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People with disabilities are significantly more likely to experience physical, sexual, and psychological abuse and stalking than their peers without disabilities. The following Q&A offers information for people experiencing domestic violence, sexual assault, or stalking who are trying to leave the home where the abuse is happening.
How do I get out of my lease if I am a victim of domestic violence?
Texas Property Code 92.016 allows victims of domestic violence (which is called “family violence” under Texas law), stalking, and sexual assault to end their leases early without any penalties or fees. Here are the steps you must follow:
- Provide one type of documentation of the abuse to your landlord. (Get more information on types of documentation and other steps.)
- Give your landlord written notice that you will terminate your lease under Texas Property Code 92.016.
- If you were living with your abuser, your lease will terminate immediately. Form to use if you are living with your abuser (PDF)
- If you were not living with your abuser, you must continue paying rent for 30 days after you provide the written notice. After the 30 days are up, you must leave, or you will risk eviction. Form to use if you are not living with your abuser (PDF)
- Vacate the apartment. This means you must move out of the apartment, take all of your belongings out of the apartment, and turn in your keys to your landlord.
Keep a record of all of these steps. Please note that, if you end your lease early, you may still owe your landlord any unpaid rent or other money you owed before you ended the lease.
How do I end my lease if I am a victim of stalking or sexual assault?
If you are a victim of stalking or sexual assault, you must follow the 3 steps above. Then, the Texas Property Code requires these additional steps to terminate your lease early:
- The stalking or sexual offense must take place within the 6 months before you ask to terminate your lease. In other words, you have a 6-month deadline after the stalking or sexual assault happens to ask to end your lease early.
- The stalking or sexual offense must have happened on the premises where you live or at any dwelling on the premises.
What if I follow all the steps under the Texas Property Code and the landlord does not let me out of my lease?
If you complete all these steps and the landlord does not let you terminate your lease, you have two years to file a lawsuit. If you want to file a lawsuit, look for an attorney immediately. You can call the Texas State Bar Lawyer Referral Service at 1-800-252-9690 or your local legal aid office to see if an attorney can assist you.
What are my rights under the Fair Housing Act?
You may have rights under the Fair Housing Act to terminate your lease early without penalties or fees as a reasonable accommodation. You must have a disability and meet some requirements in order to use this option. You may submit an intake request with Disability Rights Texas if you would like to explore this option.
What if I live in public housing, a housing authority property, use a voucher program, or use other federally assisted housing?
You may have rights under the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA). VAWA provides protections for federally subsidized tenants who are victims of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, or stalking. These protections apply to all federally subsidized tenants.
These protections provide that a victim cannot be evicted or lose housing assistance based solely on problems caused because of the actions of your abuser or because you are a victim, such as criminal actions of the abuser, noise violations, or calling 911 multiple times.
VAWA does not protect victims from being evicted for lease violations unrelated to the abuse such as unpaid rent or for some types of threat to other tenants or employees of the property. Contact an attorney or legal aid if you have questions about what you are protected for.
What are my options under the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA)?
Under VAWA, you can choose to request, in writing:
- An emergency transfer to another available and safe unit, or
- To “bifurcate” your lease, which means you can request to have your abuser evicted while you stay in your housing.
Your housing provider can ask for you to provide documentation that you are a victim.
How do I request an emergency housing transfer under VAWA?
You must be a victim of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, or stalking and specifically request the transfer. Use this form from HUD to request the transfer (PDF)
Please note that if you are a victim of sexual assault, the sexual assault must have happened on the premises within the 90 days before your request the transfer.
What if I want to bifurcate my lease, but the abuser was also receiving housing assistance?
If both you and the abuser were receiving housing assistance, you can request a “family breakup” (people who live together on the same housing assistance split into two separate households). A housing authority can terminate the assistance for the abuser and keep it for you.
If the abuser is the only tenant who was eligible to receive the housing assistance, the public housing authority or the landlord must provide the remaining tenant (you) an opportunity to establish eligibility or a reasonable time to find new housing.
What if I believe my VAWA rights have been violated?
You have one year to file a complaint with HUD’s Office of Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity (FHEO). FHEO enforces VAWA. You cannot file a lawsuit under VAWA.
This handout was developed by Madison Barney under her Equal Justice Works Fellowship, sponsored by an anonymous donor.
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Disclaimer: Disability Rights Texas strives to update its materials on an annual basis, and this handout is based upon the law at the time it was written. The law changes frequently and is subject to various interpretations by different courts. Future changes in the law may make some information in this handout inaccurate.
The handout is not intended to and does not replace an attorney’s advice or assistance based on your particular situation.
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