Skip to main content
CityRuleLookup

Texas Statewide Rule

Texas Bans HOA Tenant Screening, Not Rental Caps

Some RestrictionsApplies statewide across Texas (2026)

Key Facts

Governing statute
Tex. Prop. Code § 209.016
Tenant board-approval requirement
Prohibited, § 209.016(b)(1)
Credit or consumer report demand
Prohibited, § 209.016(b)(2)(A)
Outright leasing bans/caps
Still allowed, § 209.016(d)
Info HOA may collect
Contact info and lease dates only, § 209.016(e)
Declaration amendment threshold
67% of owner votes, § 209.0041(h)
Owner enforcement venue
Justice court, § 209.017
Last verified: September 1, 2026

Summary

Texas Property Code Section 209.016 sets no cap on how much of a subdivision an association can rent out, no minimum lease term, and no grandfather clause: a declaration can still ban leasing outright. What the statute forbids is tenant screening. An association cannot require a rental applicant to be approved by the board, and cannot demand a credit report, consumer report, or copy of the lease itself.

(b) A property owners' association may not adopt or enforce a provision in a dedicatory instrument that: (1) requires a lease or rental applicant or a tenant to be submitted to and approved for tenancy by the property owners' association; or (2) requires the following information to be submitted to a property owners' association regarding a lease or rental applicant or current tenant: (A) a consumer or credit report; or (B) a lease or rental application submitted by the applicant, tenant, or that person's agent to the property owner or property owner's agent when applying for tenancy. ... (d) Nothing in this section shall be construed to prohibit the adoption or enforcement of a provision in a dedicatory instrument establishing a restriction relating to occupancy or leasing. (e) A property owners' association may request the following information to be submitted to the association regarding a lease or rental applicant: (1) contact information, including the name, mailing address, phone number, and e-mail address of each person who will reside at a property in the subdivision under a lease; and (2) the commencement date and term of the lease.

View official code

Full Breakdown

Chapter 209 of the Property Code, the Texas Residential Property Owners Protection Act, draws a hard line between what an HOA may condition leasing on and what it can screen for. 016(b) bars a mandatory-membership association from adopting or enforcing any dedicatory-instrument provision that requires a lease applicant or current tenant to be submitted to and approved for tenancy by the board, or that requires a consumer or credit report, or the lease or rental application itself, to be handed over. B. 1588 (87th Legislature), which also added the current text as Section 20 of that act.

016 stops an association from adopting or enforcing a restriction on occupancy or leasing itself, including an outright cap on the number of rented units or a ban on new rentals. Texas has no statewide right-to-rent statute and no minimum lease term. Subsection (e) lists the narrow band of information an association may still request: each resident's name, mailing address, phone number, and e-mail address, plus the lease's start date and term, nothing more. 0041(h-2)). The rule traces to House Bill 2489 of the 84th Legislature, effective June 19, 2015, before the 2021 rewrite narrowed it to its current screening-only scope.

Violations & Penalties

An association still enforcing a tenant-approval or credit-report demand is violating Section 209.016(b), and an owner need not sue in district court to fight it: Section 209.017, added by the same 2021 act, gives justice courts jurisdiction over an owner's suit against the association for a chapter violation. If the board tries to fine or suspend common-area access over a refusal to hand over a barred document, Section 209.006 still applies: certified-mail notice, a cure period, and a right to a hearing within 30 days before the fine sticks.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can my Texas HOA still ban renting my house entirely?
Nothing in Texas law stops it. Property Code Section 209.016(d) expressly preserves an association's power to adopt or enforce a restriction on occupancy or leasing, including a cap on how many homes can be rented or a full ban on new leases. The screening rules in the rest of Section 209.016 govern how an association vets a tenant, not whether the declaration can prohibit renting in the first place.
Can the HOA require my tenant to be approved before moving in?
No. Section 209.016(b)(1) bars an association from requiring a lease or rental applicant, or a current tenant, to be submitted to and approved for tenancy by the board. That provision applies regardless of what the association's own governing documents say, since it overrides any conflicting dedicatory-instrument language enacted since the 2021 rewrite (S.B. 1588, effective September 1, 2021).
What information can the association legally ask for about my tenant?
Only a short list under Section 209.016(e): each resident's name, mailing address, phone number, and e-mail address, plus the lease's commencement date and term. The association cannot go further and demand a credit report, a consumer report, or a copy of the lease or rental application itself; those are barred by Section 209.016(b)(2).
Can the HOA fine me for not submitting a credit report on my tenant?
No, because demanding that report is itself the violation. Section 209.016(b)(2)(A) bars an association from requiring a consumer or credit report on a tenant at all, so there is no lawful fine for refusing to produce one. If the board fines you anyway, Section 209.006 still requires certified-mail notice and a chance to request a hearing within 30 days before the fine is enforceable.
How do I challenge an HOA that demands tenant screening anyway?
File suit against the association in justice court. Section 209.017, added in 2021, gives justice courts jurisdiction over an owner's claim that the association violated Chapter 209, which covers a Section 209.016 screening demand. You do not need to go to district court, and the association cannot condition your lease's validity on compliance with a rule the statute has already voided.

Sources

See something wrong?

Help us keep this page accurate. If you notice an error or outdated information, let us know.