USA – TEXAS Law and Practice Contributed by: Taylor Cooksey, Philip Kinkaid, Serena Kramer and David Brooks, Cokinos | Young
acknowledged before a notary public in order to be accepted for recording. No taxes are payable at recording, but a nominal recording fee will be imposed. 6.21 Forced Eviction Tenants can be evicted prior to the expiration of their lease if they breach their lease and fail to cure their default within the time specified in the lease. There are procedural requirements with which landlords must strictly comply. The evic - tion process can take anywhere from 23 to 30 days from the initial notice to vacate (if the tenant does not appeal), to three months or even longer if the tenant appeals or there are court delays. 6.22 Termination by a Third Party A lease may be terminated by the government or by a quasi-governmental entity through eminent domain. The eminent domain process typically takes between 12 and 18 months and permits any party with an interest in the affected property to pursue claims for a condemnation award. Ten - ants are entitled by law to compensation for the lost value of their remaining lease term and for moving expenses. 6.23 Remedies/Damages for Breach Landlords in Texas have a legal duty to take reasonable steps to attempt to relet premises and mitigate their damages in the event a tenant defaults under a lease. In addition to pursuing a claim for damages, Texas landlords have a statu - tory lien, and will usually have a contractual lien contained in a lease, creating a security interest in their tenants’ personal property located in the leased premises. After following requisite statu - tory and contractual requirements (depending on whether the statutory or contractual lien is being foreclosed), they can seize and sell the tenant’s personal property after a tenant default to help cover damages.
Security deposits are held in cash, but in cer - tain circumstances landlords may accept a let - ter of credit in addition to or in lieu of a security deposit. 7. Construction 7.1 Common Structures Used to Price Construction Projects Fixed Price With a fixed price contract, a predetermined price for the entire project is agreed upon, based on existing plans and specifications and well- defined requirements. The owner has cost cer - tainty because the contractor assumes the risk of cost overruns. Agreed change orders may revise the fixed price. Cost-Plus With a cost-plus contract, the contractor is reimbursed for the actual costs of labour, mate - rials and equipment, plus an agreed fee which is either a fixed amount or a percentage of the costs. With a cost-plus price contract, the owner assumes the risk of cost overruns. Guaranteed Maximum Price The foregoing are the most common structures, but a guaranteed maximum price contract is sometimes used. This represents a hybrid of the most common contracts, with the contrac - tor providing a cost-plus estimate with a guar - anteed maximum price not to be exceeded. The contractor will absorb overruns above that maxi - mum, but savings below it are shared between the contractor and the owner by an agreed per - centage.
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