Bettencourt Passes SB 38 of out Senate 21-8 to Stop Squatters & Streamline Eviction Process
Austin, TX – Today, the Texas Senate passed Senate Bill 38 (SB38) authored by Senator Paul Bettencourt (R-Houston). A priority measure by Lt. Governor Dan Patrick aimed at restoring property rights and overhauling the state’s flawed civil eviction process — which has left hundreds of Texas homeowners and landlords vulnerable to abuse by squatters exploiting legal loopholes. “His instruction was to “Secure Texas against Squatters” and SB 38 does!” – Sen. Bettencourt.
“The current process is so broken that it punishes the rightful property owners while rewarding trespassers who know how to game the system. In the interim hearing, a homeowner testified a squatter broke into her mesquite home, sold her belongings for pennies on the dollar, and then a JP in Garland, Texas ruled to keep the squatter in her home over the holidays denying her the right to come home for Christmas! You can’t make these up, as squatter horror story after horror story was told.” Sen. Bettencourt stated.
During testimony in State Affairs, stakeholders and industry leaders shared more alarming data and real-world accounts that on severity of the squatting crisis in Texas:
- Stephanie Graves, a Houston-based property management expert, reported over 102 documented squatter cases, each taking an average of 128 days and $7,400 to resolve.
- Crystal Moya, representing a Dallas housing project, testified that it took six months to lawfully remove squatters — who then left online reviews as real renters.
- Chris Newton, from the Texas Apartment Association, revealed that a group known as “Trends la Guirada” had illegally seized between 250–300 apartment units in San Antonio, marketing the units as an immigrant services center, collected rent for themselves, and not to the
“These stories are outrageous, but they’re real — and they’re happening statewide, it should be simple, squatters do not have the right to occupy property they do NOT own,” stated Bettencourt. “We’re fixing the system and speeding up the process. Texans deserve the right to reclaim their property without delays, loopholes, or abuse.” He concluded.
How SB 38 Ends Texas’ Squatters Crisis:
- Establishes a fairer, faster process to remove squatters, requiring courts to act within 10 to 21 days of a property owner’s filing – clarifying deliver method for Notice of Vacate
- Cracks down on frivolous appeals that stall evictions, reinforcing judicial
- Confirms that JP courts may set a hearing to motion for summary
SB 38 has also earned the support of Governor Greg Abbott, “Private property rights are a cornerstone of our values and legal system,” Abbott said. “It is against the law to live or stay on somebody’s property without their permission. We need stronger laws to immediately remove and prosecute squatters.”
SB 38 now heads to the House where Rep. Angie Chen Button (R–Garland) is carrying the companion, HB 32, with Speaker Pro-tem Joe Moody amendment already on board.