Texas Housing Justice League

The regular session of the 82nd Texas Legislature has ended.  The governor has called for a special session but it is highly unlikely any of the issues will involve HOAs.  Many bills were filed, and at least eight were passed that provide significant reforms for homeowners (for a listing of all the bills go here).  The bills that included some significant reforms include:

HB 2779 and SB 101 Passed — flags and military foreclosures

HB 1228 Passed – payments, collections, foreclosures

HB 1821 Passed — resale certificates, information, payment plans

HB 1278 Passed – religious displays

HB 362 Passed – solar energy devices and roofing materials

SB 472 and HB 2761 — voting, meetings, records (a full description is being prepared, but the bills are here and here)

NOTE: these bills are not the law yet, and may not apply to your HOA. Different provisions of the Property Code apply to different types of HOAs.  You should get fully informed before taking any action.

While many members of the legislature and staff were involved, Texas homeowners should thank Senator Royce West from Dallas and Julie Frank of his staff for all their efforts this session to achieve the changes in each of these bills.  When they become law (different effective dates), these bills collectively provide many significant reforms that can continue to be built upon by Texas lawmakers.  Rep. Burt Solomons from Carrollton attempted to give homeowners even more meaningful reforms in the main omnibus bill (SB 142) this session but it did not pass because of reports of money being thrown at the Texas Legislature by builders (story here). Texas homeowners should thank Rep. Solomons for continuing to fight for homeowners.

Texas has made the first step toward reining in the absolute power of mini governments euphemistically called Home Owner Associations (or HOAs) which many have abused. Rather than work separately, concerned homeowners and organizations banded together (THJL was one) to bring a consistent message to the Texas Capitol.  We invite all organizations and homeowners who support HOA reform to join with us.  There is still much work to be done and all Texans concerned about this issue are needed.