Can I sell my DFW house with a lien or a title problem?

What the title company checks, and when

Before a title company insures a sale, it searches the records for “problems with the title that need to be corrected before you buy the property” (TDI). Anything it finds has to be paid, released or explained first.

Most of it gets settled at closing. The title company gets a payoff from each lienholder and pays it out of the price. What’s left after payoffs and closing costs is yours. If the liens add up to more than the price, you’d have to bring the difference to closing, or a creditor would have to agree to take less.

Look early. A tax lien attaches to Texas property each January 1 for that year’s taxes (Tax Code §32.01), and an abstract of judgment shows up in the county records whether or not it can reach your house. Where to search the deed records in each of our eight counties is on areas we serve.

Common title problems and who fixes them

Problem	Typical fix	Who fixes it
Judgment lien on your homestead	A recorded release affidavit and a mailed notice to the creditor (Property Code §52.0012); steps below	You, often with an attorney
Judgment lien on a rental or second home	Paid from the price at closing, or released by the creditor	The title company, or you and the creditor
An heir missing from the chain of title	An affidavit of heirship, a court’s heirship judgment, or probate; see inherited house	The family, usually with a probate attorney
A spouse who didn’t sign	Both spouses sign to sell a homestead, even one spouse’s separate property (Family Code §5.001); see divorce	You and your spouse
Old loan paid off, never released	A recorded release from the lender or whoever holds its loans now. If a title company sent the lender the payoff, it can record its own affidavit as the release; the lender gets 45 days after it receives notice to dispute it (Property Code §12.017)	The lender, or that title company
HOA dues or assessments	The association’s payoff, paid at closing. An HOA can’t foreclose for fines alone (§209.009)	The title company
Back property taxes	Paid from the price at closing; see back property taxes	The title company
City lien for repairs or demolition	The city’s payoff, paid at closing. The city gets no lien on a protected homestead. On other property, its lien ranks ahead of the mortgage, behind only taxes, if each lender and lienholder first got notice and a chance to do the work (Local Government Code §214.001(n), (o)); see code violations	The title company
A memorandum a wholesaler or other buyer recorded without your signature	A recorded affidavit for release, mailed to the filer, under a law in effect since Sept. 1, 2025. Buyers and lenders can rely on it starting the 45th day after your certificate of mailing is recorded, unless the filer records a contradicting affidavit by then (Property Code §12.020); see cash buyer or wholesaler?	You, with an attorney if the filer pushes back

A judgment lien on your homestead

A recorded abstract of judgment is a lien on the debtor’s real property in that county, except property exempt under Property Code ch. 41 or the Texas Constitution (§52.001). Your homestead is exempt, but the abstract still sits in the records, and the title company will flag it until it’s released. Section 52.0012 is how:

1. Record the affidavit in the real property records of the county where the house is. You swear that you own the land, that it’s your homestead, and which judgment lien it releases. The limit is 10 acres in town; rural, 200 acres for a family or 100 for a single adult (§52.0012(f)).
2. Mail the creditor a letter and a copy by registered or certified mail, return receipt requested: to its last known address, its address in the court records, its attorney’s address there, and the attorney’s State Bar address if different (§52.0012(b-1)).
3. Record a certificate of mailing with the letter and proof of mailing attached (§52.0012(b), (g)).
4. Wait 30 days. If the creditor doesn’t record a contradicting affidavit by the 30th day after the certificate is filed, buyers and lenders can rely conclusively on your affidavit for 90 days, starting on day 31 (§52.0012(d), (e)).

Plan about a month between recording and closing, and close inside the 90 days. If the creditor contradicts it, saying the house isn’t your homestead or that the lien attaches for another reason, it’s no longer paperwork. Talk to a real estate attorney.

Your options, side by side

Option	When it usually wins	What to know
Clear it, then list	The fix is paperwork and the house shows well	Usually the most money. J.D. is a licensed agent and can list it
Attorney first	Someone disputes it: a creditor, an heir, a memorandum filer	The title company may not insure the sale until it’s settled, and our cash path waits for that too
Creative: fix-then-list	It needs work, and title can clear meanwhile	Nothing up front; we front the repairs and get repaid at closing
Cash, as-is	It needs work, or you want a date you pick	The lowest of the three numbers; about 10 days to close once title is clear

Cash is always the lowest of the three, and it can’t skip the title work: our cash path starts when the title company says it can insure the sale, same as any buyer’s.

Within 24 hours you get three written numbers, and we buy as-is. Earnest money goes to a Texas title company. When RESE buys, J.D. buys for his own account or a company he controls and says so in writing before any contract. We don’t give legal advice. For anything contested, the State Bar of Texas Lawyer Referral & Information Service, (800) 252-9690, can point you to an attorney; Dallas and Tarrant residents get sent to their county’s certified referral service.

Questions people ask

Can I sell a house with title problems in Texas?

Usually, yes, once the title company says it will insure the sale. Most problems are paperwork or payoffs. A disputed one has to be settled first, by agreement or in court.

Can you sell a house with back taxes or liens in Texas?

Yes. Tax, HOA and city liens get paid from the price at closing, as long as the price covers them. For the tax side, see back property taxes.

Can a judgment lien stop me from selling my homestead in Texas?

It can slow the sale, but it can’t attach to a homestead (§52.001). Record the §52.0012 affidavit, mail the notice, record the certificate of mailing, and wait out the creditor’s 30 days. If the creditor contradicts it, see an attorney before you set a closing date.

There’s an abstract of judgment on my house in Dallas County. Can I still sell?

Yes. If it’s your homestead, record the §52.0012 affidavit in the Dallas County real property records, where the abstract is. If it’s a rental, expect the title company to pay the judgment from the price unless the creditor signs a release.

The title company found a lien I didn’t know about. What do I do?

Ask the title company for a copy of the recorded document and who filed it. If you paid that debt, find the proof and ask the lienholder for a release. If you don’t recognize it, call a real estate attorney before closing.