8 Texas Squatter Rules That Still Leave Homeowners Stuck in 2026

A neighbor texts you a photo of your house with the lights on.

It’s supposed to be empty.

The newer Texas routes for removing a squatter may move fast for some owners, but not for you if your case doesn’t fit.

Here’s where the rules can still leave you stuck in 2026.

Note: This is general information, not legal advice. Property laws and required timelines are subject to change.

1. Ownership Claims

When a squatter claims to own the house, the justice court hearing your eviction suit can’t rule on that claim.

Senate Bill 38 says a justice court may not adjudicate title to the premises, which means it can’t decide who owns the property.

Senate Bill 1333 handles the same situation in the sworn complaint, where you swear that any title listing the person as an owner or co-owner is fraudulent.

2. Lease Exception

Senate Bill 1333’s sheriff route doesn’t cover a squatter who is a current or former tenant of yours under an oral or written lease.

Governor Abbott’s office describes the bill as a way for sheriffs and constables to act quickly, but a lease takes you outside it.

If a squatter shows you a lease, your complaint has you swear that any lease the person produces is fraudulent.

A former tenant who stays past the end of the lease is a holdover tenant, and the sheriff route excludes former tenants.

For that tenant, Senate Bill 38 says a landlord must give at least three days’ written notice to vacate before filing an eviction suit.

A written lease or agreement can set a different notice period.

3. Family and Co-Owner Exclusions

Under the sheriff route, a squatter who is your immediate family member is out of bounds.

So is a person who is an owner or co-owner of the property, and your sworn complaint has you swear to both points.

4. Dwelling Requirement

A squatter has to be occupying a dwelling on residential property before Senate Bill 1333 applies to your case.

The bill lets an owner of residential property ask a sheriff or constable to immediately remove a person.

That person must have unlawfully entered and be occupying a dwelling on the property without the owner’s consent.

If your property isn’t residential, or the person isn’t in a dwelling on it, the bill’s conditions aren’t met.

5. Open-to-the-Public Test

Item 3 of the complaint asks you to initial that your property wasn’t open to the public when the squatter entered, so the date of entry matters.

A property that was open to the public at that moment doesn’t qualify for the sheriff route.

6. Pending-Lawsuit Bar

A squatter you’re already suing over the property is off limits to the sheriff route.

Under Senate Bill 1333, the property can’t be the subject of pending litigation between you and that person, and you swear to that on the complaint.

7. Leave-Request Requirement

The sheriff route requires that you or your agent have already told the squatter to leave and the person hasn’t.

Senate Bill 1333 sets that condition in Section 24B.001, so a squatter you never asked to leave doesn’t meet it.

Statement 5 on the complaint form repeats the condition, and you initial it.

What a Squatter Complaint Requires

For a squatter complaint under Senate Bill 1333, the sheriff or constable verifies your ownership first.

The officer must confirm that you’re the record owner, or the owner’s agent.

You attach a copy of your valid government-issued ID, plus a document showing your authority if you’re the owner’s agent.

After verifying the complaint, the officer serves notice to immediately vacate.

The officer also attempts to verify the identity of each person in the dwelling.

The officer collects a fee from the complainant equal to what the officer would receive for executing a writ of possession.

8. Trial and Writ Waits

If the sheriff route doesn’t fit, you go after a squatter with an eviction suit in justice court.

Senate Bill 38 sets the timing for suits filed on or after January 1, 2026.

The court has to set your trial no earlier than the 10th day and no later than the 21st day after you file.

The judge can’t postpone it more than seven days unless you and the squatter agree in writing.

Judgment without a trial is the one route around that window, and it comes up below.

Winning the suit doesn’t end the wait, since a writ of possession, the order that carries out the eviction, generally can’t issue before the sixth day after judgment.

After the writ issues, the sheriff or constable must serve it by the fifth business day.

If the officer misses that deadline, you may have another law enforcement officer serve the writ.

Liability for a Wrongful Complaint

A squatter you have removed can sue you if your sworn complaint contains a false statement or was wrongfully submitted.

You initial an acknowledgment of that risk on the complaint form.

Section 24B.005 lets a wrongfully removed person recover possession of the property, plus actual damages, court costs and reasonable attorney’s fees from whoever requested the removal.

It also allows exemplary damages, which are punitive damages, equal to three times the fair market rent of the dwelling.

If the dwelling’s fair market rent is $2,000, those damages come to $6,000.

Fake Lease and Fake Listing Crimes

A squatter who shows you a fake lease or deed can now face criminal charges.

Penal Code 32.56 covers a person who knowingly presents a false lease, deed or similar document to enter or remain on a property.

The offense is a Class A misdemeanor.

Penal Code 32.57 covers a different scheme, knowingly listing or advertising residential property for sale, rent or lease without legal title or authority to offer it.

An offense under that section is a first-degree felony.

The chapter also says it doesn’t limit your rights as an owner.

Nor does it limit an officer’s authority to arrest an unauthorized occupant of a dwelling for trespassing, vandalism, theft or another offense.

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Judgment Without a Trial

A squatter can be ordered out without a trial through summary disposition, which Texas Law Help describes as a way to remove squatters quickly.

Senate Bill 38 lets you attach a sworn motion for summary disposition to your sworn petition.

The person served has until the fourth day after service to file a response.

Without a timely response, or if the court finds no disputed facts that would block judgment, it may enter judgment without a trial.

The motion isn't for tenants, subtenants, immediate family members, anyone who has or had an ownership claim, or anyone who began living there legally.