TEXAS HOUSING BILLS DOMINATE 81st LEGISLATIVE SESSION -- PRE-FILED BILLS AIM TO SLOW TEXAS FORECLOSURES

On the housing front, several bills have been filed to protect consumers during foreclosures and to make it easier for consumers to file complaints against builders. Most notable is a bill by Sen. Craig Estes, R-Wichita Falls, that would require foreclosure prevention consultants to list x all services and payments in writing. Dubbed the Foreclosure Rescue Fraud Prevention Act and endorsed by Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott, the bill would prohibit the consultant from getting paid by a third party without prior written disclosure to the homeowner and would not allow the consultant to buy a home from any client.

The most controversial clause may be a provision requiring a buyer to pay at least 82 percent of a property’s fair market value. State Rep. Dawnna Dukes, D-Austin, has filed a bill to require property owners to give renters notice within seven days of receiving notice of a pending foreclosure auction and to allow a tenant to stay in a property through the foreclosure sale. It also would require the foreclosing lender or other entity to give the defaulting property owner 60 days notice before the sale. And buyers of foreclosed properties must give tenants 30 days to move after a foreclosure purchase.

House Bill 311 tries to modify the Texas Residential Construction Commission by stating the commission may not charge fees to homeowners who request an inspection or file a complaint against a builder or remodeler. Currently, homeowners are exempted if they can show an “inability to pay.” The state’s Sunset Advisory Commission recently recommended the TRCC be abolished because of its inability to force builders to make repairs.

Rep. Roberto Alonzo, D-Dallas, is seeking housing relief for immigrants in the wake of efforts by a North Texas suburb to target immigrants. His bill prohibits a property owner from using immigration status as a condition of renting, or even asking if a person is an immigrant.