Texas State Law cheat sheet
Texas Real Estate Special Topics Texas Real Estate Exam Cheat Sheet
Special Topics collects the Texas rules that do not fit one narrow bucket: marital property, homestead, DTPA, landlord-tenant law, foreclosure, recording, liens, the Veterans Land Board, and HOAs.
Name the legal system before applying a rule. Texas homestead protection, homestead taxation, community property, and foreclosure each use different statutes and different triggers.
What Pearson tests
- Community and separate property, homestead creditor protection, and property-tax exemptions
- DTPA, landlord-tenant issues, wills, estates, foreclosure, short sales, and recording statutes
- Mechanic's and materialman's liens, Veterans Land Board programs, HOAs, and equitable interests
Three traps to catch
- The residence homestead tax exemption and constitutional creditor protection are separate concepts.
- Property acquired during marriage is generally presumed community property, but classification depends on the acquisition rule and evidence.
- Texas commonly uses non-judicial foreclosure under a deed of trust, but statutory notices and the security instrument still control the process.
Essential vocabulary
Texas Real Estate Special Topics terms to know
- Community property
- Property classified as belonging to the marital community under Texas law.
- Separate property
- Property classified to one spouse, including qualifying premarital property and specified gifts or inheritances.
- Homestead protection
- Texas constitutional and statutory protection against forced sale, subject to stated exceptions.
- Homestead exemption
- A property-tax exemption that reduces taxable value for a qualifying residence homestead.
- DTPA
- The Texas Deceptive Trade Practices-Consumer Protection Act.
- Non-judicial foreclosure
- A foreclosure process conducted under a power of sale without a foreclosure judgment when legal requirements are met.
- Mechanic's and materialman's lien
- A lien securing qualifying payment claims for labor or materials supplied to improve property.
- Veterans Land Board
- A Texas General Land Office program offering qualifying land, home, and home-improvement financing benefits.
Check your recall
Can you answer these without notes?
1Are homestead creditor protection and the homestead tax exemption the same rule?
No. They are separate legal systems with different purposes and requirements.
2What security instrument commonly supports a Texas non-judicial foreclosure?
A deed of trust containing a power of sale.
3Is all property owned by a married person community property?
No. Texas law also recognizes separate property.
Use the sheet, then retrieve
Test the rules while they are still fresh.
Read the full lesson when a definition is fuzzy. Then answer the topic questions without looking back at this sheet.
Primary sources
- Pearson VUE Texas Real Estate Content Outlines
- Texas Constitution Article XVI, Section 50
- Texas Property Code
- Texas Tax Code Section 11.13
This is exam-prep education, not legal, tax, or transaction advice. Confirm the current law, form, and official exam materials before relying on a rule in practice.