Texas Commercial Landlord Remedies After Tenant Default

By Hank FasthoffJuly 5, 2026

A commercial tenant default presents several distinct questions. The landlord may want possession, payment, control of property inside the premises, or a negotiated exit. Texas law provides different procedures for each objective, and the lease may add notice, cure, election, and waiver provisions that affect the sequence.

The remedy analysis begins with the lease, the type of default, and the desired result. A lockout can address access after rent delinquency. An eviction suit adjudicates possession and may include a limited rent claim. A separate contract action may seek broader damages. A landlord's lien and distress warrant concern property rather than possession. Treating those remedies as interchangeable can impair an otherwise valid claim.

The Lease Sets the First Deadlines

Texas statutes establish several remedies, but the lease often supplies the first notice and cure requirements. A landlord relying on a default provision has to identify the breached obligation, calculate the default date, deliver notice by an authorized method, and allow any contractual cure period to expire before exercising a remedy tied to that default.

The same review identifies election and waiver issues. Acceptance of rent, repeated tolerance of late payment, written nonwaiver provisions, and communications about surrender can affect subsequent arguments about default and termination. A complete file contains the lease, amendments, guaranties, payment ledger, notices, delivery proof, tenant responses, and the landlord's internal decision record.

Commercial Lockouts Under Chapter 93

Texas Property Code Section 93.002 permits a commercial landlord to change the door locks when the tenant is delinquent in paying at least part of the rent. The statute limits that lockout remedy to rent delinquency rather than an insurance breach, prohibited use, maintenance failure, or another default unrelated to rent.

At the time of the lockout, the landlord must place a written notice on the tenant's front door stating the name and address or telephone number of the person or company from which a new key may be obtained. The landlord must provide the key during the tenant's regular business hours after the tenant pays the delinquent rent. Contractual notice and cure provisions may impose additional steps before the lockout.

Section 93.002 also restricts other forms of self help. A landlord generally may interrupt a utility service the tenant pays directly only for a bona fide repair, construction, or emergency. Similar limits restrict removing doors, windows, and locks, along with furniture, fixtures, or appliances that the landlord furnished. Separate statutory provisions govern property left after abandonment, and any removal or disposal requires an independent legal basis.

Subsection (h) provides that the lease supersedes Section 93.002 to the extent of a conflict. Other statutes, court rules, and federal law continue to govern their respective subjects.

An Improper Lockout Can Return Possession to the Tenant

A tenant alleging an unlawful lockout may seek a writ of reentry under Texas Property Code Section 93.003. A justice court may issue the writ after reviewing the tenant's sworn complaint and oral statement under oath. The officer executing the writ may use reasonable force when necessary to restore possession, and the landlord may request a prompt hearing after service.

Section 93.002(g) also allows an unlawfully excluded tenant to recover possession or terminate the lease. The available monetary relief includes actual damages, the greater of one month's rent or $500, reasonable attorney's fees, and court costs, subject to an offset for delinquent rent or other sums for which the tenant is liable.

Chapter 93 applies to commercial rental property. Chapter 92 governs residential lockouts under separate rules, so conclusions drawn from a commercial lease shouldn't be transferred to a residential tenancy.

Eviction Procedure Changed in 2026

Senate Bill 38 revised Chapter 24 and the Texas eviction rules for cases filed on or after January 1, 2026. The current process begins with a sworn petition in the justice court for the precinct where the property is located under the rewritten Texas Rule of Civil Procedure 510.

Texas Property Code Section 24.005 generally requires at least three days' written notice before filing unless a written lease sets a shorter or longer period. For an eviction based solely on nonpayment, a tenant who paid on time before the month of notice must receive a notice to pay rent or vacate. A tenant with an earlier late or delinquent payment may receive either a notice to pay rent or vacate or a notice to vacate. The 2026 amendments also permit notice delivery by electronic communication when the parties agreed to that method in writing.

The revised rules permit summary disposition, but the procedure depends on the claim. In an ordinary commercial lease eviction alleging forcible detainer without forcible entry, Rule 503.2 governs the motion, response, hearing, and order. Rule 510's four-day response procedure applies when the petition alleges forcible entry and detainer. When a trial is required, it generally occurs between the 10th and 21st day after the petition was filed and no earlier than the fourth day after service.

A justice court may adjudicate possession together with a claim for unpaid rent up to $20,000, excluding statutory interest and court costs but including attorney's fees. Counterclaims aren't permitted in the eviction case itself, and broader lease damages may require a separate contract action in a court with jurisdiction.

An appeal from the justice court requires a bond, cash deposit, or statement of inability to afford costs by the fifth day after the judgment is signed. Under the rules, every day counts, including weekends and state or federal holidays, but a deadline whose last day falls on a weekend, state or federal holiday, or qualifying court closure is postponed to the next eligible day. A tenant who appeals must also affirm, under penalty of perjury, a good faith belief in a meritorious defense and that the appeal serves no purpose of delay.

Possession and Lease Termination Produce Different Claims

Retaking the premises and terminating the lease are separate acts. A landlord may terminate the tenant's right of possession while preserving contractual claims for rent and other amounts, depending on the lease and the landlord's conduct. A landlord may instead terminate the lease and accept surrender, which can end the claim for rent accruing after termination.

The Supreme Court of Texas outlined the landlord's options after a breach in Austin Hill Country Realty, Inc. v. Palisades Plaza, Inc., 948 S.W.2d 293, 300 (Tex. 1997). The notice, pleadings, communications, acceptance of keys, reletting documents, and treatment of the tenant's property serve as evidence of the intended election. An unclear record can turn a possession decision into a dispute over future rent.

Acceleration clauses may make future rent due after default, but the lease language and mitigation rules control the recoverable amount. A complete damages model separates accrued rent, additional rent, late charges, repair costs, reletting expenses, rent received from a replacement tenant, and amounts avoided after termination.

Texas Imposes a Duty to Mitigate

Texas Property Code Section 91.006 requires a landlord to mitigate damages when a tenant abandons leased premises in violation of the lease. A provision waiving that duty is void. Austin Hill describes the standard as objectively reasonable efforts to fill the premises when the tenant vacates in breach.

Reasonable efforts depend on the property and market. Brokerage engagement, listings, tours, proposals, tenant screening, improvement estimates, and negotiations can document the response. Mitigation permits a landlord to reject an unsuitable tenant or commercially unreasonable terms, but the evidence has to show the marketing effort and the treatment of replacement rent.

Chapter 54 Provides a Landlord's Lien

Texas Property Code Section 54.021 grants a preference lien on property of a tenant or subtenant in a commercial building. The lien covers rent due and rent to become due during the current 12-month period beginning with the rental agreement or an anniversary of that date. Under Section 54.022, a commercial rent lien becomes unenforceable for rent more than six months past due unless the landlord files the required verified lien statement with the county clerk.

A distress warrant is a judicial seizure remedy governed by Chapter 54 and the Texas Rules of Civil Procedure. It requires an application to the justice of the peace in the precinct where the building is located and proof of statutory grounds. A landlord who skips those procedures may face conversion, wrongful seizure, or other claims.

Priority between the statutory lien and a lender, equipment lessor, purchase money creditor, or other secured party requires separate analysis. A lease may grant another security interest, and a financing statement may perfect that interest under the Uniform Commercial Code. Attachment, perfection, priority, exemptions, and the character of each asset require review before the landlord takes control of property.

Bankruptcy Changes the Remedy Analysis

The automatic stay in 11 U.S.C. Section 362 generally halts an eviction, lockout, collection action, lien enforcement, or control over estate property after a bankruptcy filing. Enforcement can resume when the bankruptcy court grants relief or an exception applies.

Section 365 also limits provisions that terminate or modify an unexpired lease solely because of insolvency, a bankruptcy filing, or the appointment of a trustee or custodian. Federal law controls despite a lease provision listing bankruptcy as an ordinary default. The filing date, any prepetition termination, the status of possession, and orders from the bankruptcy court can affect the result.

A Remedy Plan Connects the Lease to the Evidence

A complete commercial default file identifies the default, the contractual notice requirements, the cure deadline, the desired treatment of possession and the lease, the rent calculation, the condition of the premises, property located inside, and any guaranty or security interest. Each remedy then receives its own calendar and supporting documents.

The sequence requires the same attention as the remedy. A premature lockout, defective notice, inconsistent termination position, unsupported distress application, or action taken after a bankruptcy filing can reduce recovery and create a claim against the landlord. A coordinated record supports the landlord's claim to possession, payment, or a negotiated surrender.