I feel like my mom’s landlord is trying to screw us over and I feel helpless. Please read 🙏🏽
Location: Texas
Hi, I will try to keep this as concise as possible. I’m 24 F located in Texas. My mom moved into an apartment back in January 2022. Great landlord, never a single issue. In 2025, a couple of months after we signed the lease again, the property was sold to a new owner and so we had a new landlord. He honored our lease we’d just signed and we were told we’d sign a new one January 2026.
Well, the past year with this landlord has been hell. My mom’s neighbor is out of control, and they share a porch space since it’s a duplex. She feels unsafe there- her neighbors friends get extremely high and stand in front of her door at all hours of the night. The other day one of them was just passed out in front of her door. They hoard piles of things all in front of the property, there’s often rats and stray animals hiding in all broken furniture and heaps of trash in front of my mom’s door. My mom tripped and fell coming out of her apartment twice because of it, and she’s elderly.
I feel that’s besides my primary point- we never signed a new lease in January. We’ve been waiting and they never came around. The landlord didnt increase the rent or anything, we just continued paying rent every month.
My mom no longer feels safe and is desperate to move. The issue is the landlord is telling us we can’t have our deposit back and we must pay 2 months rent before leaving. My question is can they do this? We have no lease with these people..and even when I go back to look at the previous lease, there’s nothing on there saying we can’t get our deposit back or that we have to pay 2 months rent. And that lease is expired
I had a lengthy conversation with him this evening that amounted to nothing. He was so rude and condescending, and told me to get lawyers together and we can go to court. I’m trying to reason with him but him and his property manager laughed at me and said “whatever, I’m ending this conversation” and that I can either stay or pay the 2 months rent and forfeit my deposit. They’re refusing to talk to me now.
I am so frustrated and confused, I don’t even know what my next steps are. I considered contacting the housing authority but I don’t even know what to ask or say..I feel like my naivety is being taken advantage of. I’m really going through a lot right now and this isn’t something else I can handle right now. Is there anything that I can do?
Edit to add: I’ve never had to get a lawyer before and I’m not sure I even have the financial means to do so. I’m also really concerned about giving notice at this time, as rent will be due again on the 1st of May. I don’t think I’d be able to get any of that money back if my mom moves out and financially that would destroy us