Selling a House in Balch Springs

After a death or a divorce

Balch Springs keeps a short rule for utility accounts after a death or a divorce. Section 82-4 of the city's utility code says:

• When a customer dies, service can be changed into the surviving spouse's name, without review by the city manager, by presenting the death certificate.
• After a divorce, service can be changed to the spouse who wants to keep it if the spouse who will no longer receive service signs a notarized letter saying the city may do so.

That can keep the account in the family's hands while it decides what to do with the house. The house itself is a separate question. Probate is opened in the county where the person who died resided, if that person had a Texas domicile or fixed residence (Estates Code section 33.001). For someone who lived in Dallas County, the county's probate courts page lists The Probate Court, Probate Court No. 2 and Probate Court No. 3, all at 600 Commerce Street, 7th floor. Our guides to selling an inherited house and selling during a divorce cover the steps before a sale.

Keeping the utility account in order

A few more sections of the same chapter shape what happens to an account while a house is on the market:

1. A monthly bill becomes delinquent 25 days after the billing date (section 82-9).
2. Once a bill is delinquent, the city may cut off water. It first mails a notice to the address in its file with the amount due and a disconnect date at least ten days after the past-due date (section 82-10).
3. To have water and sewer service temporarily shut off, the customer must notify the city at least two days ahead, and there is a charge to discontinue and restore it (section 82-11).
4. Anyone applying for service who has a previous balance due to the city must pay it in full before service is connected (section 82-14).

So if you plan to leave the house empty, keep the mailing address on the account current, and ask for the balance before you sell.

The building and standards commission

Article VI of Chapter 14, Minimum Urban Standards, creates a five-member building and standards commission under Chapter 54 of the Local Government Code. Members must live in the city. Among the commission's powers listed in section 14-292:

• require a vacant structure that is a dangerous condition or nuisance to be securely closed and made safe;
• have a dangerous condition corrected by city forces or a private contractor, with the cost the owner's responsibility;
• assess a civil penalty of up to $1,000.00 a day against an owner for each day or part of a day the owner fails to repair or demolish a structure as a commission order requires;
• bring a district court action under Local Government Code section 214.003 to appoint a receiver.

Under section 14-293, notice of a commission hearing goes by certified mail to the record owners and to each mortgagee and lienholder shown in the county clerk's records, when their address can be found in the recorded documents. For an unknown owner, a copy is posted on the front door. The notice must be mailed and posted before the tenth day before the hearing, and also published once in a local newspaper. If you get one, read it closely, because the penalty in section 14-292 is counted for each day or part of a day of noncompliance.

Dallas County offices for Balch Springs

The Census Bureau's 2024 estimate counts 27,307 people in Balch Springs and lists Dallas County as its county. The county offices a seller deals with:

• Appraisal: the Dallas Central Appraisal District appraises property for the 61 local governing bodies in the county, takes homestead exemption filings and offers the uFILE online protest system. Under Tax Code section 41.44, the written notice of protest itself is filed with the appraisal review board.
• Tax collection: the Dallas County Tax Office lists Balch Springs among the cities it collects for under contract; Records Building, 500 Elm Street, Suite 3300, (214) 653-7811.
• Recording: the County Clerk's Recording Division records deeds, liens and releases, (214) 653-7099.
• Foreclosure notices: the clerk's foreclosure page has Balch Springs notice files sorted by month. Sales are on the first Tuesday at the George Allen Courts Building, and our page on selling to stop a foreclosure explains the options.

Selling to Cash Home Advisors

Cash Home Advisors buys houses in Balch Springs. You can sell as-is without making repairs, we pay all closing costs, and we can close in 7–14 days. Fill out the form or read how it works.

Local offices for this area

• Dallas Central Appraisal District
• Dallas County Tax Office (jurisdictions it collects for)
• Dallas County Clerk, Recording Division
• Dallas County Probate Courts
• Balch Springs Code: Utilities, Chapter 82, Article I
• Balch Springs Code: Minimum Urban Standards, Chapter 14, Article VI

ZIP codes we buy in: 75180, 75181