By LeaseHelper
Texas gives landlords wide latitude on pet fees — no state dollar cap, no mandated deposit structure — but the rules around emotional support animals are strict, federally enforced, and getting more nuanced in 2026.
This post walks through what the Texas Property Code actually says about pet deposits and fees, where a "nonrefundable pet deposit" clause can blow up in court, and exactly what you can and cannot do when a tenant hands you an ESA letter. We'll use a realistic scenario at each step so the rules land in context.
The Scenario: Maria's Duplex in San Antonio
Maria owns a duplex in San Antonio and self-manages both units. Her current lease says "no pets," charges a $400 pet deposit if she grants an exception, and includes a clause calling any pet deposit "nonrefundable." Unit B's tenant, Carlos, just asked if he can add a dog. A week later, the tenant in Unit A submitted an ESA letter for her cat. Maria now has two very different legal situations on her hands, and she needs to handle them differently.
Let's work through both, starting with the basics of how Texas law actually treats pet money.
How Texas Law Classifies Pet Deposits and Fees
Tex. Prop. Code § 92.102 defines a security deposit as "any advance of money, other than a rental application deposit or an advance payment of rent, that is intended primarily to secure performance under a lease." That definition is broad enough to cover any money collected to protect against potential pet damage — and because it hinges on the purpose of the payment rather than the label in the lease, a landlord cannot avoid security deposit rules simply by writing "non-refundable pet deposit" into the agreement.
A lease clause declaring a deposit "non-refundable" does not override the statute. A tenant who paid a charge labeled as a non-refundable pet deposit has a reasonable argument that the money is still legally a security deposit subject to all the protections that come with that classification. For Maria, this means her lease clause calling the $400 "nonrefundable" is likely unenforceable as written.
The legal alternative for landlords who want to collect a non-refundable charge is to structure it as a pet fee — a one-time charge for the privilege of keeping a pet in the unit, not tied to potential damage and not refundable. Once a tenant pays a pet fee, that money belongs to the landlord. A pet deposit, by contrast, remains the tenant's money held by the landlord as security — the landlord can only keep it if the pet actually causes damage beyond normal wear and tear.
Texas has no state statute separately capping pet deposits. Both refundable pet deposits and non-refundable pet fees are common in Texas rental markets. There is no state-imposed dollar ceiling on either charge — the market sets the number. Texas does not limit the amount landlords can charge for security or pet deposits.
Scenario Step 1: Carlos Wants to Add a Dog (Pet Deposit vs. Pet Fee)
Maria wants to say yes to Carlos but protect herself from damage. She has two clean options: charge a refundable pet deposit, or charge a one-time nonrefundable pet fee. She cannot meaningfully do both under a single label — the courts will re-characterize the "nonrefundable" portion as a deposit anyway if it's purpose is covering damage.
If she collects a refundable pet deposit, she'll need to follow the same return rules that apply to any security deposit. Under Tex. Prop. Code § 92.103(a), the landlord shall refund a security deposit to the tenant on or before the 30th day after the date the tenant surrenders the premises. Section 92.104 requires a landlord who is withholding a portion of a security deposit to provide an itemized and written list of the deductions to the tenant. That itemized list has to be specific — "pet damage" is not enough; "professional carpet replacement in bedroom due to pet urine, $480, invoice attached" is.
Miss the 30-day deadline, and the penalties are severe. Texas Property Code § 92.103 requires the landlord to refund the security deposit on or before the 30th day after the tenant surrenders the premises. Miss the deadline in bad faith and § 92.109 triggers a penalty of $100 plus three times the portion of the deposit wrongfully withheld plus the tenant's reasonable attorney's fees. The trap is the bad-faith presumption built into § 92.109(d) — when the landlord misses the 30-day deadline, the tenant gets a rebuttable presumption of bad faith without having to prove it.
The Glossary: Pet Deposit vs. Pet Fee vs. Pet Rent — Three Different Things
These three terms get conflated constantly in lease templates. They have distinct legal characters. Using the wrong one — or stacking them incorrectly — is how landlords end up in small-claims court.
| Term | Refundable? | Governed By | Can Charge for ESA? | Texas Cap? |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pet Deposit | Yes — must be returned within 30 days of move-out, minus documented damage | Tex. Prop. Code §§ 92.102–92.109 (security deposit rules) | No | None |
| Pet Fee (one-time) | No — collected for the privilege of keeping a pet, not tied to damage | Contract law; not a security deposit under § 92.102 if properly structured | No | None (proposed HB 410 died in committee June 2025) |
| Pet Rent (monthly) | No — treated as rent | Lease terms; governed as rent under Tex. Prop. Code Ch. 92 | No | None |
Note the HB 410 column. HB 410 would have added Section 92.027 to the Property Code to regulate pet deposits or fees, allowing landlords to collect either a one-time refundable pet deposit or a monthly pet fee not exceeding $20, but not both. The bill was marked dead on 06/02/2025 after stalling in committee and was never enacted. As of June 2026, no Texas statute caps pet fees or pet rent, and no law prohibits charging both a deposit and a fee in the same lease — though courts may scrutinize that structure if the deposit is labeled nonrefundable.
Scenario Step 2: Unit A's Tenant Submits an ESA Letter for Her Cat
Maria's "no pets" policy does not apply to assistance animals. ESAs do not require specialized training and can be dogs, cats, or other species. Under the Fair Housing Act and the Texas Fair Housing Act, emotional support animals are considered assistance animals, which gives them legal protections that pets do not have.
It is unlawful for landlords to charge additional rent, demand a pet deposit, or charge any fees whatsoever for an assistance animal. The Fair Housing Act guarantees this protection. The tenant is still responsible for any damage the animal does to the property. So Maria cannot charge her Unit A tenant the $400 pet deposit just because she's invoking the ESA designation — but she absolutely can pursue the tenant for documented cat damage at move-out, just as she would for any other damage beyond normal wear and tear.
This protection comes from the Fair Housing Act and the Texas Fair Housing Act, which make it illegal to refuse housing based on disability-related needs, including keeping an emotional support animal. Texas landlords must comply with these laws, and while they still have rights — including requiring documentation from a licensed professional and denying ESAs that pose safety risks or cause an undue financial burden — charging upfront deposits is not among them.
What Documentation Can Maria Request?
Maria can ask for an ESA letter, but there are clear limits on what she can demand. Documentation from a physician, psychiatrist, social worker, or other mental health professional should say that the tenant has a disability and that the animal will provide disability-related assistance or emotional support. A landlord may not ask for information about how severe the disability is, demand medical records, or request any other medical details.
Maria also cannot apply her breed restriction to an ESA. In Texas, as in many states, landlords cannot deny an ESA solely because of its breed, even if the animal is commonly associated with aggressive tendencies. The individual animal's history and behavior — not its breed — is the relevant consideration if Maria has a legitimate safety concern.
One area of real legal evolution in 2026 involves HUD's enforcement posture. The Fair Housing Act itself has not changed; Congress did not act. Only HUD's enforcement posture shifted. Courts can still hear private lawsuits, and Texas state law is separate — state and local fair housing laws are not affected by the HUD memo. Maria should not read headlines about reduced federal enforcement as permission to start charging pet deposits for ESAs. The Texas Fair Housing Act (Tex. Prop. Code § 301.001 et seq.) operates independently of HUD's enforcement choices.
Common Mistakes Texas Landlords Make with Pet Charges
Three patterns show up repeatedly when landlords end up in small-claims court or facing fair housing complaints over pet-related charges:
- Labeling a refundable deposit "nonrefundable." Texas does not let charges sit outside the deposit rules just because the lease calls them by a different name. A "non-refundable cleaning fee" collected at move-in is, in most Texas court interpretations, part of the security deposit subject to § 92.103 and § 92.104.
- Missing the 30-day return clock. Houston landlords lose § 92.109 cases on three patterns: they miss the 30-day deadline because nobody was tracking the clock, they retain the deposit for items that are normal wear and tear, or they issue an itemization that is too thin to defend. The same patterns appear statewide.
- Charging a pet deposit for an ESA. Emotional support animals aren't pets under federal law, and charging a pet deposit for one is a Fair Housing violation that could cost you thousands in fines. If landlords illegally refuse an ESA, they could be fined up to $75,000 and/or sued.
A fourth mistake worth noting: applying breed restrictions to ESAs. Breed restrictions do not apply to ESAs. A blanket "no Pit Bulls" lease clause is enforceable against regular pets but cannot be used to deny an ESA of that breed.
Putting It Together: What Maria Should Do
For Carlos in Unit B, Maria should pick a single structure — a refundable pet deposit or a one-time nonrefundable pet fee — and put it in a written pet addendum that describes the animal (breed, weight, vaccination status), the charge, and the specific conditions under which damage will be deducted. If she goes the deposit route, she should set a move-out workflow that sends the itemized statement and any refund within 30 days of the date Carlos surrenders possession. Section 92.103 of the Texas Property Code states that the landlord shall refund a security deposit on or before the 30th day after the date the tenant surrenders the premises — though the landlord is not obligated to return it or provide a written description of deductions until the tenant gives a written forwarding address.
For the Unit A tenant with the ESA cat, Maria should review the ESA letter to confirm it comes from a licensed mental health professional who states the tenant has a disability and a disability-related need for the animal. She should not demand the specific diagnosis, medical records, or proof of training. Landlords can ask the tenant to show that their animal is healthy and vaccinated — that's a reasonable and permissible request. She should not add any pet charge to the Unit A lease, but she should document the unit's condition at move-in so she can pursue any actual damage at move-out through the standard deposit process.
Both situations call for the same underlying habit: document everything in writing, keep signed acknowledgments from tenants, and run a tight move-out clock.
About LeaseHelper: LeaseHelper builds AI-powered lease, eviction, and rental document generators for small landlords and property managers, and publishes guides on landlord-tenant law, security deposits, and evictions.
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Get started →Frequently asked questions
Can I charge both a pet deposit and a pet fee on the same lease in Texas?
Texas law as of June 2026 does not explicitly prohibit charging both a refundable pet deposit and a separate nonrefundable pet fee. However, courts scrutinize this arrangement closely. If a charge labeled as a "nonrefundable fee" is actually intended to cover potential damage, a court may re-characterize it as a security deposit subject to Tex. Prop. Code §§ 92.102–92.109, which requires it to be returned within 30 days minus documented deductions. The safer approach is to pick one structure per lease and document clearly what each charge covers. Texas HB 410, which would have capped monthly pet fees at $20 and prohibited stacking deposit plus fee, died in committee in June 2025 and was never enacted.
My tenant submitted an ESA letter for a large dog, and I have a no-pets policy and a breed restriction. Can I deny the request?
In most cases, no. Under the Fair Housing Act and the Texas Fair Housing Act (Tex. Prop. Code § 301.001 et seq.), ESAs are assistance animals, not pets, and must be accommodated as a reasonable accommodation for a disability — regardless of your no-pets policy. Breed restrictions cannot be applied to ESAs; the relevant question is whether the specific animal poses a documented, individualized direct threat to the health or safety of others, not whether its breed is on a restricted list. You can request a valid ESA letter from a licensed mental health professional and may deny the animal only if it poses a demonstrable safety or property-damage risk that cannot be mitigated. Refusing without a legitimate, well-documented basis exposes you to liability under both state and federal fair housing law.
What's the 30-day clock actually measuring, and what triggers it for a pet deposit?
The clock starts from the date the tenant surrenders the premises — the later of the lease end date or the day the tenant physically vacates and returns possession. Under Tex. Prop. Code § 92.103, you have exactly 30 calendar days (not business days) from that date to return the deposit or send a written, itemized list of deductions. There's one important condition: the 30-day period doesn't begin until you receive the tenant's written forwarding address per § 92.107. If you miss the deadline without a good-faith reason, § 92.109 creates a rebuttable presumption of bad faith and exposes you to $100 plus three times the wrongfully withheld amount plus the tenant's attorney's fees. A pet deposit is treated the same as a general security deposit under this timeline.
A tenant revealed their ESA after they'd already moved in and signed a no-pets lease. Do I have to accept it mid-lease?
Yes. A tenant with a disability may request a reasonable accommodation — including permission for an ESA — at any point during the tenancy, not just at lease signing. The Fair Housing Act does not limit accommodation requests to the leasing stage. Once the tenant presents a valid ESA letter from a licensed mental health professional confirming a disability and a disability-related need for the animal, you're generally required to make the accommodation even if the lease prohibits pets. You cannot charge a pet deposit or fee retroactively for the ESA, and you cannot treat the accommodation request as a lease violation. You should respond to the request in a reasonable timeframe, document your review process, and keep records of the letter and your written response.