Texas squatter removal under SB 1333: a sworn complaint to the sheriff or constable
Texas SB 1333, effective September 1, 2025, adds Property Code Chapter 24B. An owner or the owner's agent can file a sworn complaint with the county sheriff or constable to remove a person who unlawfully entered and occupies a dwelling. Current and former tenants and immediate family are excluded. The act also makes a false lease a Class A misdemeanor.
When can a Texas owner ask for removal?
Section 24B.001 lets an owner of residential real property, or the owner's agent, ask the sheriff or constable of the county to "immediately remove" a person who unlawfully entered and occupies a dwelling on the property without the owner's consent. Three groups of conditions apply. The property must not have been open to the public when the person entered and must not be the subject of pending litigation between the owner and the person. The owner or agent must have directed the person to leave and the person has not. And the person must not be a current or former tenant of the owner under an oral or written lease, or an immediate family member of the owner.
What do you file?
Section 24B.002 sets out a complaint form. You initial each of twelve items and sign. The complaint must be sworn or made as an unsworn declaration under Section 132.001 of the Civil Practice and Remedies Code. The form has you confirm, among other things:
- You own the property at the address, or you are the owner's agent.
- A person unlawfully entered and occupies the dwelling without consent.
- The property was not open to the public and is not in litigation with the person.
- You directed the person to leave and they have not.
- The person is not a current or former tenant, "any lease produced by the person is fraudulent," and any title listing the person as an owner is fraudulent.
- The person is not an immediate family member.
- You understand the person can sue you for false statements and wrongful use, and you can owe actual and exemplary damages, costs and attorney's fees.
Attach your government-issued ID and, if you are an agent, a document showing your authority.
What do the sheriff or constable do, and what does it cost?
Under Section 24B.003 the officer verifies that you are the record owner or the owner's agent and otherwise entitled to relief. Then the officer must "without delay" serve notice to immediately vacate and put the owner in possession. Service is by hand to an occupant or by affixing the notice to the front door. The officer tries to identify each occupant, notes the identities on the return of service and may arrest anyone for an outstanding warrant, trespass or any other offense with probable cause.
The officer's fee is the amount the officer would get for executing a writ of possession, paid by you. You can ask the officer to stay while you change locks and move the occupants' belongings to or near the property line. The officer may charge a reasonable hourly rate for that. The officer is not liable for loss or damage, and you are not liable for the belongings unless the removal was wrongful.
How is this different from evicting a tenant?
Chapter 24B is aimed at someone who never had your consent. It excludes anyone who is or was your tenant under an oral or written lease, so a tenant stays in the ordinary eviction suit process. Section 24B.006 also says the chapter does not limit your other rights or an officer's power to arrest an occupant for trespass, vandalism, theft or another offense, so you can still use a court case where this route is not open to you.
What are the penalties for a fake lease in Texas?
- Penal Code 32.56: presenting a false, fraudulent or fictitious document purporting to be a lease, deed or other instrument conveying a real property interest, with intent to enter or remain on the property, is a Class A misdemeanor.
- Penal Code 32.57: listing or advertising residential property for sale, rent or lease knowing you lack title or authority, or selling, renting or leasing it to someone, is a first-degree felony. Lenders, title companies and licensed brokers who did not know are excepted.
The second crime is the one aimed at rental scams, where a person rents out a house they do not own and the renter then claims to be a tenant.
What if the removal was wrongful?
Section 24B.005 lets a person wrongly removed, or whose belongings were wrongly removed, sue to recover possession and to recover from the person who requested the removal actual damages, exemplary damages equal to three times the fair market rent, court costs and reasonable attorney's fees. The court sets the case for hearing at the earliest practicable date.
Example a made-up Texas rental house has a fair market rent of $1,600. Exemplary damages in a wrongful removal would be 3 x $1,600 = $4,800, on top of actual damages, costs and attorney's fees.
How DoorKeeping fits in Texas
DoorKeeping keeps a unit's records in one place: the signed lease and who is on it, dated documents and photos, and your notes on who has keys. If an occupant claims to be a tenant, your own lease file shows whether you ever signed with them, and your notes show the date you told them to leave. Anything that involves a legal step waits for your one-tap approval. This is general information, not legal advice. Check the current statute, your county's process and your own facts before you act.
Sources
Questions
- Who removes a squatter in Texas under SB 1333?
- The sheriff or constable of the county where the property sits, after the owner or agent files the sworn complaint in Property Code Section 24B.002.
- Does Chapter 24B apply to a former tenant?
- No. A current or former tenant of the owner under an oral or written lease is excluded, as is an immediate family member.
- Is a fake lease a crime in Texas?
- Yes. Penal Code 32.56 makes presenting a false lease, deed or similar document to enter or remain on property a Class A misdemeanor.