Recent Developments In Texas Real Estate
The following recent developments in Texas law may affect your leases
and sales transactions:
Landlord's Duty to Mitigate.
The case of Lunsford Consulting Group, Inc. v. Crescent Real Estate
Funding VIII, L.P., reiterates the law with regard to a landlord's
obligation to mitigate damages. The court held that a lease entered into
before September 1, 1997, requires the landlord to mitigate damages
unless the parties agree otherwise, but a lease entered into after
September 1, 1997, requires the landlord to mitigate damages, and any
clause to the contrary is void.
Required Notice on Recorded Instruments.
Beginning January 1, 2004, every deed of trust, deed, and mortgage must
include a 12 point, bold faced or 12 point upper case lettered notice on
the FIRST PAGE which states: "NOTICE OF CONFIDENTIALITY RIGHTS: IF
YOU ARE A NATURAL PERSON, YOU MAY REMOVE OR STRIKE ANY OF THE FOLLOWING
INFORMATION FROM THIS INSTRUMENT BEFORE IT IS FILED FOR RECORD IN THE
PUBLIC RECORDS: YOUR SOCIAL SECURITY NUMBER OR YOUR DRIVER'S LICENSE
NUMBER." All instruments without this notice will be rejected for
filing by the county clerk.
Limitations on Land Restrictions.
A new Texas law prohibits the enactment and enforcement of, and voids
existing, deed restrictions, covenants or property association rules
that discourage water conservation.
Required Notices in Sales Contracts.
If you are contracting for sale of property, the following statutory
notices (in addition to any Municipal Utility District notices) may be
required to be included in your contract:
NOTICE REGARDING POSSIBLE LIABILITY FOR ADDITIONAL
TAXES: "If for the current ad valorem tax year the taxable value of
the land that is the subject of this Agreement is determined by a
special appraisal method that allows for the appraisal of the land at
less than its market value, the person to whom the land is transferred
may not be allowed to qualify the land for that special appraisal and
it may then be appraised at its full market value. In addition, the
transfer of the land or a subsequent change in the use of the land may
result in the imposition of an additional tax plus interest and
penalty for the transfer or the change in use of the land. The taxable
value of the land and the applicable method of appraisal for current
tax year is public information and may be obtained from the tax
appraisal district established for the county in which the land is
located."
NOTICE REGARDING POSSIBLE ANNEXATION: "If the
property that is the subject of this Agreement is located outside the
limits of a municipality, the property may now or later be included in
the extraterritorial jurisdiction of a municipality and may now or
later be subject to annexation by the municipality. Each municipality
maintains a map that depicts its boundaries and extraterritorial
jurisdiction. To determine if the property is located within a
municipality's extraterritorial jurisdiction or is likely to be
located within a municipality's extraterritorial jurisdiction, contact
all municipalities located in the general proximity of the property
for further information."
NOTICE OF MEMBERSHIP IN PROPERTY OWNERS' ASSOCIATION:
"As a purchaser of property in the residential community in which this
property is located, you are obligated to be a member of a property
owners' association. Restrictive covenants governing the use and
occupancy of the property and a dedicatory instrument governing the
establishment, maintenance, and operation of this residential
community have been or will be recorded in the Real Property Records
of the county in which the property is located. Copies of the
restrictive covenants and dedicatory instrument may be obtained from
the county clerk. You are obligated to pay assessments to the property
owners' association. The amount of the assessments is subject to
change. Your failure to pay the assessments could result in a lien on
and the foreclosure of your property."
For further information on this topic, please contact Beth Tiggelaar at beth.tiggelaar@strasburger.com.
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