Selling a Tenant-Occupied House in Texas
You can sell a house in Texas with a tenant living in it. What you cannot do is sell it as though the tenant is not there. The lease is an obligation that travels with the property, and understanding that early saves a great deal of friction.
A lease survives the sale. When the property changes hands the new owner steps into the landlord's position and takes the lease as written, for whatever term remains. A buyer who wants the house empty cannot simply end a lease with eight months left because the deed changed names. This is the single most common misunderstanding in these transactions.
That makes the remaining term the central fact. A tenant on a month-to-month arrangement is a different proposition from a tenant eleven months into a fresh twelve-month lease. Before you market the property, read the lease again and note the end date, renewal language, and any clause dealing with sale or early termination. Some leases contain one. Many do not.
The security deposit transfers with the property and remains owed to the tenant. Texas law places the obligation to return it, with any itemized deductions, on whoever holds the landlord's position at the end of the tenancy. Handle the deposit explicitly at closing, in writing, rather than assuming it will be sorted out later.
Access for showings is where most disputes start. The tenant has a right to possession, and that right does not pause because the house is listed. Most leases address notice for entry; where yours does not, negotiate access rather than assert it. A tenant who feels ambushed can make a property effectively unshowable without ever breaking the lease. More detail at PriorityHouseBuying .
This is why tenant-occupied properties often sell to investors rather than to owner-occupiers. An investor buying for income wants a paying tenant in place and reads the lease as an asset. A family buying a home wants to move in, which is exactly what the lease prevents. Knowing which buyer you are aiming at changes how you price and how you market.
If the tenant has stopped paying, resolve that before you sell or price it in honestly. Eviction in Texas is a court process with its own timeline and cannot be compressed to suit a closing date. A buyer who discovers a non-paying tenant during the option period will either renegotiate or walk.