How many days notice do you have to give a tenant to move out in Texas?

At least three days under Texas Property Code Section 24.005, unless your lease sets a different period. Many El Paso leases shorten it to one day, and some require a separate notice to pay before a notice to vacate. Properties covered by the federal CARES Act may need 30 days. We read your lease first so the notice states the correct period.

How much does an eviction notice cost in El Paso?

We charge a flat fee for drafting and serving the notice to vacate, with a small additional fee if the lease also requires a separate rent demand or cure letter. Certified mail costs are included. The flat fee covers the notice stage only; the eviction suit in Justice of the Peace court, if needed, is quoted separately along with the court's filing and service fees.

Can I change the locks or shut off utilities on a tenant who has not paid?

Not as a way to force them out. Texas Property Code Section 92.0081 allows a lockout for unpaid rent only with strict prior notice and a duty to provide a new key on request, and Section 92.008 prohibits shutting off utilities. Violations expose an El Paso landlord to a penalty of one month's rent plus $1,000, actual damages and attorney fees. The lawful route is the notice to vacate followed by an eviction suit.

Do I have to go to court to evict a tenant in El Paso?

The notice stage, which is what this service covers, involves no court at all, and many tenants leave once they receive it. If the tenant stays, the eviction itself is a lawsuit filed in the El Paso County Justice of the Peace court for the property's precinct, with a hearing the landlord or their attorney attends. That is a separate matter we can discuss with you if it becomes necessary.

Can I evict a buyer under a contract for deed or a family member who pays no rent?

Sometimes, but the notice differs. A contract-for-deed buyer must first receive the default and cure notices required by Property Code Sections 5.063 and 5.064, and after enough payments gains foreclosure-style protection. A family member or guest with no lease is a tenant at will who gets the standard three-day notice to vacate. We identify the occupant's legal status before drafting so the right notice goes out.

Eviction Notice Lawyer El Paso

Eviction Notices and Demand Letters for El Paso Landlords — The First Step, Done Right

We prepare and serve the Texas notice to vacate and the demand letters that must precede any eviction of a tenant in El Paso County — flat fee, no court appearance. The eviction suit itself, if it becomes necessary, is filed in a Justice of the Peace court and is a separate matter we can discuss with you.

Last reviewed by Robert Andrew Navar, Esq. · State Bar of Texas

Every eviction in Texas begins with a written notice to vacate, and more evictions in El Paso County are lost or delayed because of a defective notice than for any other reason. A landlord who texts the tenant, gives the wrong number of days, delivers it the wrong way, or includes demands the lease does not support will have the case dismissed by the Justice of the Peace and must start over, losing weeks of rent. This service is for El Paso landlords, property managers and owner-financers who need the notice to vacate, the rent demand letter, or a lease-violation cure letter drafted and served so that it holds up.

Texas Property Code Section 24.005 requires the landlord to give a tenant at least three days' written notice to vacate before filing an eviction suit, unless the lease provides a shorter or longer period. The notice must be delivered by mail, by hand to the tenant or a person 16 or older at the premises, or by affixing it to the inside of the main entry door; posting on the outside of the door is allowed only under specific conditions added in 2015. For rental properties covered by the federal CARES Act, a 30-day notice may still be required. Chapter 92 adds separate rules for lockouts and utility shutoffs that a landlord may not use as self-help, and Section 24.005 also governs notices to holdover tenants and occupants under a defaulted contract for deed.

We review your lease and the tenant's ledger, determine the correct notice period and grounds, draft the notice to vacate and any required demand letter, and serve it by a method that creates proof of delivery, with a signed certificate of service for the court file. Everything in this service happens outside a courtroom; you will not appear anywhere. If the tenant does not leave after the notice period expires, the next step is a forcible detainer suit filed in the El Paso County Justice of the Peace precinct where the property sits. That is a separate matter with its own filing fee, hearing and timeline, and we will explain it and quote it separately if you reach that point. Getting the notice right is what makes that later step fast.

Why eviction notices get thrown out in El Paso JP courts

The most common defects: a notice that demands rent or vacate when the lease requires a separate notice to pay before a notice to vacate; a notice that counts the day of delivery or a weekend as one of the three days; delivery by text message or email when the lease does not authorize electronic notice under Section 24.005(f-1); a notice posted on the outside of the door without the required mailing; a notice signed by a manager without authority; a notice served before the grace period in the lease has run; and a notice given to only one of several adult tenants. Each mistake means dismissal, a new notice, and a new filing fee. An attorney-prepared notice for a flat fee avoids all of them.

What happens after the notice period, and what we do not include

Many tenants pay or move once they receive a properly drafted notice from a law office, which is the best outcome for a landlord. If the tenant stays, the landlord may file an eviction petition in the Justice of the Peace court for the precinct where the property is located in El Paso County. The court sets a hearing 10 to 21 days after service, and a judgment for possession is followed by a writ of possession no sooner than the sixth day after judgment under Property Code Section 24.0061. Filing, hearing and writ costs are set by the court. The eviction suit and any hearing are not part of this flat-fee notice service; if you need to proceed, we will discuss representation for that stage separately.

What's included

Review of your lease, payment ledger and the tenant's default to confirm grounds and notice period
Attorney-drafted notice to vacate compliant with Texas Property Code Section 24.005 and your lease
Demand letter for unpaid rent, or cure-or-quit letter for lease violations, when the lease requires one first
Service by certified and regular mail, hand delivery, or posting as the statute allows, with proof of delivery
Signed certificate of service and a copy of the notice ready for a future eviction filing
Spanish-language version of the notice when the tenant negotiated in Spanish
Guidance on what to do, and what not to do, while the notice period runs

How it works

Send the lease and the problem

Email the lease, the tenant's payment history and what has happened. We confirm the correct type of notice and period, and quote a flat fee the same day.

We draft and serve

Within one to two business days the notice to vacate or demand letter is drafted on law-office letterhead and served by a method that creates proof, with a certificate of service for your file.

The notice period runs

Most El Paso tenants pay or leave. If not, we explain the eviction filing in the El Paso County Justice of the Peace court and quote that separate matter if you choose to proceed.