How Long Before a Storage Unit Is Auctioned in Texas?
A bill has slipped behind, or a letter has arrived that you didn't expect, and you want to know where things stand. How long before a storage unit is auctioned in Texas comes down to a set of steps the law lays out in order, and they add up to about four weeks or more between a written notice of the claim and the earliest day a sale can be held.
It's an uneasy letter to open, and it helps to know the law gives you time to act at each step. We're a family-owned business renting storage units in Rockport, Texas, and everything below comes from Chapter 59 of the Texas Property Code, the part of Texas law that covers self-service storage, with each section named so you can read it for yourself.
Texas storage unit laws: the lien and your rights
Texas law gives a storage company a lien on what's in a unit when rent and other charges go unpaid. Section 59.021 says a lessor, meaning the owner or managing agent of the facility, has a lien on all property in a self-service storage facility for the payment of charges that are due and unpaid by the tenant.
Under Section 59.006, that lien attaches on the date the tenant places the property at the storage facility, and it takes priority over all other liens on the same property. Section 59.004 says that, except as the chapter expressly provides, a storage company and a tenant can't vary its provisions by agreement or waive the rights it gives.
The lease decides which path the storage company can take. Section 59.041 lets it enforce the lien by seizing and selling the property when the seizure and sale are made under a contractual landlord's lien that's underlined or printed in conspicuous bold print in a written rental agreement, and in accordance with the chapter. In every other case, the same section says, the lien is enforced under a court judgment that forecloses it and orders the sale.
The chapter also gives a storage unit renter in Texas a remedy. If a storage company breaks the chapter's rules, Section 59.005 says a person injured by the violation may sue for damages under the Deceptive Trade Practices–Consumer Protection Act.
How long can a storage unit go unpaid in Texas?
In Texas, the time that counts starts with a written notice. Once a storage company delivers written notice of its claim, the tenant has through the 14th day after delivery to satisfy it before the sale can be advertised, and a sale advertised in a newspaper can't be held until about the 30th day after that notice.
Section 59.021 gives the lien for charges that are due and unpaid, and under Section 59.042(a), a storage company that wants to enforce it by seizing and selling the property must first deliver written notice of the claim to the tenant. Section 59.042(b) then sets the 14 days. That's the first window, and it's the clearest one.
Your lease sets the day rent is due and what follows a late payment, so read those paragraphs alongside the law.
For household contents, Chapter 59 sets no separate period after which a storage unit counts as abandoned; the time that matters runs from the written notice of claim to the sale, as this section and the next set out.
The notice has to tell you a good deal. Section 59.043(a) says it must contain an itemized account of the claim, the name, address and telephone number of the storage company or its agent, a statement that the contents have been seized under the contractual landlord's lien, and a statement that the property may be sold at public auction if the claim isn't satisfied on or before the 14th day after the notice is delivered.
It must also include a statement, underlined or in conspicuous bold print, asking a tenant who is in military service to tell the storage company about that service right away.
The itemized account is worth reading line by line. Check each charge against your own records and receipts, and note the name and telephone number the notice gives, since that's who to call.
The timeline from notice to sale
The deadlines in Chapter 59 run in order, each counted from the step before it.
- The storage company delivers the written notice of claim (Sec. 59.042(a)).
- If the claim isn't satisfied on or before the 14th day after the notice is delivered, the storage company must publish or post notices advertising the sale (Sec. 59.042(b)).
- If the notice is published, it runs once in each of two consecutive weeks in a newspaper of general circulation in the county where the facility is, and the property can't be sold until the 15th day after the notice is first published (Secs. 59.044(b) and 59.042(c)).
- If there's no newspaper of general circulation in the county, the storage company may post the notice at the facility and at least five other conspicuous places nearby, and it may sell the property after the 10th day after the notices are posted (Secs. 59.044(b) and 59.042(c)).
Counting those days, a sale advertised in a newspaper can't be held until about the 30th day after the notice of claim is delivered: the 14 days to satisfy the claim, then 15 days from the first newspaper notice. Where notices are posted instead, it's about the 26th day. That's how long before you lose your storage unit at the soonest the law allows, and every one of those days is time you can use.
Storage units get auctioned on the date and at the place the advertised notice gives. Section 59.044(a) says that notice must contain a general description of the property, a statement that it's being sold to satisfy a landlord's lien, the tenant's name, the facility's address, and the time, place and terms of the sale.
How notices reach you
Section 59.043(c) says the notice of claim is delivered in person, or by email or verified mail to the tenant's last known email or postal address as given in the rental agreement or in a written notice from the tenant afterward. Notice by email is considered delivered when it's sent, and notice by verified mail when it's deposited with the postal service or a common carrier.
Section 59.043(d) allows a notice by email when the written rental agreement says, underlined or in conspicuous bold print, that notice may be given by email if the tenant chooses to provide an email address.
That makes your contact details the most useful thing you can keep up to date. If you move or change your email, tell the storage company in writing, so any notice reaches you where you actually are.
How to get your stuff back from storage auction
To get your things back before a storage auction in Texas, pay what's owed before the sale. Section 59.008 says a tenant may redeem property seized under a contractual landlord's lien prior to its sale or other disposition by paying the storage company the amount of the lien and its reasonable expenses incurred under the chapter.
The 14 days after the notice of claim is delivered come first, before the sale is advertised. After that, Section 59.008 keeps the right to redeem open up to the sale itself.
Call the number on the notice, ask for the full amount needed to redeem, and ask how the storage company takes payment, so the money reaches it in a form it accepts before the sale date. Keep the receipt with the notice.
The time before the sale matters most because of what the law says about the buyer. Section 59.007 says a good faith purchaser of property sold to satisfy a lien under the chapter takes it clear of any claim from a person against whom the lien was valid, whether or not the storage company complied with the chapter.
If the sale brings in more than the lien and the reasonable expenses of the sale, Section 59.046 says the storage company must send written notice of the excess to the tenant's last known address and hold the money for the tenant, who can request it before two years after the date of the sale.
After those two years, the storage company owns the excess, which is one more reason to keep your address current with any storage company you rent from.
How the sale itself works
Section 59.045 says a sale under the chapter must be a public sale, held at the storage facility or a reasonably near public place, or through an internet website open to the public. The storage company must conduct it according to the terms in the notice advertising the sale and sell the property to the highest bidder.
If you serve in the military
Section 59.010 gives members of the Texas State Guard and the Texas National Guard who are in military service the same rights in the enforcement of storage liens that the federal Servicemembers Civil Relief Act gives a servicemember. Under Section 59.001, military service for the chapter includes active duty of more than 30 consecutive days in either one under the call of the governor.
The Servicemembers Civil Relief Act's section on storage liens, Section 3958 of Title 50 of the U.S. Code, says a person holding a lien on the property or effects of a servicemember may not, during any period of military service and for 90 days afterward, foreclose or enforce any lien on that property without a court order granted before foreclosure or enforcement.
Under Section 59.043(b) of the Texas chapter, a storage company may ask for written proof of military service, such as documentation from the United States Department of Defense. If you serve, tell your storage company when you sign, keep your service papers where you can find them, and answer any notice that asks about your service right away.
What to do if you've fallen behind
Act early, while the law's windows are still open. Read any notice you receive all the way through, and check the itemized account against your own records.
Call the storage company as soon as you can, during the hours it answers, and ask what you owe as of that day. Write down who you spoke with and when.
Keep your address, email and phone number current in writing, and if you serve in the military, say so. Put the rent's due date on your calendar a few days ahead, so it doesn't slip by in a busy month.
If you're renting with us and want to be sure your details are right, our Contact page has the ways to reach us, and our FAQ has answers about renting with us.
Before you sign any storage lease
If you're about to rent, find the lease's underlined or bold paragraph on the landlord's lien and read it before you sign, along with the paragraphs on when rent is due and how notices are sent. If the lease allows notice by email, Section 59.043(d) requires it to say so in underlined or bold print, and the email address you give is where a notice can go.
Our post on how to rent a storage unit goes through reading the lease and the rest of renting. If you're storing for many months, our post on long-term storage goes through planning for it, military storage while you're deployed included.
Our storage units in Rockport
Rockport sits between Aransas Bay and Copano Bay, and 298 of our 558 units are climate-controlled. Siyata Storage is at 825 W Market Street. Some older listings show 835 — that is a separate private building next door, not us.
The rate for every size we have open is on our price list. Emilio answers the phone 8 AM–5 PM Monday–Saturday, and we respond to every message during those hours.
Tell us what you're storing and we'll help you pick a size. Call 361-200-1492, 8 AM to 5 PM Monday to Saturday. Hablamos español.