S.B. 38 – Extensive Eviction Law Reform and New Rules for Court

Recall, that the 2025 Legislative Session had several bills pass making significant legal changes in the body of laws governing the landlord/tenant relationship and evictions.

TMHA previously posted about the new laws and the coming changes back in June and began our overhaul processes this fall to prepare for all the changes that are here now. 

Several of the new laws, the most significant being S.B. 38, just went into effect on January 1, 2026. These bills were championed and advocated for by the various residential real estate industries involved in leasing, such as the Texas Apartment Association, Texas Realtors Association, Texas Association of Campground Owners, National Rental Home Council, Texas Land and Title Association, Texas Association of Builders, and TMHA to name a few.

From a summary level, S.B. 38 made the following significant changes:

• New Pre-filing/suit Notice Requirements and Delivery Options
• Concurrent Notice Clocks
• Statewide filing, citation, and eviction procedures/rules; no more local one-offs
• Off-duty police service and eviction writ of possession enforcement options
• Tenants MUST pay rent during appeals
• More defined and ridged timetables – citation, filing, judgements, appeals, executing writs
• Expedited/much faster evictions (called Summary Disposition) for squatters (only)

Also, as a result of S.B. 38, the Texas Supreme Court issued new Rules of Civil Procedure and underwent a complete overhaul of the court rules and procedures for all evictions in Texas. 

But this summary barely scratches the surface. So dive into TMHA’s updated comprehensive Eviction Member Guide, which will take you through all the changes in detail.

The Eviction Member Guide also contains links within the guide to all new TMHA Notice(s) forms that are now required in 2026.