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Discovering unwelcome squatters — people occupying an abandoned or unoccupied property — can be a nightmare scenario for Texas landlords. Squatting often leads to messy legal struggles between landlords and “tenants,” further complicated by a slow-moving legal system dependent on evictions to remove unwelcome parties.
Also, as it pertains to laws, squatters rights and adverse possession (the legal mechanism squatters use to claim property) vary wildly from state to state, so it’s essential to know the actions you can and cannot take as a Texas property owner if you want to avoid legal harm.
In this article, we’ll help you understand:
When people have nowhere else to go or can’t afford housing, they often move into vacant properties without asking the landlord for permission. These squatters are technically trespassing, but if they intend to occupy the property, they’re no longer trespassers — they’re squatters.
In rare cases, a long-term squatter can legally assume ownership of properties they’ve inhabited after they’ve occupied it for a given time. This legal outcome, while time-consuming and challenging to achieve, is called adverse possession.
Landlords who don’t keep a close eye on their vacant properties are more susceptible to squatters and, as a result, must follow proper eviction protocols to remove them.
While you might find it alarming that squatters can legally claim property in Texas, actually doing so is a long and complex process that takes at least three years of continuous occupation in conjunction with a number of additional factors we detail below.
According to the Texas Civil Remedies Code, for an occupant to claim property ownership through adverse possession, they must first demonstrate the following:
If the above requirements for adverse possession are met, a squatter may be eligible to claim a property under one of the following conditions:
Note: Requirements for the three-, five-, and 10-year scenarios above are mutually exclusive, meaning squatters only have to meet the conditions listed within their specific timeframe.
Landlords can evict squatters in Texas, though they must do so legally. They cannot, however, forcibly remove these “tenants” from the property via self-help evictions and must follow a specific process, which we will review soon.
Though squatters don’t technically have the right to occupy abandoned or unoccupied property, they do have the right to continue occupying it until the landlord legally evicts them.
For better or worse, squatters in Texas can keep squatting until the proper eviction paperwork is served.
Though each situation is different, and some squatters may complicate the legal process by providing fake leases or deeds, the eviction laws in Texas are fairly cut-and-dry.
Here are the steps property owners must follow to remove squatters from their property:
Eviction doesn’t always go smoothly, and court backlogs often delay eviction hearings by weeks or months, so landlords must start the legal process as soon as they learn that a squatter is occupying their property.
If a landlord runs into a particularly difficult-to-navigate situation regarding a squatter on their property, they might be best off seeking legal help to protect themselves in court.
Here are a few resources that might help:
The best remedy for squatters is to prevent them from occupying property in the first place. Here are a few pieces of advice to help keep properties squatter-free:
Texas property owners dealing with squatters need all the help they can get, so TurboTenant teamed up with EZ Evict USA to help its users speed up evictions and regain control of their properties.
Additionally, TurboTenant can help landlords run background checks, generate rental applications, and create Texas-specific lease agreements to ensure that they fill post-eviction vacancies with well-vetted renters and iron-clad contracts.
Sign up for our free property management platform to see how we can help streamline your real estate experience.
Squatters can stay in an abandoned or unoccupied property until they are served a “Notice to Vacate” by the owner. If they ignore the Notice to Vacate, they can continue occupying the property until law enforcement in possession of a Writ of Possession document issued by the Texas State Court gives them another 24-hour Notice to Vacate.
If squatters ignore the final 24-hour Notice to Vacate, they no longer have a right to occupy the property and are subject to physical removal by law enforcement once the 24 hours have passed.
Yes, police can remove squatters on behalf of property owners, but only after a Notice to Vacate has been issued and a Writ of Possession has been granted to the property owner through a court hearing.
It depends on the squatter’s situation, but the State of Texas has specific conditions under which squatters can claim properties after three, five, and 10 years.
For more details, refer to the “How Squatters Can Legally Claim Property Through Adverse Possession” section earlier in this article.
A trespasser enters and remains on a landowner’s property without permission, generally while the owner or other approved inhabitants occupy the property.
Squatters occupy abandoned or unoccupied properties without permission from the owner but can stay on the premises until a Notice to Vacate is served. Technically, squatters begin as trespassers but can gain control of the land through adverse possession laws.