The Texas Supreme Court recently decided an important real estate case in Town of Lakewood Village v. Bizios. Bizios was lived outside of Lakewood Village, Texas. Bizios was sued by Lakewood Village for not applying for or obtaining building permits when he began building his home. Lakewood Village, which is…
A new statute will provide new rights to co-tenant heirs and a new option for the Texas real estate attorneys assisting them. The Texas legislature recently passed and Governor Abbott signed Section 16.0265 of the Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code that provides assistance to heirs who have collectively inherited…
The Texas Court of Appeals in Houston recently decided a case, UNION PACIFIC RAILROAD COMPANY v. AMERITON PROPERTIES INCORPORATED, that contains an important caveat for anyone preparing or interpreting a deed. Background Galveston, Harrisburg & San Antonio Railway Company (GHSR), the predecessor to Union Pacific Railroad Company, acquired title to…
In Caffe Ribs, Inc. v. State of Texas, the State of Texas filed an eminent domain suit to obtain property from Caffe Ribs to use for a storm water detention pond as part of an expansion of Interstate 10. The property is near the intersection of Beltway 8 and Interstate…
The Texas Court of Appeals in Texarkana published an interesting decision in the case of In re Estate of Hardesty, in which they discussed who had standing in Texas to challenge a foreclosure sale of real estate. Background Carolyn Hardesty obtained a home equity loan for $500,000.00 from PrimeLending in…
The case was appealed to the Texas Supreme Court. The Court’s opinion states that a taking for inverse condemnation purposes occurs when the government “intentionally took or damaged property for public use, or was substantially certain that would be the result” citing City of Keller v. Wilson, 168 S.W.3d 802,…
The Texas Supreme Court’s opinion in Harris County Flood Control District v. Kerr et al. ruled on a Texas homeowner’s claim of inverse condemnation by Harris County, Texas and the Harris County Flood Control District. As many of you know, many government agencies have the power of eminent domain, or…
In September 2015, the Texas Governor signed into law Texas Senate Bill 478 , which adds Section 22.019 to Chapter 22, Subchapter A, of the Government Code. The new law reads as follows: Sec. 22.019. PROMULGATION OF CERTAIN LANDLORD-TENANT FORMS. (a) The supreme court shall, as the court finds appropriate,…
It is not uncommon in Texas for a landowner, for example, someone who has inherited property, to find that the property is landlocked and without access to a public road. Sometimes access to the landlocked property is offered by a friendly neighbor. However, in the absence of an adjoining property…
In a case that many Texas landowners have been following closely through the courts, the Texas Supreme Court recently published a decision concerning whether a county can be held liable for an impermissible taking of property when the county allows for land development that the county knows will cause substantial…