes from a 1997 case. That case is Twelve Oaks Tower I, Ltd. v. Premier Allergy, Inc., decided by the Fourteenth Court of Appeals in Houston, not the Texas Supreme Court; no 1997 Supreme Court opinion on this fact pattern exists. 1997 Supreme Court opinions

The holding: "A lessor waives its right to forfeit a lease for a tenant's failure to obtain consent before assigning or subleasing if it accepts rents after the assignment or sublease." The court also held that the consent requirement "is a provision for the landlord's benefit and may be waived by the landlord." Twelve Oaks holding Twelve Oaks opinion In Apperson v. Shofner (1961), a landlord who gave oral consent, took rent from the assignee, and recognized the arrangement for more than eight months had waived the restriction. Apperson v. Shofner

Your defense against waiver is a non-waiver clause. In Shields Limited Partnership v. Bradberry (2017), the Texas Supreme Court enforced lease language stating that accepting late rent "shall not be a waiver." The court held that "Waiver of a nonwaiver provision cannot be anchored in the same conduct the parties specifically agreed would not give rise to a waiver of contract rights." Shields v. Bradberry

Even that clause can be waived by conduct "unequivocally inconsistent with claiming a known right." Non-waiver clause standard

When you discover an unauthorized subtenant, send the notice first. Stop accepting rent from anyone until you have decided whether to terminate. Accepting payment before giving any notice of forfeiture is the fact pattern that produced waiver in Shepherd v. Sorrells back in 1944. Shepherd v. Sorrells

Subleasing vs. subletting vs. assignment vs. lease buyout

Subleasing and subletting are the same transaction in Texas. The statute's heading says "SUBLETTING PROHIBITED" while its body describes the tenant renting "the leasehold to any other person," and § 94.057 and TexasLawHelp both call the same act a "sublease." Section 91.005 terminology Assignment and buyout are different arrangements with different liability consequences:

• Arrangement | What the tenant transfers | Who owes you rent | How the original tenant's liability ends
• Sublease (sublet) | Part or all of the unit for less than the full term; the tenant becomes the subtenant's landlord | The original tenant; the subtenant pays the tenant | When the lease term ends or you sign a written release
• Assignment | The entire remaining term; the assignee steps into the tenant's position | The assignee who assumes the lease, and the original tenant unless released | A written release from you
• Lease buyout (early termination) | Nothing; the tenant pays a negotiated fee to end the lease early | Nobody after the termination date | The signed termination agreement
• Abandonment (no agreement) | Nothing; the tenant leaves in breach | The original tenant, less what you could have avoided | When you relet, or when the term ends

The assignment row follows Twelve Oaks: an unauthorized assignment "does not invalidate the lease or relieve the lessee or assignee who assumes them from the obligations imposed by the lease." Twelve Oaks assignment rule The abandonment row follows § 91.006:

Sec. 91.006. LANDLORD'S DUTY TO MITIGATE DAMAGES. (a) A landlord has a duty to mitigate damages if a tenant abandons the leased premises in violation of the lease. (b) A provision of a lease that purports to waive a right or to exempt a landlord from a liability or duty under this section is void.

Texas mitigation statute

The tenant carries the burden of proving you failed to mitigate and by how much, and your failure "bars the landlord's recovery against the breaching tenant only to the extent that damages reasonably could have been avoided." Mitigation damages rule

A worked example shows the dollar differences. Assume a 12-month lease at $1,500 a month and a tenant who needs out after month six, with $9,000 of rent left on the term.

If you approve a sublease at $1,500 and the subtenant stops paying in month nine, your tenant owes you $6,000 for months nine through twelve and has to chase the subtenant himself. Your position is unchanged; you still have one obligor, the person who signed.

If you approve an assignment without a release, you gain a second obligor. The assignee owes the $9,000 as it comes due, and your original tenant remains liable if the assignee defaults. Sign a release and the original tenant walks away with no exposure.

If the tenant abandons with no agreement, § 91.006 kicks in. Suppose you list the unit within a week and relet at $1,500 starting month nine. The tenant owes months seven and eight, $3,000, plus any reletting charges the lease allows. Relet at $1,400 instead and you can add the $100 monthly shortfall for the remaining four months, another $400, under the third Austin Hill Country remedy. Sit on the vacancy without listing it and the tenant can prove the rent you could have collected, and the court subtracts it.

A buyout replaces all of that math with one number. A tenant who pays two months' rent, $3,000, in exchange for a signed lease termination agreement has no further liability, and you have a known vacancy date and cash to cover turnover.

How to request a sublease in writing

A sublease request should arrive in writing and name the proposed subtenant. It should ask for consent to the sublease and, if the tenant wants it, a written release. Section 91.005 sets no form and no response deadline, so the lease's notice clause controls delivery and timing. The steps below work whether you are the tenant sending the request or the landlord who receives it.

1. Check the lease clause first. A TAA-style lease requires the landlord's agreement "in advance" and "in writing," so a text message saying "sure" is thin protection for either side.
2. Send the request by the method the lease specifies for notices, and keep a copy. Include the subtenant's full name and proposed start date. State the end date, the rent the subtenant will pay, and whether the arrangement covers the whole unit or one room.
3. Attach screening material. A completed application and income verification let the landlord evaluate the subtenant. Include consent to a background check as well.
4. Ask the two questions separately. "Will you consent to this sublease?" and "Will you release me from liability for the remainder of the term?" have different answers most of the time, and a tenant who assumes yes to the second because he heard yes to the first is the tenant who gets sued in month nine.
5. Set a date for the answer in the request itself. Thirty days before the intended move-in gives the landlord time to screen and gives the tenant time to pursue a buyout if the answer is no.
6. Treat silence as refusal. The statute requires "prior consent," and nothing in Chapter 91 deems consent granted when a landlord fails to respond. A tenant who moves a subtenant in without a reply is in the Reynolds forfeiture position described above. Follow up once in writing, then fall back to the buyout conversation.
7. Landlords: answer in writing either way. A written refusal preserves the Reynolds position. A written consent with conditions lets you require the subtenant to sign your rules and carry renters insurance. You can also require an acknowledgment that the original tenant remains liable.

If you approve, document it with a short consent form. The sample below covers the points that generate disputes:

Landlord's consent to sublease

Property: [address and unit]Head lease dated: [date], between [landlord] and [tenant]

Landlord consents to Tenant subleasing the premises to [subtenant full name] from [start date] through [end date] at a sublease rent of $[amount] per month.

This consent applies only to the subtenant named above. Any further sublease, assignment, or change of occupant requires Landlord's separate prior written consent.

Tenant remains fully liable for all rent under the head lease. Tenant also remains liable for all charges and obligations under that lease. This consent is not a release of Tenant. [Alternative if releasing: Landlord releases Tenant from obligations accruing after [date], conditioned on [payment / signed assignment].]

Landlord's acceptance of rent from any person does not waive any provision of the head lease or this consent.

Signed: [landlord] [date] Acknowledged: [tenant] [date] Acknowledged: [subtenant] [date]

Three cities require a version of this document as part of any short-term rental permit a tenant applies for. Austin requires proof of tenancy plus a notarized Agent Authorization Form completed by the owner. Houston requires either a signed lease or lease addendum allowing STR use or a signed lessor letter authorizing sublease as an STR. San Antonio requires an uploaded PDF from the owner indicating permission. Austin STR requirements Houston STR rules San Antonio STR ordinance If you do not want short-term guests, say so in the consent form.

Who pays rent, holds the deposit and handles repairs during a sublease

During a sublease, your tenant becomes the subtenant's landlord and you stay the landlord of your tenant only. Property Code § 92.001(2) defines "landlord" to include a "sublessor," so the Chapter 92 duties that legally apply to the sublessor-subtenant relationship, including applicable deposit and repair obligations, run from your tenant to the subtenant. Texas eviction deskbook

Rent moves in two steps: the subtenant pays the tenant, and the tenant pays you. The subtenant has no contract with you and no right to pay you directly unless you agree to it. Accepting rent from her does not by itself create a direct tenancy, though the outcome depends on whether your conduct shows consent or an intent to substitute her for the original tenant. Direct-tenancy analysis

Security deposits follow the same two-step structure. Your Chapter 92 refund duty runs to the tenant on the head lease. Whatever deposit the subtenant paid, she paid to your tenant, and her refund claim runs against him. Texas deposit statutes The rules he has to follow are the ones you follow:

• Refund within 30 days after the tenant surrenders the premises (§ 92.103(a)), with the clock suspended until the departing tenant provides a written forwarding address under § 92.107, though the tenant does not forfeit the refund by failing to provide one.
• Provide a "written description and itemized list" of all deductions when keeping any part of the deposit (§ 92.104(c)).
• Never deduct for normal wear and tear (§ 92.104(b)).
• Expect a presumption of bad faith after day 30 (§ 92.109(d)), with the landlord carrying the burden of proving any retention was reasonable (§ 92.109(c)).

A bad-faith retention costs "$100, three times the portion of the deposit wrongfully withheld, and the tenant's reasonable attorney's fees," and a bad-faith failure to itemize forfeits the right to keep any of the deposit or to sue for damage to the premises. Deposit penalty provisions A tenant who took a $1,500 deposit from his subtenant and never learned these rules is exposed to a $4,600-plus judgment, which is one more reason to require the subtenant to acknowledge in writing who holds her deposit.

Repairs run the same direction. The subtenant sends repair requests to your tenant, who carries the applicable landlord habitability duties toward her and forwards the request to you under the head lease.

Two 2025 amendments in HB 2037 apply to leases entered into or renewed on or after September 1, 2025. An independent company or contractor must perform repairs a tenant arranges under § 92.0561, and any city-required license must be held by the person performing the work. Section 92.113 lets the parties send notices and communications under Subchapter C by e-mail once they have communicated by e-mail before. HB 2037 text

Your duty to make necessary repairs and maintain working smoke alarms does not pause because a different person is living there. The tenant responsibilities in your lease still bind the person who signed it.

Damage is where the middleman structure hurts you. If the subtenant floods the bathroom or her guest trips on the back steps, your claim runs against your tenant, and your tenant's claim runs against a person you never screened.

A DP3 landlord policy may cover sudden water damage from a plumbing overflow to the structure, subject to the policy's terms and exclusions. Your liability insurance may respond to an injured guest's claim, subject to the policy's terms, exclusions, and the liability determination. Intentional tenant damage and the occupants' belongings are excluded, so require the subtenant to carry renters insurance as a condition of consent. If your Texas landlord insurance is still a homeowners policy from before you started renting, fix that before you sign the consent form. Get a quote in minutes at quote.steadily.com, no phone call required.

Removing a subtenant: notice to vacate and Justice of the Peace eviction

The only lawful way to remove a subtenant in Texas is a Chapter 24 eviction suit in justice court, even when the subtenant never had your permission. The SB 1333 squatter-removal process in new Chapter 24B, effective September 1, 2025, lets an owner ask a sheriff or constable to remove an unauthorized occupant without a court case, but it applies only when the occupant is not "a current or former tenant of the owner under an oral or written lease." A subtenant who had any rental agreement with your tenant, even oral, falls outside it, and wrongful use exposes you to actual damages, exemplary damages of three times fair market rent, court costs, and attorney's fees. SB 1333 text

The presuit-notice requirement depends on the ground for possession. Section 24.005(a) requires at least three days' written notice before filing against a tenant who defaults or holds over, unless a written lease or agreement sets a different period. Section 24.005(b) applies the same rule to a tenant at will or by sufferance. Under the SB 38 procedures, a non-nonpayment case that does not fall within a statutory notice category may proceed without presuit notice; the sworn petition must state that no notice was required. A true forcible entrant under § 24.005(d) needs oral or written notice to leave, but the statute sets no minimum number of days. Identify the possession ground before choosing the notice form or filing date. Chapter 24 notice rules

SB 38 rewrote the delivery rules effective January 1, 2026, and repealed the old option of taping the notice to the front door. When § 24.005 requires notice, new § 24.005(f-3) requires at least one of these methods: mail (first class, registered, certified, or a delivery service); delivery to the inside of the premises in a conspicuous place; hand delivery to any tenant 16 or older; or electronic delivery if the parties agreed to it in writing. Actual receipt cures a defective method under (f-4). SB 38 delivery rules Form eviction notices drafted before 2026 that rely on door-posting need to be replaced.

Who files depends on who is being removed. A master tenant has standing to evict his own subtenant because § 92.001(2) makes a sublessor a "landlord" and therefore a "person entitled to possession" under § 24.002(b); the San Antonio Court of Appeals confirmed in Venable v. Judkins (2023) that a sublessor's petition alleging a terminated sublease and a subtenant who failed to vacate stated a forcible detainer claim. Venable v. Judkins

As head landlord, you proceed against your tenant and name "all occupants." The resulting judgment and writ reach the subtenant as a person claiming under the named tenant. The exception is a subtenant who has her own written or oral lease with you. You must name and serve her separately because no judgment or writ may issue against a leasebound tenant who was not named in the petition, and each added defendant carries a separate service fee. Rule 510 requirements

You must swear to the petition and file it in the JP precinct where the property sits. Filing costs vary by county:

• County | Filing fee | Service (1 defendant) | Total to file | Writ of possession
• Travis | $54.00 | $90.00 | $144.00 | $205.00
• Dallas | $54.00 | $80.00 | $134.00 | $405.00
• Harris | $54.00 | $85.00 | $139.00 | $185.00
• Bexar | $54.00 | $117.00 | $171.00 | $287.00

Harris County's posted schedule is dated January 1, 2025, and the county notes some content may not yet reflect SB 38. Harris County fees Travis Dallas Bexar

After filing, the court sets trial no fewer than 10 and no more than 21 days out. A sheriff or constable serves the citation, and the officer must attempt service within five business days. The court cannot hold trial before the fourth day after service or postpone it more than seven days without both parties' written agreement. Eviction service rules

SB 38 added a summary disposition option. File a sworn motion with the petition. The defendant has four days to respond, and if no facts are in dispute the court can enter judgment without trial by the tenth day after filing. Summary disposition rules

The appeal window is five days after judgment. The defendant must pay rent into the court registry during any appeal in every eviction case, and the county court must try the appeal within 21 days of receiving it. SB 38 appeal rules

The writ of possession cannot issue before the sixth day after judgment. The officer must post a 24-hour warning on the front door before executing it and must serve it within five business days of issuance. Put together, the calendar looks like this:

• Phase | Minimum | Typical or maximum
• Presuit notice period, when required | 3 days | 3 days or more per lease
• Filing to trial | 10 days | 21 days
• Judgment to writ issuance | 6th day | 6th day (immediate with an approved possession bond)
• Writ posting to execution | 24 hours | Up to 5 business days for service plus 24 hours
• Total with no appeal and a 3-day notice | About 23 days | About 5 to 6 weeks

A case with no statutory presuit-notice requirement may begin sooner. An appeal with rent paid into the registry blocks the writ and adds at least 21 days at the county court. The Texas Justice Court Training Center's Fifth Edition Evictions Deskbook, published December 2025, is the reference JP judges use for the SB 38 procedures. Evictions Deskbook

City rules that override your sublease: Austin, Dallas, Houston, San Antonio and HOAs

Your written consent to a sublease does not authorize a short-term rental in any of Texas's four largest cities. Austin, Houston, and San Antonio require their own permit and the owner's separate written authorization inside the permit application. Dallas's STR ordinances remain enjoined and unenforceable.

The 89th Legislature enacted no statewide STR preemption or registration system. SB 1592 died, and HB 2464 expressly preserves both municipal STR authority and HOA enforcement. SB 1592 history HB 2464 text The city rules in force as of September 2026:

• | Austin | Dallas | Houston | San Antonio
• Currently enforceable? | Yes (since Oct. 1, 2025) | No; both 2023 ordinances enjoined | Yes (since Jan. 1, 2026) | Yes
• STR definition | Under 30 consecutive days | Under 30 days (enjoined) | Under 30 consecutive days | Chapter 16, Art. XXII / UDC § 35-374.01
• Permit fee | $836.30 new; $385.30 renewal | $404/yr (enjoined) | $275/yr per unit | $300 (Type 1) or $450 (Type 2) per 3 years
• Permit term | 2 years | 1 year (enjoined) | 1 year | 3 years
• Tenant may operate? | Yes, with notarized owner Agent Authorization Form | No operative rule | Yes, with signed lease/addendum or lessor letter | Yes, with written owner permission
• Penalty | Up to $500 per day per offense | Up to $500/day (enjoined) | $100-$500 per violation, each day separate | $200-$500 civil per occurrence; Class C misdemeanor $100-$500
• Hotel occupancy tax | Platforms collect; owners file quarterly | Owners register and remit monthly | Airbnb remits; others prove payment or register with Houston First | Platforms remit; due by 20th of following month

Austin Dallas Houston San Antonio

Dallas is the odd case. A temporary injunction entered December 6, 2023, blocks enforcement of Ordinances 32473 and 32482, which would have banned STRs in single-family zones and imposed a $404 annual registration. The Fifth Court of Appeals affirmed the injunction on July 18, 2025, holding that STR operators have "a vested right to lease their properties," and the city has petitioned the Texas Supreme Court. Dallas STR decision Dallas appeal report

Until that resolves, Dallas enforces its existing property standards against STRs. It also enforces its noise and nuisance codes, while hotel occupancy tax registration remains mandatory. Dallas HOT requirements

Houston's ordinance adds requirements no consent form addresses. Every owner and operator must complete annual human-trafficking awareness training. The property also needs a 24-hour emergency contact who can respond within one hour.

The city may revoke registration after two nuisance abatements or two noise convictions within 12 months. Platforms must delist unregistered Houston units starting January 1, 2027. Houston ordinance text Houston STR portal

In San Antonio, a non-owner-occupied Type 2 unit is capped at 12.5% of the single-family through quadraplex units on the block face. Three accepted citations within a rolling three-year period trigger revocation. San Antonio density cap San Antonio revocation rule

HOA covenants sit above both the lease and your consent. Recorded restrictions run with the land, and a lease cannot grant a tenant greater rights against the HOA than you hold as owner; Chapter 209 enforcement notices go to you, not the tenant. Texas deed restrictions Property Code Chapter 209

Property Code § 209.016 bars an HOA from requiring approval of your tenant or a credit report. It also bars the HOA from requiring a copy of the lease. The same section preserves any recorded restriction "relating to occupancy or leasing," so minimum lease terms and rental caps are enforceable when the declaration contains them. Express STR bans are enforceable as well. Section 209.016 rules

Before fining you, the HOA must send certified-mail notice with a cure period under § 209.006, and the HOA may not assess a fine if you cure in time. A violation may otherwise expose you to civil damages of up to $200 per day under § 202.004. Section 202.004 damages

Vague covenants do not ban STRs. In Tarr v. Timberwood Park Owners Ass'n (2018), the Texas Supreme Court held that a covenant limiting tracts to "residential purposes" did not prohibit short-term rentals: "So long as the occupants to whom Tarr rents his single-family residence use the home for a 'residential purpose,' no matter how short-lived, neither their on-property use nor Tarr's off-property use violates the restrictive covenants." Tarr v. Timberwood Park

JBrice Holdings v. Wilcrest Walk Townhomes Ass'n (2022) reversed an injunction against an STR operator and held that § 204.010(a)(6) does not let an HOA adopt an STR ban by rule when the covenants themselves limit restraints on leasing. JBrice Holdings decision

An HOA that wants to ban STRs has to amend its declaration with explicit language. The Legislature did not enact HB 5225, which would have barred HOAs from requiring owner approval for sub-30-day rentals. HB 5225 history

Income-restricted housing adds a federal layer that no landlord consent can override. For Housing Choice Voucher tenants, 24 CFR § 982.551(h)(6) states: "The family must not sublease or let the unit." Public housing leases must obligate the tenant "Not to assign the lease or to sublease the dwelling unit" under § 966.4(f)(1). Voucher tenant obligations Public housing leases

The Houston Housing Authority lease caps guests at 14 total days per calendar year without written consent and lists "subletting a subsidized unit" as an example of fraud, and any violation of § 982.551 is grounds for terminating assistance under § 982.552. Voucher termination rules In a LIHTC property, an unreported subtenant creates a household-composition discrepancy that TDHCA reports to the IRS on Form 8823 if uncorrected within the 30- or 90-day correction window. TDHCA compliance rules

Changes to watch for 2026 and where to get free legal help

The largest 2026 change is procedural: every eviction petition filed on or after January 1, 2026, including one against a subtenant, runs under SB 38 and the Supreme Court's amended Rule 510 (Misc. Docket No. 25-9105, issued December 31, 2025). Amended Rule 510

Sworn petitions and the four delivery methods that replaced door-posting are now live. So are summary disposition, rent-into-registry in all appeals, and the 21-day county court trial deadline. Section 24.005(a) generally requires at least three days' written notice for a tenant who defaults or holds over, while § 24.005(b) applies to a tenant at will or by sufferance. A non-nonpayment case outside the statutory notice categories may proceed without presuit notice, and § 24.005(d) sets no minimum period for notice to a true forcible entrant. A first-time-late tenant whose right of possession ends solely for nonpayment must receive a notice to pay rent or vacate rather than a plain notice to vacate.

Other items on the 2026 calendar:

• The Chapter 24B unauthorized-occupant removal process (SB 1333) and the HB 2037 repair, agent-notice, and e-mail provisions have been in force since September 1, 2025. Chapter 24B law
• Houston's STR registration became mandatory January 1, 2026, and platform delisting of unregistered units begins January 1, 2027.
• The Texas Supreme Court has not yet ruled on Dallas's petition to lift the STR injunction; a ruling for the city would revive the single-family ban and the $404 registration. Dallas petition status
• A September 8, 2026 Express-News report describes a proposed San Antonio STR fee increase to $450 and $1,000; the retrieved sources do not confirm that it has been enacted. San Antonio fee proposal
• SB 2586 required HOAs to file their governing-document information electronically with TREC by June 1, 2026, which makes a covenant check before you approve an STR sublease easier than it used to be. SB 2586 text
• No enacted bill from the 89th Legislature's called sessions touched landlord-tenant law or the Property Code with a 2026 effective date, and the Third Court of Appeals' July 2025 dismissal of the cities' challenge to HB 2127 leaves that law's effect on any specific STR ordinance unresolved. Legislative statistics HB 2127 litigation

TexasLawHelp.org is the starting point for free, current guidance. Its Subleases and Subtenants article (legal review January 12, 2026) covers § 91.005, § 94.057, and liability when a subtenant stops paying. Its Eviction article was updated for SB 38. Its deposit demand letter is the template a subtenant will use against your tenant. The Legal Help Directory searches by county and topic.

Local organizations handle in-person help:

• City | Organization | Who they serve | Contact
• Austin | Texas RioGrande Legal Aid | Low-income tenants in 68 counties | (833) 329-8752, weekdays 9-5
• Austin | Austin Tenants Council | Tenants and landlords (information, not attorneys) | Referrals through TRLA intake
• Austin | BASTA | Tenants | bastaaustin.org
• Dallas | Dallas Eviction Advocacy Center | Tenants facing eviction | dallaseac.org
• Dallas | Legal Aid of NorthWest Texas | Low-income tenants and homeowners, 114 counties | 855-548-8457
• Houston | Lone Star Legal Aid | Low-income tenants; counsel in all 16 Harris County JP courts | lonestarlegal.org
• Houston | Houston Volunteer Lawyers | Residents at or below 200% FPL (300% for veterans and eviction defense) | makejusticehappen.org
• San Antonio | Bexar County Self-Help & Mediation | Tenants and landlords | Free eviction packets and mediation
• San Antonio | City Right to Counsel Program (with TRLA) | Low-income households facing eviction | righttocounsel@trla.org or 210-212-3703
• Statewide | Texas Tenants' Union | Tenants | (214) 823-2733

Texas RioGrande Legal Aid Dallas eviction advocates NorthWest Texas Legal Aid Lone Star Legal Aid Houston Volunteer Lawyers Bexar County mediation Texas Tenants' Union

Most of those programs serve tenants. As a landlord, the Bexar County mediation program and the Austin Tenants Council will talk to you, and for a contested case with a leasebound subtenant or a waiver argument on the table, consult a real estate attorney before you file.

FAQ

These answers cover the questions Texas landlords and tenants most often ask about unauthorized subleases and eviction. They also address deposits and continuing liability.

Is there a difference between subleasing and subletting in Texas?

Both words describe a tenant renting the unit, or part of it, to someone else while staying on the head lease. The Property Code uses "subletting" in the heading of § 91.005 and "sublease" in § 94.057 for the same act, and courts use the terms interchangeably. An assignment is different: the tenant hands over the entire remaining term and the assignee assumes the lease directly.

Can you go to jail for subletting without permission in Texas?

Not for a private rental. An unauthorized sublease is a breach of the lease. The landlord may pursue termination and eviction in civil court, along with money damages.

Criminal charges arise only when the sublease involves deceiving a government program, as with a Section 8 participant who conceals a subtenant, or when a city STR ordinance classifies unregistered operation as a misdemeanor. Houston and San Antonio punish that with fines of $100 to $500 rather than jail.

Can I evict a subtenant who never signed a lease with me?

Yes, through the same JP court process you would use for a tenant. Section 24.002(a)(1) covers "a tenant or a subtenant," and a subtenant with no direct agreement with you can be removed under a judgment against your tenant "and all occupants."

The presuit-notice requirement depends on the ground. Section 24.005(a) generally requires at least three days' written notice for a tenant who defaults or holds over, and § 24.005(b) applies to a tenant at will or by sufferance, unless a written lease or agreement sets a different period. A non-nonpayment case outside those statutory categories may not require presuit notice under SB 38. If notice is required, use one of the § 24.005(f-3) delivery methods.

Do not use the Chapter 24B sheriff-removal process, which excludes anyone who ever held a rental agreement and carries a three-times-rent penalty for misuse.

Who returns the subtenant's security deposit?

The person who collected it. Chapter 92 runs between landlord and tenant, and because § 92.001(2) counts a sublessor as a landlord, your tenant owes the subtenant the itemized accounting and refund within 30 days of surrender, with the $100-plus-treble-damages exposure of § 92.109 if he handles it in bad faith. Your own deposit obligation runs to your tenant alone.

What are the consequences of unauthorized subletting for the tenant?

The landlord may terminate the lease and evict both the tenant and the subtenant. The landlord may also collect unpaid rent plus lease-authorized charges and, where § 24.006 applies, attorney's fees.

The tenant remains liable for the rest of the term subject to the landlord's § 91.006 duty to mitigate, and if the landlord relets at a lower rent the tenant owes the difference. The one thing that can save the tenant is a landlord who keeps cashing rent checks after learning of the sublease without a non-waiver clause in the lease, which under Twelve Oaks Tower waives the right to forfeit. Twelve Oaks waiver rule