What A Lease Cannot Say
Prop. Code 92.006 — the duties and remedies a Texas lease cannot waive
Not waivable. A landlord's duty or a tenant's remedy concerning security deposits, security devices, disclosure of ownership and management, or utility cutoffs may not be waived. Neither may the duty to install a smoke alarm or the tenant's remedies for its absence.
Repairs. The landlord's duties and the tenant's remedies on conditions materially affecting the physical health or safety of an ordinary tenant may not be waived, except as the section allows: the tenant may agree to repair at the landlord's expense, or, in narrow circumstances, at the tenant's own.
At the tenant's expense. That is allowed only if, at the start of the term, the landlord owns only one rental dwelling, the dwelling is free of such conditions and none is expected, and the agreement is in a written lease, underlined or in bold, specific and clear, and made knowingly, voluntarily and for consideration.
Small damage. On the same written terms, the parties may agree that the tenant pays to repair wastewater stoppages from improper objects in lines serving only the tenant's dwelling, damage to doors, windows or screens, and damage from windows or doors left open, except where the landlord's negligence caused it.
Two more. A tenant's right to vacate and avoid liability under the sections the section names may not be waived, and a tenant's right to a jury trial in an action under the chapter may not be waived in a lease or other written agreement.
Whether a particular clause is enforceable, and what follows if a landlord relies on one, are questions for a licensed Texas attorney.
Sources for this section (1)
- Prop. Code 92.006 — Duties and remedies that may not be waived
Legal information, not legal advice. Verified as of September 2026. Applying it to a particular situation is the work of a licensed Texas attorney.