Craig Lesok - Real Estate & Bankruptcy Attorney

Eviciton Law

 

 

Eviction

Eviction can be utilized a landlord/ tenant situation or if the borrower/ unauthorized person or property remains after foreclosure. Evictions in Texas are governed by Chapter 24 of the Texas Property Code. The eviction process usually takes about 2-3 weeks. The general process is as follows:

Eviction Process

Below is a general guideline for evictions:

  1. Prior to filing an eviction suit, the creditor sends a 3-day Notice to Vacate to borrower;
    • In some situations (i.e. month to month tenancy), the lease must be terminated via 30 day Notice of Termination
  1. After the period has expired for the Notice to Vacate, Creditor must file a Forcible Entry and Detainer in the Justice of the Peace Court;
  2. Creditor must attend hearing scheduled by the Justice of the Peace Clerk
  3. After obtaining judgment against occupant, occupant has five days to appeal said judgment;
  4. If no appeal, then Creditor may take possession of property;
  5. If occupant has not moved out within the five day period, then Creditor may obtain a writ of possession to assist in move out of occupant from property.

Eviction Appeal

If the occupant files an appeal, the case is removed from the Justice of the Peace court to the County Court at Law. If the creditor is not an individual (i.e. LLC, LP, etc.), it must be represented by an attorney during the pendency of the appeal. This is a de novo proceeding which means that anything which occurred at the JP level is irrelevant and the County Court will hear the case as “new.” It is a more formal process which requires an experienced attorney.