Miss a deadline in Texas and a strong property damage claim can vanish overnight. In 2025, the Texas Property Damage Statute of limitations still sets tight filing windows, and insurers and defendants know it. This guide lays out how long property owners typically have to act, when time may be extended, what happens if deadlines slip, and why moving quickly often leads to better outcomes. It also highlights recent legislative shifts that matter for homeowners, businesses, and HOAs across the state.
Time limits for filing property damage claims in Texas
Texas generally gives property owners two years to file most tort-based property damage lawsuits.
- Core rule: A two-year statute of limitations applies to claims like negligence, trespass, nuisance, and other injury-to-property claims (Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code §16.003).
- Accrual: The clock usually starts when the damage occurs, not when a claim is reported to an insurer. In some limited scenarios, the clock can start when the injury should reasonably have been discovered (more on that below).
Contract and insurance angles
Not every property damage dispute is purely a tort. Many involve contracts, construction agreements, warranties, leases, or insurance policies.
- Breach of contract: Texas’ default limitations period is four years (§16.051). But owners shouldn’t assume they have that long. Many insurance policies and some construction contracts include shorter, “suit-limitation” provisions (commonly two years, sometimes “two years and one day”) that courts often enforce if reasonable and clear.
- Insurance claims: Policies typically require prompt notice and compliance with post-loss duties (proof of loss, inspections, EUO, etc.). Failing those requirements can sink coverage even if a lawsuit might still be timely. Also, certain statutory claims tied to insurance (like Texas Insurance Code or DTPA claims) have their own timelines, often around two years from when the wrongful act occurred or was discovered.
Product and construction contexts
- Product liability for property damage generally tracks the two-year rule, but a 15-year statute of repose for products can bar claims outside that window (Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code §16.012).
- Construction defect claims can be limited by statutes of repose (see updates below), which operate independently of the two-year statute of limitations and can serve as a hard cutoff regardless of discovery.
Bottom line: Owners should identify every potentially applicable deadline, tort, contract, policy-based, and repose, and treat the earliest plausible date as the controlling one.
Exceptions that may extend or alter statutory deadlines
Texas law recognizes narrow circumstances that can pause or shift the running of the clock. They’re fact-specific and often contested.
Common tolling and accrual doctrines
- Legal disability: If the property owner is a minor or of unsound mind when the claim accrues, limitations can be tolled while the disability exists (Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code §16.001).
- Discovery rule: For inherently undiscoverable injuries, think latent foundation defects concealed within walls or soil, the accrual date can be when the injury should have been discovered through reasonable diligence. Courts apply this sparingly.
- Fraudulent concealment: When a defendant actively conceals wrongdoing, limitations may be tolled until the owner knew or should have known of the fraud.
- Absence from the state: Historically, a defendant’s absence could toll limitations (§16.063), but modern cases limit this where the defendant remains amenable to service. Expect briefing fights here.
Claims against government entities
- Notice requirements: Suing a city, county, or the State of Texas often requires written notice within a short period, commonly within six months under the Texas Tort Claims Act (and some city charters are shorter). Miss notice, and even a timely lawsuit may fail.
Contractual changes to timing
- Contractual limitations: Insurance policies and construction contracts can shorten the time to sue. They can also alter when a claim accrues (for example, from date of denial or substantial completion). Courts frequently enforce reasonable, conspicuous provisions.
Important: Tolling rarely rescues a claim that looks late on its face. Owners should assume the standard deadline controls unless counsel identifies a solid, supported exception.
Legal consequences of missing filing requirements
The consequences in Texas are strict:
- Dismissal with prejudice: File after limitations expires and courts typically must dismiss. The claim can’t simply be “re-filed.”
- Loss of leverage: Even if a defendant might settle on the merits, a time-barred claim invites a hard no.
- Insurance fallout: Missing a policy’s suit-limitation clause or proof-of-loss deadline can independently doom coverage. Insurers also scrutinize late notice and claim inflation more aggressively over time.
- Service diligence matters: Filing on the last day isn’t enough. Plaintiffs must exercise diligence in serving defendants. Unexplained service delays can lead courts to deem the case untimely.
- Fee and abatement issues: For certain pre-suit notice statutes (Insurance Code/DTPA, Chapter 542A weather-related claims, and construction defect statutes), ignoring notice can trigger abatement, fee limits, or evidentiary restrictions.
In short, deadlines don’t just shape the case, they can end it.
Differences between property and personal injury deadlines
Texas sets a two-year limitations period for both personal injury and most property damage torts. But they diverge in important ways:
- Contract overlay: Property cases frequently hinge on contracts (policies, warranties, leases), pulling in 4-year limitations or shorter contractual cutoffs, less common in injury cases.
- Repose statutes: Product and construction repose statutes often loom larger in property damage litigation, creating hard stop dates regardless of discovery.
- Accrual nuances: Temporary vs. permanent nuisance to real property can affect when a claim accrues and what damages are available. Personal injury accrual analysis centers on bodily symptoms and diagnosis.
- Statutory pre-suit notice: Insurance and construction defect property cases routinely trigger notice-and-cure frameworks that don’t apply to most injury claims.
Practically, property owners often juggle more overlapping clocks than injury plaintiffs.
Attorney guidance in protecting property owner rights
A good Texas property damage attorney starts with triage: preserve evidence, map the deadlines, and control the paper trail.
- Lock down evidence early: Photograph all damage, keep repair invoices, save building plans, preserve damaged components (don’t discard materials before inspection), and keep communications in one folder.
- Calendar all clocks: Track the two-year tort deadline, any contract or policy suit-limitation clause, notice requirements (e.g., 60-day pre-suit notice for certain Insurance Code/DTPA claims), and any statute of repose.
- Demand smartly: Well-supported demand letters with expert findings and line-item estimates often resolve claims faster, and they satisfy pre-suit notice statutes that affect attorney’s fees.
- Service strategy: If filing close to limitations, plan immediate service. Courts expect diligence.
- Evaluate venues and defendants: Consider contractors, design professionals, manufacturers, HOAs, and insurers: name all necessary parties before deadlines pass.
Property owners who want a hands-on review can consult experienced Texas counsel. Firms like Omar Ochoa Law help policyholders and owners navigate overlapping deadlines and insurance obstacles. Learn more or request a case review at https://www.omarochoalaw.com/.
Legislative updates impacting claims in 2025
A few developments continue to shape property damage claims in 2025:
- Two-year baseline unchanged: The general two-year limitations period for property damage torts remains in effect.
- Residential construction repose shortened: In 2023, the Legislature created a shorter statute of repose for certain residential construction claims, reducing the outer window to bring defect cases compared to the historic 10-year period. There’s a limited extension if a defect appears near the end of the repose period. The change applies based on contract dates and continues to affect cases filed in 2025.
- Weather-related insurance claims framework: Post-2017 reforms (Chapter 542A) still govern many storm claims, adding pre-suit notice, proportionate responsibility for agents, and adjusted interest calculations, procedural traps that interact with limitations.
- New business courts: Texas launched specialized business courts, with jurisdiction over some complex commercial disputes. While they don’t change limitations, they can affect forum strategy and case management for large-loss property cases tied to business contracts.
Owners should confirm how these updates intersect with their specific claim type and contract dates.