A Texas lease addendum is a written document that adds to, changes, or clarifies specific terms in an existing lease without replacing the whole agreement. It only works if both the landlord and every tenant on the original lease agree to it, and it cannot strip away tenant protections that Chapter 92 of the Texas Property Code makes non-waivable. Everything else about the document — what it covers, how it’s worded, whether it’s signed on paper or on a screen — is flexible, but those two limits define the ground rules.
What Makes an Addendum Legally Valid
An addendum is a contract modification, so it follows contract basics: mutual agreement and an exchange of value. The exchange doesn’t need to be money. A landlord agreeing to allow a pet in return for a monthly pet fee counts. So does a landlord waiving a restriction in return for an extended lease term. Neither side can drop new terms on the other mid-lease without agreement.
Some modifications must be written to be enforceable. Section 92.006 of the Property Code requires a written, signed agreement whenever the landlord and tenant modify the landlord’s repair obligations for conditions affecting health or safety, and that agreement must be specific, clear, and made knowingly and voluntarily.1State of Texas. Texas Property Code Section 92.006 – Waiver or Expansion of Duties and Remedies Even where writing isn’t strictly required, a written addendum is the only reliable way to prove what was agreed to. Verbal side deals rarely survive a courtroom.
Every addendum should identify the original lease by execution date, list the full legal names of every party to that lease, and give the property address and unit number. Without those links, a court could read the document as a standalone contract rather than a modification.
Common Types of Lease Addenda in Texas
Lead-Based Paint Disclosure
Federal law requires landlords to disclose known lead-based paint hazards before signing a lease on any residential property built before 1978. The landlord must provide the EPA’s “Protect Your Family From Lead in Your Home” pamphlet, share any available inspection reports, and include a lead warning statement either attached to the lease or written into it.2US EPA. Lead-Based Paint Disclosure Rule Section 1018 of Title X A landlord who knowingly skips the disclosure faces civil penalties and can be liable for up to three times the tenant’s actual damages.3Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 42 USC 4852d – Disclosure of Information Concerning Lead Upon Transfer of Residential Property
Flood Disclosure
Section 92.0135 of the Property Code sets flood disclosure obligations for residential leases, and the Texas Real Estate Commission publishes a standardized notice form landlords can use to comply.4Texas Real Estate Commission. Landlords Floodplain and Flood Notice Tenants in flood-prone areas should check whether they received this notice. Flood insurance for personal property is a separate cost tenants usually have to arrange themselves.
Bed Bug Addendum
A bed bug addendum typically asks the tenant to confirm the unit was pest-free at move-in, disclose prior exposure, and allow access for inspections and treatment. Signing creates a record that the unit was clean when the tenant took possession, which matters if an infestation surfaces later and there’s a dispute over who pays for extermination.5Texas Law Help. Bed Bugs Tenants Rights
Pet Addendum and Assistance Animals
Pet addenda in Texas usually set a pet deposit, monthly pet rent, weight or breed limits, and behavioral rules. Those terms are standard and enforceable for ordinary pets. They cannot be applied to assistance animals. Under the Fair Housing Act, a landlord cannot charge a deposit, fee, or surcharge for an assistance animal, whether it’s a trained service animal or a documented emotional support animal.6HUD. FHEO Assistance Animals Notice 2020 The tenant still owes for actual damage the animal causes if the landlord charges all tenants for damage — the ban is on pet-specific fees, not damage recovery.
Late Fee Addendum
Texas caps late fees for residential leases. On a property with four or fewer units, the late fee cannot exceed 12 percent of monthly rent. On a property with five or more units, the cap is 10 percent.7Texas Public Law. Texas Property Code Section 92.019 – Late Payment of Rent Fees A landlord can go above those numbers only by documenting actual damages tied to the late payment, like collection costs. Daily compounding fees that outrun the cap without that documentation are unlikely to hold up.
On rent increases, Texas has no statewide cap on how much a landlord can raise rent at renewal. But rent cannot be raised mid-lease without the tenant’s written agreement.
Smoking, Parking, and Utility Submetering
Smoking addenda set whether tobacco or e-cigarette use is allowed inside the unit or in shared areas. Submetering addenda in multi-family buildings explain how utility costs get divided among residents. Parking addenda assign spaces or restrict where vehicles can be kept. Each handles a building-specific detail that a generic lease form skips.
What an Addendum Cannot Change or Waive
This is where landlords most often overreach. Section 92.006 lists tenant protections that no addendum can eliminate, even with both signatures on the page:
- Security deposit rules under Subchapter C.
- The landlord’s duty to provide door locks, window latches, and other security devices under Subchapter D.
- The landlord’s duty to install smoke alarms under Subchapter F, and the tenant’s remedies if the landlord fails to install them.
- Protections against a landlord interrupting utility service under Subchapter G.
- The landlord’s duty under Subchapter B to repair conditions that materially affect physical health or safety, except in narrow circumstances involving a landlord who owns only one rental dwelling.
- The tenant’s right to a jury trial in any Chapter 92 action.
- The tenant’s right to vacate and avoid liability under Sections 92.016 and 92.017 (domestic violence protections).
Two more provisions are void by statute even if a lease or addendum tries to include them. Section 92.0081 makes any clause authorizing a landlord to lock out a tenant or remove doors, windows, or fixtures unenforceable, and any purported waiver of rights under that section has no legal effect.8State of Texas. Texas Property Code Section 92.0081 Section 92.008 does the same for lease provisions authorizing utility shutoffs as a rent collection tool.9State of Texas. Texas Property Code Section 92.008 – Interruption of Utilities
When an addendum contains a prohibited waiver, the offending provision is void. The rest of the addendum can survive; the waiver clause simply carries no weight.
Can a Tenant Refuse to Sign an Addendum?
Yes. A lease is a contract, and a contract cannot be changed mid-term unless both parties agree.10Texas State Law Library. Leases – Landlord Tenant Law If a landlord presents an addendum during an active lease, the tenant is under no obligation to sign, and the original lease terms stay in force until the lease ends or both sides agree to change them.
Timing shifts the leverage. At renewal, a landlord can decline to renew if the tenant won’t accept new terms. Mid-lease, the landlord generally cannot evict or penalize the tenant simply for refusing an addendum that wasn’t part of the original deal.
Texas law also blocks retaliation. If a tenant exercises a right granted by lease, ordinance, or state or federal law, the landlord cannot respond within six months by filing eviction, raising rent, cutting services, or terminating the lease.11State of Texas. Texas Property Code Section 92.331 – Retaliation by Landlord A tenant refusing to sign an addendum that would waive a statutory right is exercising a right, and retaliatory action can expose the landlord to liability.
Military Tenants and Early Termination
The federal Servicemembers Civil Relief Act lets active-duty military members terminate a residential lease early on permanent change-of-station orders or deployment orders of 90 days or more.12Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 50 USC 3955 – Termination of Residential or Motor Vehicle Leases Any addendum provision that tries to penalize a service member for exercising SCRA termination rights conflicts with federal law and is unenforceable.
Drafting and Signing an Addendum
A workable addendum needs only a few things: the names of every party on the original lease, the property address and unit number, the execution date of the original lease, a clear description of what’s being changed, and signatures from every party. The Texas Real Estate Commission publishes standardized addendum forms landlords can adapt.13Texas Real Estate Commission. Contracts, Forms and Applications
Write the new provisions in plain language. “Tenant shall maintain the premises in accordance with Subchapter B obligations as modified herein” tells nobody anything. “The tenant agrees to replace HVAC filters every 90 days at the tenant’s expense” is clear enough that both sides know what they signed.
Electronic signatures are fully valid in Texas. Chapter 322 of the Business and Commerce Code, the Uniform Electronic Transactions Act, provides that a signature or contract cannot be denied legal effect solely because it is in electronic form.14State of Texas. Texas Business and Commerce Code Chapter 322 – Uniform Electronic Transactions Act DocuSign, HelloSign, and similar platforms work; ink signatures work equally well. Once everyone has signed, the landlord should give the tenant a completed copy and file it with the original lease so the two are always read together.
When the Addendum and the Lease Disagree
The whole point of an addendum is to change something, so some conflict with the original lease is expected. The standard fix is a clause stating that if the addendum and the lease conflict, the addendum controls. Most standardized Texas addendum forms include that language. Without it, a court has to interpret the parties’ intent, which introduces uncertainty neither side wants.
One conflict a court will resolve against the landlord regardless of what got signed: the repair duty for conditions that materially affect health or safety under Section 92.052. That duty cannot be shifted to the tenant through an addendum except in a narrow case where the landlord owns only a single rental property and the agreement is specific, clear, printed in boldface or underlined, and made voluntarily for consideration.1State of Texas. Texas Property Code Section 92.006 – Waiver or Expansion of Duties and Remedies Outside that exception, an addendum trying to make the tenant responsible for major repair obligations is unenforceable no matter whose signature is on it.