Eviction Tips in Travis County

1. The landlord should review Texas Property Code Sec. 24.005 for the notice requirements before delivering the notice to vacate.

2. An eviction action should be filed in the justice precinct where the rental property is located.

3. The landlord generally will be required to wait three days after the eviction notice is delivered before filing the eviction action, unless the lease shortens the notice requirements.

4. The notice to vacate needs to be in writing and should be unconditional. It should tell the tenant to vacate unconditionally and by a date certain.

5. When filing, an attorney will need 1) a copy of the lease; 2) a copy of the notice to vacate; 3) filing fees; 4) service fees; 5) all contact information known for the tenant.

6. All parties to the lease, even those that are not currently residing in the property, should be named in the suit.

7. A suit for rent may be filed with the eviction suit if the amount due is within the jurisdiction of the justice court, which is currently $10,000. Charges for items other than rent cannot be joined with the suit for eviction.

8. Be prepared. The trial for the suit for eviction will be set on the day the case is filed.

Texas Justice Court Jurisdiction

The Legislature decided to increase the amount in controversy jurisdictional limits of the Justice and Small Claims Courts to $10,000 (from its previous limit of $5,000) in SB 618. Also, the law, which went into effect on September 1, 2007, clarifies that a corporation need not be represented by an attorney in justice or small claims courts.