Fort Bend County, TX Short-Term Rentals: Noise Rules (2026)

Fort Bend County has not adopted noise ordinances with set quiet hours or decibel limits for short-term rentals in unincorporated areas. Texas counties lack general police power to enact noise ordinances under Local Gov't Code Ch. 233, so county-wide quiet-hour rules do not exist. Instead, the Sheriff's Office enforces Texas Penal Code §42.01(a)(5), which makes it disorderly conduct to make 'unreasonable noise' in a public place or in or near a private residence the actor has no right to occupy. Section 42.01(c)(2) creates a rebuttable presumption that noise exceeding 85 decibels after the actor receives notice from a magistrate or peace officer to abate is unreasonable. Officers typically issue a verbal warning before a citation. Fort Bend County does separately restrict construction noise in unincorporated 'urban' communities to weekdays 7 AM-6 PM and Saturdays 8 AM-5 PM, but that rule does not extend to general STR/party noise. Cities within the county (Sugar Land, Missouri City, Richmond, Rosenberg, Stafford, Katy, Fulshear) set their own STR-specific or general noise limits — Sugar Land's STR Conditional Use Permit conditions, for example, often impose 10 PM quiet hours. HOA covenants in master-planned subdivisions also commonly impose private noise rules enforceable by the association.