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Houston meeting outlines new Texas HOA and condo law changes effective Sept. 1, 2025
Summary
At a Houston neighborhood forum, Mayor Pro Tem Martha Castex Tatum and attorney Susie Rice reviewed 2025 legislative changes affecting condominiums and homeowner associations — including fence rules, ACC candidate procedures, codified electronic voting, drought protections and allowance of solar roof tiles — all largely effective Sept. 1, 2025.
Attorney Susie Rice, a founding partner of Rice & Rice, told Houston residents onstage with Mayor Pro Tem Martha Castex Tatum that several changes adopted by the 89th Texas Legislature update how homeowner and condominium associations operate and enforce deed restrictions.
Rice said the Legislature brought parts of Chapter 209 of the Texas Property Code into the Texas Uniform Condominium Act so condominiums must adopt the same management‑certificate and website transparency rules homeowner associations already use. "This is bringing the Condominium Act up to date," Rice said.
On fences, Rice summarized a change to Property Code sec. 202.023 that leaves in place plats, license agreements and drainage‑easement restrictions: front‑yard fences remain prohibited where a plat or agreement bars them, and fences cannot be built across sidewalks or public right‑of‑way. Driveway gates that open onto a street must be set back at least 10 feet from the right‑of‑way, she said, to reduce sight‑line hazards. Rice noted narrow exceptions for people whose addresses are withheld for safety and for police‑determined security needs.
Rice described new rules for architectural control committees (ACCs). Associations must distribute candidate forms and give at least 10 days for responses; if no candidates come forward, boards may fill ACC vacancies with family members or others while complying with the statutory nomination process.
She also said electronic voting is now expressly permitted: the Legislature has incorporated electronic‑voting language into the property code and the condominiums act to reflect practices many associations already use.
Rice reviewed two other provisions residents asked about. Under House Bill 517, associations may not fine homeowners for drought‑related brown lawns while a declared drought is in effect and homeowners are given 60 days to remediate. House Bill 431 allows solar roof tiles as an alternative to visible rooftop panels.
Rice repeated that many of these statutory changes take effect on Sept. 1, 2025. "All of these come into effect on 09/01/2025," she said.
Mayor Pro Tem Castex Tatum highlighted related city work on nuisance signs and fines, calling the new penalties "a different level of cost to doing business" for predatory sign placements and saying the aim is to deter junk and predatory advertising in neighborhoods.
What’s next: Rice and city staff offered to hold follow‑up neighborhood meetings and to meet with individual associations to help file management certificates and deed amendments and to explain how the new rules apply to particular communities.
