Can You Turn Off Utilities on a Squatter in Texas? What the Law Says

When someone is living in a house without permission, shutting off the power or water can look like the fastest way to make them leave. Texas law does not treat it that simply. The 2025 law that created a sheriff and constable removal process for unauthorized occupants says nothing about utilities, and a separate statute punishes landlords who cut off a tenant's service. Which rule applies depends on who the occupant is in legal terms.

This guide explains what the statutes say, so you can have an informed conversation with a Texas real estate attorney before anything about the service changes. It is not legal advice. If your house is in Tarrant, Dallas, Collin or Denton County, the DFW version of this guide covers the local electric, water and gas providers.

What Property Code Sec. 92.008 says

Section 92.008 is the main Texas rule on utility interruptions in residential rentals. It has two core parts:

• Tenant-paid service. A landlord or the landlord's agent may not interrupt, or cause the interruption of, utility service that the tenant pays directly to the utility company.
• Landlord-furnished service. A landlord also may not interrupt water, wastewater, gas or electric service that the landlord furnishes as part of the tenancy or by other agreement.

Both parts allow an interruption only when it results from bona fide repairs, construction or an emergency. A narrow, separately regulated exception lets a landlord who submeters or allocates electricity disconnect for an unpaid electric bill, but only under a written lease and with advance written notice and other conditions.

There is also a fast court remedy. Under Sec. 92.0091, a tenant files a sworn complaint in the justice court for the precinct and states the facts under oath. If the judge reasonably believes an unlawful disconnection likely occurred, the judge may issue a writ restoring service immediately, before the landlord is heard. The landlord can then request a hearing, held within one to seven days of the request.

Who counts as a tenant

Everything in Sec. 92.008 turns on the word "tenant." Chapter 92 defines a tenant as a person authorized by a lease to occupy a dwelling to the exclusion of others. It defines a lease as any written or oral agreement between a landlord and tenant about the use and occupancy of a dwelling.

Two points follow from those definitions:

• Oral agreements count. A person who says you, a relative or a former manager let them stay for money may claim an oral lease. Whether that claim holds up is for a court.
• Former tenants are not strangers. A person whose lease ended and who stayed on is a holdover under Property Code Sec. 24.002, and is handled through an eviction suit, not the new removal complaint.

A person who broke into an empty house and never had any agreement is a different case. Even then, the owner is often not the best judge of which box someone fits, especially when the occupant produces paperwork. Our guide to squatters' rights in Texas explains the categories, and a Texas real estate attorney can apply them to your facts.

What chapter 24B says, and what it leaves out

Chapter 24B took effect September 1, 2025. It lets the owner of residential property, or the owner's agent, file a sworn complaint asking the sheriff or a constable to remove a person who entered a dwelling without consent and is not a current or former tenant or an immediate family member. Once the officer verifies the complaint, the officer serves a notice to immediately vacate and puts the owner in possession.

The chapter covers several things the owner may do while the officer stays to keep the peace, such as changing locks and moving the occupant's belongings to or near the property line. It does not mention utilities at all. Section 24B.006 says the chapter does not limit an owner's other rights, but it does not list what those rights are.

In short, no part of chapter 24B speaks to shutting off service while the occupant is still there. Our Texas squatter law guide walks through the removal complaint and the eviction steps in order.

Whose name is on the account matters

Utility accounts are contracts between the provider and the customer named on the account. That has practical consequences while someone else is in the house:

• Accounts in your name. You remain the customer and are billed for what is used. Keep paying and keep records, including bills that show usage while you were not living there.
• Accounts in the occupant's name. If the occupant opened service in their own name, the provider's relationship is with them, not with you.
• Service you never ordered. If a meter is running at an address you thought was shut off, ask the provider who holds the account. That record can matter to your attorney and to the police.

None of this is a reason to call a provider and ask for a disconnection at an occupied house. Talk to your attorney first about what, if anything, should change.

Meter tampering and stolen service

Occupants sometimes restore service themselves. Texas criminal mischief law speaks to that. Under Penal Code Sec. 28.03(c), a person who is receiving the economic benefit of public water, gas or power supply is presumed to have knowingly tampered with the owner's property if the supply:

1. was diverted from passing through a meter;
2. was prevented from being correctly registered by a meter; or
3. was turned on by a device installed to get service without a meter.

If you see signs of a bypassed or broken meter, report it to the utility that owns the meter and to local law enforcement rather than trying to fix it yourself. Since September 1, 2025, Sec. 28.03 also makes damage of $1,000 or more to a habitation during a criminal trespass a second-degree felony.

Once the house is empty again

After an officer puts you back in possession under chapter 24B, or executes a writ of possession under Sec. 24.0061, the house is yours to manage. At that point the questions change. You may want service on for repairs, inspections or showings, and off or reduced for other reasons. Our guide to utilities in a vacant house covers those choices.

If you plan to sell, note one contract term. Paragraph 7A of the TREC 20-19 resale contract says the seller, at the seller's expense, "shall immediately cause existing utilities to be turned on" and keep them on while the contract is in effect. A buyer's inspector will expect working power, water and gas.

Selling a house with an occupant problem

An occupant dispute, an unpaid utility account and a house that needs work can pile up quickly. If you would rather sell than keep managing it, you can ask us about the property, whatever stage the legal side is at.

Cash Home Advisors is based in Fort Worth and buys houses across DFW. We pay all closing costs and can close in 7–14 days, and you see the closing statement before you sign. Request a cash offer, see how our process works, or browse more squatters and vacant property guides.

Frequently asked questions

Sources

1. Texas Property Code, Chapter 92 (Secs. 92.001, 92.008, 92.0081, 92.0091)
2. Texas Property Code, Chapter 24B (removal of unauthorized occupant)
3. Texas Property Code, Chapter 24 (Secs. 24.002 and 24.0061)
4. Texas Penal Code, Chapter 28 (Sec. 28.03 criminal mischief)
5. Texas Real Estate Commission, Resale contract TREC No. 20-19 (paragraph 7A)

General information, not legal or tax advice. Talk to a Texas attorney or CPA about your situation.

Related guides

• Can Police Remove Squatters in Texas? The 2025 Sheriff Removal Law
• How to Evict a Squatter in Texas: The Court Steps Under the 2026 Rules
• Selling a Vacant House in Texas: Disclosures, Utilities and Timing