New laws for the state of Texas include

• Lease Termination - Lease termination rights for sexual assault survivors.
• Smoke Detectors - Rental owner must provide a visual smoke detector requested for some one who is hearing impaired.
• Lease Guarantors - a lease guarantor’s obligation may only continue beyond the initial lease term if the guarantor has signed an agreement that states the last date on which a renewal can be entered into and for which the guarantor would be obligated.
• Utility Disconnections - Utilities may only disconnected by the property owner in certain cases.
• Code Citations - This bill amends the statute that prohibits an employee from being cited for a code violation.
• Equitable Appraisals - Requests appraisal districts to use property specific information provided by the owner in valuing the property.
• Comptroller Oversight - State the comptroller’s property value study from an annual sales ratio study to a biennial one.
• Administrative Hearings -This legislation establishes a pilot program in Bexar, Cameron, El Paso, Harris, Tarrant and Travis counties to allow commercial property owners with property valued at more than $1 million the option of appealing ARB decisions.
• JP Jurisdiction to Order Repairs -Allows JPs to order repairs.
  
• Franchise Tax - Increases the small business exemption to $1 million for the next two years.

Houston ordinance requires registration of properties by January 31

Houston’s new property inspection ordinance requires all Houston properties with three or more units to register with the City of Houston by January 31. The good news? It’s free of charge, it’s all online at http://www.houstonmultifamily.org/ and it’s not that difficult once you have the information that’s required. Here’s what you need before you start:

Certificates of Occupancy (CO’s) – You need ALL the certificates of occupancy for each property. Every building has one, and it’s supposed to be posted in the management office. If your property has eight buildings, you’ll need eight CO’s so you can enter the numbers when you register. If your property has current CO’s (life safety inspections were completed back in the 1990’s, etc.), but they’re missing, you can purchase replacements by calling the Occupancy Inspection Section at (713) 535-7730.

HCAD Account Number – Each property has an account number with the Harris County Appraisal District. Get it by going to www.hcad.org and searching for your property by street address in the “Real Property Search” section under “Record Search.”

Unit Mix – You need to know the number of units of each bedroom type in each building.

Fire Hydrants – You need to know the total number of fire hydrants on your property.

Swimming Pools – Know the number of pools, if any.

Occupancy – Know the current occupancy percentage of the property.

Date opened – Know the date, or at least the year, the property opened for business.

Pay phones – Know the number of pay telephones, if any, on the property.

Contact information for owner, management company and manager: You do NOT need to enter home addresses or telephone numbers.

Make sure you’ve entered this information online by the end of January, and make sure you print and post a copy of your registration in the property’s leasing office.

• If you have problems with registration, contact the City of Houston at713-535-7900.If you have any trouble with registration, please let the City know and copy us at govaffairs@haaonline.org.
• New Houston Property Directory Requirement – This isn’t required until January 1, 2011, but Houston properties will be required to have a property directory at every vehicular entrance (you should already have one at your “principle entrance”). Put it within 8 feet of your driveway, where ambulance drivers and pizza delivery guys can see it.