I had to move out of my apartment after only a few months, and the apartment complex is telling me I owe them rent and a reletting fee for not providing enough notice. Since moving in there was a water leak. We had to turn off the water at the wall and the toilet and had a leaky moldy toilet for a couple days before the landlord fixed it. We had other problems such as the electricity going out, trouble with the locks, and bugs.  This is why I moved out. Do I still have to pay considering it's their fault I moved out?

I'm selling my house, and I had a buyer.  We signed the contract, did the inspections and all the usual stuff, and made it through the option period.  I thought this was a done deal, but he just backed out and is demanding his earnest money back.  Do I (or the escrow agent) have to give it back or not?  Keep reading for the answer.

We were purchasing a home from a friend with owner financing. We were working on a contract, and the seller gave us all these details about the contract for purchasing this home. We have a few receipts with our names, date, amount, and saying, for purchase of house on [#### xxxx Rd., TX,] and the seller's signature. Now, the seller is trying to back out and deny the sale ever happened. If we took this to civil court, would the receipts help us? Keep reading for the answer.

How does adding your spouse's name to the deed for your separate property affect the characterization of that property? Does putting your spouse's name on the deed make the property community property?

Q: I've been told that once I become married, everything will become community property. Is this right? I have a house I've already paid off. My fiance also has her own house, and she's almost paid off the mortgage. Is it true that these houses will become community property once we're married? What will my fiance's house be if I make some of the mortgage payments after we're married?

In Texas, agreements for the sale of real property fall under the statute of frauds. This means they must be in a written agreement signed by the person against whom enforcement is sought. This can be found in Texas Business and Commerce Code sections 26.01(a), 26.01(b)(4).

Under Texas case law, the agreement must contain the essential elements of the agreement so that the court can determine what exactly the agreement was without resorting to oral testimony.

Under Texas law, a surviving spouse has a life estate in the marital homestead. This life estate gives the surviving spouse a right to live there for so long as she lives or until she chooses to move out.

First, what is a marital homestead? Generally, the marital homestead is real property and any improvements placed on it that's used by a married couple as their home. What qualifies as a homestead depends on whether the real property is urban or rural. Urban areas are those which are located within a municipality's limits, extraterritorial jurisdiction, or platted subdivision; have a police force and either a paid or volunteer fire department; and have at least 3 of the following services through a municipality: electric, water, sewer, storm sewer, and natural gas. Homesteads located in urban areas, urban homesteads, are limited to 10 acres. For more on the definitions of urban homestead and rural homestead, see Article 16, Section 51 of the Texas Constitution; Tex. Prop. Code §41.002(a).

If the father was married at the time of his death, then his surviving spouse has a right to continue living in the home for so long as she chooses. Tex. Const. art. 16, §52; Tex. Est. Code §102.005. The fact that the father left the property to his child doesn't change this. See Tex. Est. Code §102.002.

Despite the protections from forced sale provided by the Texas Constitution, Property Code, and Estates Code, there are certain circumstances under which a forced sale is possible under Texas law. These and other legal options should be discussed in private with an attorney.