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Houston, Texas

Second chance apartments in Houston: renting with a record

Neither Texas nor Houston limits what criminal history a private landlord may consider, so each landlord sets its own criteria. The Houston Housing Authority's voucher plan we could read is from FY 2023 and its public housing rules are posted only as a proposed draft, so ask the authority which lookbacks apply to you. Lone Star Legal Aid, 2-1-1 and HUD housing counselors are good places to start.

Checked October 29, 2026. General information, not legal advice. We don't list or recommend landlords; these are the rules and the official help in Houston.

On this page
  1. Texas law
  2. Houston rules
  3. Public housing and vouchers in Houston
  4. Where to get help in Houston
  5. Avoiding rental scams in Texas
  6. Where to go next

Texas law

Texas (statewide)

Texas has no state law that limits what criminal history a private landlord may consider. The Texas Fair Housing Act (Property Code chapter 301) bars refusing to rent because of race, color, religion, sex, familial status or national origin, and a criminal record is not on that list.1

Section 301.021(c) adds that the section does not prohibit discrimination against a person because of a conviction, under federal law or any state's law, for the illegal manufacture or distribution of a controlled substance. Other sections of the chapter cover disability. Having a record is not a protected class under federal fair housing law either, so the national guide's points still apply. Because state law leaves these choices to each landlord, ask for the written criteria before you pay a fee.

Screening criteria and fees

A Texas landlord must make a printed notice of its tenant selection criteria available when it gives you a rental application. The notice must give the grounds on which an application may be denied, such as criminal history, rental history, current income or credit history, and the applicant signs an acknowledgment that the notice was made available.2

If a landlord rejects you without having made that notice available, it must return your application fee and any application deposit (Property Code sec. 92.3515(e)). You are treated as rejected if the landlord has not accepted you within 7 days after you submit a completed application (sec. 92.352(a)). A landlord that in bad faith fails to refund a fee or deposit it owes can be liable for $100, three times the amount kept and your attorney's fees (sec. 92.354). We found no dollar cap on application fees in sections 92.351 to 92.355.

Renting to someone with a record

Texas law says a landlord cannot be sued solely for renting to a tenant who has been convicted of, arrested for or placed on deferred adjudication for an offense. A negligence claim is still possible if the tenant was convicted of an offense listed in Code of Criminal Procedure article 42A.054 or has a reportable conviction or adjudication under chapter 62, and the landlord knew or should have known.2

Section 92.025 took effect January 1, 2016 and does not create or expand any cause of action. It speaks to a landlord's risk of being sued, not to whether a landlord must rent to you, so a landlord may still decline an application.

Sealed and expunged records

If a Texas court issues an order of nondisclosure for your record, the court may not disclose the sealed court-record information to the public. Government Code secs. 411.076 and 411.0765 allow disclosure only to criminal justice agencies, the person named in the order, a set list of licensing, education, health, financial and other agencies, and where federal law requires it; private landlords are not on that list. A private company that sells criminal history information must destroy it and may not pass it on once it has notice of an expunction or nondisclosure order, and it can owe damages if it does (sec. 411.0851).3

A person with a nondisclosure order does not have to state the proceeding on an application for employment, information or licensing (Government Code sec. 411.0755). Not everyone qualifies: sec. 411.074 excludes some people from getting an order for certain offenses, including registrable sex offenses, certain violent offenses and family violence. If a tenant screening report still shows a sealed or expunged record, the national guide explains how to dispute it.

Eviction records

Texas has no process to remove or seal an eviction from your record, according to the Texas State Law Library. The library says the main exceptions are certain Rule 76a circumstances and cases dismissed under the former Eviction Diversion program, which no longer exists.4,5,6,7

The library also says eviction court records are presumed open and that negative information can stay on a credit report for up to 7 years (its page was last updated January 19, 2024). Three 2025 bills on keeping eviction case information confidential, HB 1369, HB 2223 and SB 948, were referred to committee in the regular session, and the Legislature's bill histories show no later action as of October 29, 2026, so none of them became law.

Houston rules

Houston city code

We found no city ordinance limiting criminal-history screening by private landlords in Houston as of October 29, 2026. Houston's Fair Housing Ordinance (Code of Ordinances chapter 17) protects race, color, religion, sex, national origin, familial status and disability, and a criminal record is not on that list.8

We searched chapter 17 on Municode for terms such as convict, criminal history and arrest record. The only matches for criminal were enforcement terms, not tenant screening. Texas law also does not limit screening, so private Houston landlords set their own criteria. Ask for the written selection criteria before you pay an application fee.

Public housing and vouchers in Houston

Public housing (draft ACOP)

The Houston Housing Authority's admissions policy for public housing is posted only as a proposed draft (FY 2025, dated June 2025), so the rules below are proposed, not confirmed as adopted. The draft says criminal background screening applies to household members 18 or older and that the authority uses convictions, not arrest records, though it may deny based on the conduct behind an arrest if it has enough other evidence.9,10

The draft's cover gives a proposed effective date of 07/01/2025 and leaves the board-approval date blank ("MM/DD/YYYY"). It says the authority may use criminal background checks for drug-related or violent criminal activity, and records of evictions for suspected drug-related or violent criminal activity, within the past five years as evidence of unsuitable behavior. Its required denials include an eviction from federally assisted housing for drug-related criminal activity in the last 5 years (longer than the federal 3 years), current illegal drug use (any use in the previous 6 months) and refusing to sign consent forms. We could not open an adopted version, so ask the authority which policy applies to you.

Housing Choice Voucher plan

The authority's FY 2023 voucher administrative plan lists a drug-related or violent criminal record of an adult family member in the past 3 years as a reason to deny admission. It also lists lifetime sex-offense registration, a conviction for making meth on assisted housing premises, and other criminal activity that threatens residents, neighbors, the owner, staff or contractors.10,11

These are in chapter IV.A.5(a) to (f) on page IV-1, and subpart (f) lets the authority consider all relevant circumstances. Chapter IV.G on page IV-4 covers suitability of a participant. The plan's cover says the HHA board approved it on November 15, 2022. Its 3-year voucher lookback is shorter than the 5-year period in the draft public housing policy above. The authority announced revisions to both documents for a November 18, 2025 public hearing, and we could not confirm which versions were adopted. Ask the authority which plan applies to you.

Informal review

If the Houston Housing Authority denies a voucher application, the authority's appeals page says you may request an informal review within 15 calendar days of receiving the Closed File Report Letter. Verbal requests are not accepted.12

You can deliver the request in person, by fax to (713) 260-0785, by email to informalreview@housingforhouston.com, by mail or through the dropbox outside the main entrance. A program supervisor reviews the case, and it may not be the supervisor of the person who made the decision. Terminations use a separate informal hearing, requested at informalhearing@housingforhouston.com, also within 15 calendar days. The appeals page covers the voucher program only. We could not read the public housing policy's informal hearing section, so the public housing process is unconfirmed.

Where to get help in Houston

City Housing Department

The City of Houston Housing and Community Development Department takes complaints about properties it funded at (832) 394-6200, option 1. Its tenant and landlord page also links the State Bar's tenant-rights guide.16

The same page lists HUD's Fair Housing office at 1-800-669-9777 and the Texas Workforce Commission Civil Rights Division at 1-888-452-4778 for housing discrimination complaints. These cover protected classes such as race, disability and family status. A criminal record is not a protected class.

2-1-1 and housing counseling

Dial 2-1-1 or (877) 541-7905 to reach 2-1-1 Texas, a program of the Texas Health and Human Services Commission. It is free, anonymous and open 24 hours a day, every day, and calls go to one of 25 regional information centers.17,18,19,20

HUD's housing counseling search lists HUD-approved agencies. When we searched HUD's agency data for agencies within 20 miles of downtown Houston on October 29, 2026, it returned 15, of which 7 listed rental housing counseling. HUD's list changes over time, so your own search may show a different number. HUD does not define the status codes in that data, and some listed agencies may not be active, so confirm services by phone. The national guide has HUD's counseling number, 800-569-4287.

Avoiding rental scams in Texas

Texas Attorney General

The Texas Attorney General warns that scammers post fake rental listings to collect advance deposits, then make excuses when you ask to see the property. Be especially cautious if an owner asks for a deposit before you have seen the property in person.21

The office says some scams involve a tenant posing as the owner, so try to verify that the person is the real owner or an authorized sublessor. It lists odd payment requests, such as wire transfers through Western Union or payment outside the listing website, as warning signs. If you run into one of these scams you can file a consumer complaint online with the Attorney General's office. The national guide has the FTC's list of warning signs.

Sources

Each source was opened and checked on October 29, 2026.

  1. Texas Property Code chapter 301: Texas Fair Housing Act (sec. 301.021)Texas Legislature (Texas Constitution and Statutes)
  2. Texas Property Code chapter 92: Residential Tenancies (secs. 92.351 to 92.355)Texas Legislature (Texas Constitution and Statutes)
  3. Texas Government Code chapter 411 (secs. 411.074, 411.0755, 411.076, 411.0765 and 411.0851)Texas Legislature (Texas Constitution and Statutes)
  4. Can I remove an eviction from my record?Texas State Law Library
  5. 89(R) History for HB 1369 (confidentiality of residential eviction case information)Texas Legislature Online
  6. 89(R) History for HB 2223 (confidentiality of eviction case information)Texas Legislature Online
  7. 89(R) History for SB 948 (confidentiality of residential eviction case information)Texas Legislature Online
  8. Houston Code of Ordinances, chapter 17: Fair HousingCity of Houston (Municode)
  9. HHA FY 2025 Admissions and Continued Occupancy Policy (draft with comments)Houston Housing Authority
  10. FY 2026 PHA Plan public noticeHouston Housing Authority
  11. FY 2023 Housing Choice Voucher Administrative PlanHouston Housing Authority
  12. The Appeals ProcessHouston Housing Authority
  13. Legal Aid (Legal Aid Resources: Can't Afford a Lawyer?)Texas Judicial Branch
  14. Get HelpLone Star Legal Aid
  15. Fair HousingLone Star Legal Aid
  16. Tenant and Landlord ResourcesCity of Houston Housing and Community Development
  17. About 2-1-1 Texas and our Organization2-1-1 Texas (Texas Health and Human Services Commission)
  18. Housing Counseling Services searchU.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development
  19. HUD Housing Counselor agency search by location (20-mile radius, queried October 29, 2026)U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development
  20. HUD Housing Counselor services listU.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development
  21. Real Estate & Rental ScamsOffice of the Attorney General of Texas

Where to go next

All guides