Tex. Const. art. XVI, § 51 · Article 16. GENERAL PROVISIONS
SIZE OF HOMESTEAD; USES; RELEASE OR REFINANCE OF EXISTING LIEN.
Text — Current through the amendments approved by voters in November 2025
The homestead, not in a town or city, shall consist of not more than two hundred acres of land, which may be in one or more parcels, with the improvements thereon; the homestead in a city, town or village, shall consist of lot or contiguous lots amounting to not more than 10 acres of land, together with any improvements on the land; provided, that the homestead in a city, town or village shall be used for the purposes of a home, or as both an urban home and a place to exercise a calling or business, of the homestead claimant, whether a single adult person, or the head of a family; provided also, that any temporary renting of the homestead shall not change the character of the same, when no other homestead has been acquired; provided further that a release or refinance of an existing lien against a homestead as to a part of the homestead does not create an additional burden on the part of the homestead property that is unreleased or subject to the refinance, and a new lien is not invalid only for that reason.
Notes and commentary — not constitutional text
History
(Feb. 15, 1876. Amended Nov. 3, 1970, Nov. 6, 1973, Nov. 8, 1983, and Nov. 2, 1999.)
Publisher's note
NOTE: The joint resolution amending Sec. 51 in 1983 included a section that did not purport to amend the constitution and that provided the following: "This amendment applies to all homesteads in this state, including homesteads acquired before the adoption of this amendment."
Source of truth
- Edition
- Current through the amendments approved by voters in November 2025
- Official file
- https://statutes.capitol.texas.gov/Docs/CN/htm/CN.16.htm
- Text hash
- sha256 8ce64c9cc0297ad7f3ecb2d7aab8946028a84ec7d644bc45f1d2342ff5026584
- Composed by
- compose_tx.py 2026-10-05: the Legislative Council's chapter files read in document order; verify_tx.py's independent reading (lxml DOM walk) agrees character for character
Cited by 1 provision
Provisions in this library whose text cites Tex. Const. art. XVI, § 51. Each shows the citation as that text prints it.
Procedural information only. Not legal advice and not a substitute for the advice of an attorney. Confirm the current text with the official publisher before relying on it.