The Woodlands, TX

The Woodlands Covenants require every owner to keep their whole lot and improvements in good order and repair. Mowing, weeding, and edging up to the pavement edge are mandatory, and…

In The Woodlands, no living tree over six inches in diameter (measured two feet above natural grade) may be removed without prior written approval from the Township's Plan Review…

Texas Property Code §202.007 protects xeriscaping and native plants from HOA bans. Montgomery County cannot regulate residential landscaping (no zoning). The Woodlands emphasizes…

Texas Property Code 202.007 prohibits HOAs from banning rainwater harvesting systems, and Health & Safety Code 341.042 sets statewide standards for harvested rainwater used as a…

Pool security barriers in The Woodlands must comply with the International Residential Code. Texas Health and Safety Code §757 requires 48-inch minimum barriers with self-latching…

The Woodlands Township requires Residential Design Review Committee approval before any swimming pool is placed on a lot, and the Residential Development Standards mandate…

Operating a short-term rental in The Woodlands requires application and approval from the Development Standards Committee under Section 3.7 of the Residential Development Standards…

The Woodlands Township covenants prohibit parking RVs, trailers, and boats for 48+ consecutive hours on streets or where visible from street level. STR guests must observe these…

Conroe caps STR occupancy at 2 adults per bedroom plus 2. Montgomery County cannot set STR occupancy rules in unincorporated areas. The Woodlands covenants prohibit STRs entirely in…

No county-level noise rules specific to short-term rentals exist. General Texas state law disorderly conduct provisions apply. HOA deed restrictions in many Montgomery County…

Texas imposes a 6% state hotel occupancy tax (HOT) on STR gross receipts. Montgomery County imposes an additional county HOT. Total combined state and county HOT applies to short-term…

Parking on lawns, ditches, open space areas, or unpaved surfaces is expressly prohibited by The Woodlands Restrictive Covenants. Vehicles must be parked on approved paved driveways or…

The Woodlands Township covenants note that parking on neighborhood streets cannot currently be regulated through Restrictive Covenants. Street parking enforcement falls under…

The Woodlands Restrictive Covenants prohibit RVs, trailers, boats, and mobile homes from being parked for 48+ consecutive hours on streets or where visible from a street or adjacent…

The Woodlands Restrictive Covenants prohibit storage of semi-trucks, farm tractors, and similar commercial vehicles on lots or streets where visible. No time-limited exception exists…

Conroe prohibits overnight street parking 2-6 AM under Code Ch. 74. Montgomery County has no authority to regulate unincorporated street parking beyond safety. The Woodlands pathways…

Montgomery County removes abandoned vehicles from public roads under TX Transportation Code Ch. 683 after 48 hours. Conroe Code Ch. 78 Art. III and The Woodlands Township covenants…

Texas Occupations Code chapter 2308 sets the statewide rules for nonconsent towing and vehicle booting. A vehicle owner has 14 business days to demand a hearing in the justice court…

The Woodlands is unincorporated, so no local vehicle-noise ordinance applies; Texas Transportation Code Section 547.604 governs statewide, requiring every vehicle to run a working…

The Woodlands Township acknowledges barking dogs cannot be regulated through its Restrictive Covenants. Animal control and noise enforcement fall under Montgomery County Sheriff and…

The Woodlands Township cannot enact noise ordinances: noise complaints are handled under Montgomery County jurisdiction (TX Penal Code §42.01) and by county law enforcement. The…

Montgomery County has no ordinance regulating amplified music in unincorporated areas. Texas Penal Code §42.01 applies if noise is unreasonably loud or provocative in a public place…

Montgomery County has no ordinance restricting leaf blower or outdoor power equipment use in unincorporated areas. No time, decibel, or equipment-type restrictions exist at the county…

No county-level construction hour restrictions exist in unincorporated Montgomery County. State law and applicable building permit conditions govern construction activities…

The Woodlands Restrictive Covenants allow fences up to 8 feet with RDRC approval. Criteria for specific neighborhoods may set 6-foot limits. Where the Standards and Criteria conflict…

The Woodlands covenants specify that the smooth (finished) side of fences must face outward toward all adjacent streets and neighboring properties. Boundary fence disputes between…

The Woodlands Township Restrictive Covenants strictly prohibit the sale and use of fireworks on any property within The Woodlands. Fireworks are explicitly banned at all times.

Montgomery County sits in the Piney Woods with high wildfire risk, especially during drought. The county does not designate formal wildfire hazard zones but uses Local Gov Code Sec…

Selling, transporting, dispensing, or storing propane (LP-gas) in Texas requires a license from the Railroad Commission of Texas under Natural Resources Code Chapter 113. Only the…

No breed-specific legislation applies in The Woodlands. Texas law prohibits municipalities from enacting breed bans, and Montgomery County has not done so either. Dangerous dog…

Dog restraint and leash requirements in The Woodlands are enforced by Montgomery County Animal Services and the Sheriff under Texas law. The Township covenants cannot regulate this…

Montgomery County prohibits livestock at large. No zoning or lot-size requirements restrict chickens or small livestock in unincorporated areas at the county level. Subdivision deed…

Texas keeps beekeeping light-touch: registration with the Texas Apiary Inspection Service is voluntary, not required to own hives. Beekeepers may register annually with the chief…

Texas Health & Safety Code Chapter 822 Subchapter E governs ownership of dangerous wild animals: lions, tigers, bears, primates, and more. Owners must register with their county or…

Texas has no standalone hoarding statute; officers use Health & Safety Code Chapter 821 to seize animals deprived of necessary food, care, or shelter, and a court can divest the owner…

Texas lets hunters bait and feed game animals, including deer, on private property statewide. Baiting is unlawful on most public land, for wild turkey in the East Zone, and for all…

Texas treats tiny homes by construction: foundation-built follow IRC Appendix Q (400 sq ft), THOWs are RVs under TX Manufactured Housing Act. Montgomery County cannot zone; Conroe…

Texas Cottage Food Law (H&S Code §437.001) allows home-made non-potentially-hazardous food sold directly to consumers up to $50,000/year. CBD/THC products banned. Proper labeling and…

Texas Human Resources Code Chapter 42 governs licensing and registration of home-based child care statewide through HHSC. Registered family homes serve up to 6 children under 14, must…

A sexually oriented business anywhere in unincorporated Montgomery County, including The Woodlands, needs a Class I permit from the Sheriff, must sit 1,500 feet from homes, schools…

Anyone selling e-cigarettes to Texas consumers must hold an e-cigarette retailer permit issued by the Comptroller, obtained for each place of business under Health and Safety Code…

The Woodlands is unincorporated, so no city sign ordinance applies. Political yard signs fall under the community's restrictive covenants and Township Development Standards, but Texas…

Garage sale signs in Montgomery County rights-of-way are prohibited under Transportation Code §393.002. Conroe allows temporary signs on private property, max 6 sq ft. The Woodlands…

Red-light cameras are illegal in The Woodlands. Texas Transportation Code Section 707.020 bars every local authority from operating a photographic traffic signal enforcement system…

Texas lets golf carts onto public roads in four defined situations rather than by general permission: inside a platted master planned community, on a beach open to vehicular traffic…

Since July 1, 2026, anyone dispensing food from a truck in The Woodlands must hold a Texas DSHS mobile food vendor license; Montgomery County no longer issues its own mobile food unit…

Montgomery County Environmental Health issues mobile food unit permits for unincorporated operations under TX Food Establishment Rules (25 TAC §228). Conroe requires additional city…

Texas has no just-cause eviction requirement. Montgomery County landlords may terminate month-to-month leases without cause on 30 days' written notice per Property Code §91.001…

Rent control is prohibited statewide under Texas Local Government Code §214.902. Montgomery County and its cities cannot cap rent increases. Landlords may raise rent to market rate…

Under Tex. Prop. Code § 24.005, a Texas landlord must give a defaulting or holdover tenant at least three days' written notice to vacate before filing a forcible detainer (eviction)…

Under Tex. Prop. Code § 92.052 a landlord must make a diligent effort to repair conditions that materially affect an ordinary tenant's health or safety after proper notice. Section…

Under Tex. Prop. Code § 92.019 a residential late fee must be reasonable and may be charged only if written in the lease and the rent stays unpaid two full days after due. A fee is…

Under Tex. Prop. Code § 91.001, either party may end a month-to-month tenancy by giving notice, and the tenancy ends on the later of the date in the notice or one month after notice is…

Texas places no statutory limit on how much a landlord can charge for a security deposit. However, the landlord must refund the deposit within 30 days after the tenant surrenders the…

In Texas a squatter can claim title only through adverse possession, with periods that shorten as the claim strengthens: 3 years under title or color of title (§ 16.024), 5 years with…

Recreational and medical marijuana dispensaries are banned statewide. Only three TCUP-licensed low-THC dispensaries operate in Texas, none in Montgomery County. CBD and hemp retail…

Home cannabis cultivation is illegal throughout Montgomery County and Texas. Growing any amount is a state felony under Health & Safety Code §481.120. Only CBD under Compassionate Use…

Montgomery County sets no garage sale frequency limits. Texas sales tax law offers occasional-sale exemption for two sales per year under $3,000. HOAs like Bentwater and April Sound…

Texas Property Code §202.010 protects solar installations from HOA bans in Montgomery County. The Woodlands RDRC may require placement adjustments but cannot prohibit solar outright…

Solar installations in Montgomery County require electrical and building permits inside city limits. Conroe issues combined solar permits. Unincorporated areas need only state-licensed…

Montgomery County requires erosion and sediment controls for land-disturbing activities over 1 acre under TCEQ Construction General Permit. Conroe applies stricter 10,000 sq ft…

Texas prohibits damaging, destroying, or removing a sand dune or its vegetation seaward of a dune protection line or within a critical dune area unless a permit authorizes the work…

Texas Water Code Section 16.3145 orders the governing body of every Texas city and county to adopt the floodplain-management ordinances or orders needed to qualify for the National…

Texas Water Code Section 26.040 lets the TCEQ issue general permits for storm water discharges. Regulated small municipal separate storm sewer systems obtain coverage under TPDES…

Montgomery County does not provide unincorporated trash service. Residents contract with private haulers (Waste Management, Republic Services, Texas Pride Disposal). Conroe provides…

Montgomery County operates Environmental Services transfer stations in Conroe and Splendora for resident bulk disposal. Private haulers offer bulk pickup in Conroe and The Woodlands…

Texas Health and Safety Code Section 361.425 orders every county, municipality, school district, university, and state agency to run a recycling program that separates and collects at…

Montgomery County has no no-knock registry. Conroe permits posted no-soliciting signs enforced via peddler ordinance. The Woodlands homeowners rely on village covenants and signage. TX…

Montgomery County has limited authority over vacant lots in unincorporated areas since Texas counties cannot zone or enforce general nuisance codes like cities. High-grass and…

Texas HB 1819 (88th Legislature, 2023), codified at Local Government Code 370.008 (originally 370.007), prohibits all Texas municipalities and counties from adopting or enforcing…

Texas Government Code Chapter 423 occupies the field of unmanned aircraft regulation. Cities and counties cannot adopt their own recreational drone ordinances, though limited municipal…

Texas Labor Code Section 62.0515 expressly preempts municipal and county minimum wage ordinances. The state minimum wage equals the federal floor of $7.25 per hour, and political…

Texas appellate courts have struck down municipal paid sick leave ordinances in Austin, Dallas, and San Antonio as preempted under the Texas Minimum Wage Act. HB 2127 (2023) further…

Texas authorizes License to Carry (LTC) holders to carry concealed handguns statewide under Government Code Chapter 411. Since 2021, permitless constitutional carry under HB 1927 also…

Texas Local Government Code Section 229.001 broadly preempts municipal regulation of firearms, ammunition, knives, and related accessories. Cities cannot adopt or enforce ordinances…

Texas authorizes open carry of holstered handguns statewide for adults 21 and older under Penal Code 46.02 and HB 910 (2015). Long guns may be openly carried subject to disorderly…

Texas Penal Code 46.02(a-1) lets any non-prohibited adult carry a handgun inside a personally-owned or leased motor vehicle or watercraft without a License to Carry. Since HB 1927…

Texas nonprofits can conduct bingo only under a license from the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation, which absorbed the Texas Lottery Commission's charitable bingo program on…

Texas Local Government Code Chapter 234, Subchapter E lets any county's commissioners court license, zone, and inspect "game rooms": for-profit businesses with six or more skill or…

Texas Penal Code § 47.02(a) makes betting at cards, dice, or any game of chance a Class C misdemeanor. Section 47.02(b) supplies a defense: gambling that happens in a private place…

Texas licenses no retail sportsbook and no betting app. Placing a wager on the outcome of a game, contest, or a player's performance is a criminal offense under Penal Code §…

Under the Texas Residential Property Owners Protection Act, unpaid assessments become a lien (Tex. Prop. Code § 209.0094), but a Texas HOA may not foreclose that lien without first…

Texas Property Code Chapter 209 governs residential subdivision homeowners associations, not condominium associations and not associations that are themselves subject to the Public…

A Texas HOA enforces its recorded restrictive covenants (Tex. Prop. Code Ch. 202), but Chapter 209 controls the procedure: § 209.006 requires certified-mail notice and a cure…

Property Code Section 202.007 voids any homeowners association rule that bans drought-resistant landscaping or water-conserving natural turf, and Section 202.008 bars fines for a brown…

Texas Property Code section 202.012 stops homeowners associations from banning display of the U.S. flag, the Texas flag, or an official U.S. armed forces flag. An association can…

Texas Property Code Chapter 209 governs HOA fines, but only for mandatory-membership subdivisions; condos fall under Chapter 82 instead. State law sets no dollar cap on a fine, only a…

A Texas property owners' association cannot sell your home at a trustee's sale the way a mortgage lender can. Tex. Prop. Code Section 209.0092 requires the association to obtain a…

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…

The Texas Legislature has authorized exactly one vehicle checkpoint program, and it has nothing to do with alcohol. Government Code Section 411.0095 lets the Department of Public…

Texas has never enacted an express statutory right to film police, so the legal boundary for a bystander with a phone is set by the offense of Interference with Public Duties, Texas…

Texas Penal Code Section 38.02 makes it a crime to refuse your name, residence address, or date of birth only after a peace officer has already lawfully arrested you. Being detained on…

No Texas statute obliges a driver to consent to a vehicle search, and none requires an officer to warn you that you may refuse. What Texas law does require is a paper trail: Article…

Texas Local Government Code Chapter 212 and Agriculture Code Chapter 251 limit municipal authority to zone or regulate land qualified for agricultural use appraisal. Counties have no…

The Texas Right to Farm Act, Agriculture Code Chapter 251, protects established agricultural operations from nuisance lawsuits and local regulations after one year of operation. HB…

The Texas Supreme Court in City of Laredo v. Laredo Merchants Association (2018) held that Health and Safety Code Section 361.0961 preempts municipal plastic bag bans. Cities and…

Texas Health and Safety Code Chapter 161 sets the minimum age for purchasing or possessing tobacco and e-cigarette products at 21 statewide, aligned with federal Tobacco 21. Active…

Texas regulates extra lighting by color, count, height and aim rather than by naming underglow. Transportation Code Section 547.305 bars any lamp showing red from directly in front of…

Texas grants no square inches of windshield to a camera. Transportation Code Section 547.613(a)(1) makes it a misdemeanor to operate a vehicle with an object or material placed on or…

Texas banned motorcycle lane splitting in plain words on September 1, 2023. Transportation Code Section 545.0605(a)(3)(B), added by House Bill 4122 of the 88th Legislature, says the…

Texas outlaws license plate covers in Transportation Code Section 504.945(a)(7), which makes it an offense to display a plate carrying a coating, covering, protective substance or…

Texas does not prohibit owning, mounting or using a radar detector in a private passenger vehicle. The one radar offense in the vehicle equipment chapter, Transportation Code Section…

Texas is one of the states that never wrote a studded tire calendar. Transportation Code Section 547.612(c) is the whole of the law: a tire on a moving vehicle may not carry a block…

Texas allows film down to 25 percent light transmission on both front side windows and on the windshield strip, with a matching ceiling of 25 percent luminous reflectance, and it sets…