Ellis County Texas Landlord-Tenant Law: Eviction, Deposits & the Four-Precinct Filing System
If you own rental property in Ellis County, the single most operationally important thing you can know comes before any discussion of lease terms, rent amounts, or deposit rules: you must file your eviction in the Justice of the Peace court that serves the precinct where the rental property physically sits. This sounds simple until you realize that Ellis County has four distinct precincts, each with its own courthouse in a different city, and that filing in the wrong one doesn’t result in a transfer or a continuance — it results in a mandatory dismissal. You pay the filing fee again, you lose weeks, and the tenant continues occupying the property while you start over. The JP courts have no discretion on this. So before anything else, know your precinct.
The Four Precincts in Plain Language
JP Precinct 1, presided over by Judge Chris Macon at 207 S Sonoma Trail in Ennis, covers the eastern portion of the county — Ennis, Palmer, Bardwell, and surrounding communities. Hours are Monday through Friday, 8 AM to 5 PM.
JP Precinct 2, where Jackie Miller Jr. serves as judge, recently relocated to 2675 W. US Hwy. 287 Business, Ste. 110, Waxahachie — west of downtown, not the previous address many older resources still list. Hours are Monday through Friday, 8 AM to 4 PM. This court covers western Waxahachie, Red Oak, Ovilla, and the communities along the western US-287 corridor.
JP Precinct 3, at 101 W Main St., Suite 106 in Waxahachie, is where Judge Dan D. Cox hears cases covering central and downtown Waxahachie, Maypearl, Italy, and the surrounding area. One scheduling note: Precinct 3 closes at 4:00 PM on Fridays rather than the 4:30 PM it keeps Monday through Thursday — a small but relevant detail if you’re trying to file late in the week.
JP Precinct 4, with Judge James “Butch” Bryant at 301 N 8th St. in Midlothian, covers the northwestern quadrant: Midlothian, Venus, Glenn Heights, and Ferris. This is the court with the most significant operational quirk in the county: Precinct 4 does not accept electronic filing. If your rental property is in Midlothian or any community under Precinct 4, you or your attorney must appear in person to file. No exceptions. Many landlords discover this only after a failed e-filing attempt, costing time and momentum in the eviction process.
Running an Eviction: Notice to Possession
Texas eviction procedure under Chapter 24 of the Property Code applies uniformly across Ellis County. Nonpayment of rent and lease violations both require a three-day written Notice to Vacate delivered to the tenant before you can file. For month-to-month tenancies you wish to terminate, a full one-month notice is required — running from one rent period to the next, not simply 30 calendar days from delivery. Month-to-month notice timing is a common landlord error in Texas JP courts.
Deliver the Notice to Vacate by hand to the tenant or a household member aged 16 or older, or post it on the inside of the main entry door. If your lease allows, certified mail is an option, but the notice period doesn’t begin until the tenant actually receives it. Posting on the door is the most reliable method for speed. Photograph the posted notice with a timestamp — proof of delivery is frequently contested. Once the notice period expires, file a Forcible Detainer petition at the correct JP court. Hearings are typically scheduled within 10 to 21 days. Most Ellis County evictions without appeal run four to six weeks from notice to possession.
Texas eviction law changed significantly on January 1, 2026. Do not assume forms or procedures from prior years are still current. Verify everything directly with the JP court serving your precinct before filing.
Security Deposits: The 30-Day Deadline and What It Costs to Miss It
Texas Property Code § 92.103 gives landlords 30 days from the date the tenant surrenders the property to return the deposit with an itemized written statement of any deductions. The penalty for bad-faith withholding under § 92.109 is $100 plus three times the wrongfully withheld amount plus the tenant’s attorney’s fees. At a typical Ellis County deposit of $1,000–$1,400, a bad-faith finding exposes a landlord to $3,100–$4,300 in statutory damages before legal fees. The defense is documentation: timestamped move-in photos, a signed move-in condition checklist, and move-out photos taken the day the tenant vacates. Normal wear and tear — faded paint, minor carpet wear, small scuffs — is not deductible. Deductions should cover actual damage: holes in walls, stained or burned flooring, broken fixtures. Mail the accounting by certified mail well within the deadline.
Self-Help Eviction: What You Cannot Do
Texas Property Code §§ 92.008 and 92.0081 prohibit self-help eviction completely. Changing locks, removing doors, cutting utilities, removing the tenant’s belongings — any of these actions taken to force a tenant out without a court order expose you to one month’s rent plus $1,000 in civil penalties, plus actual damages and attorney’s fees. The legal eviction process takes weeks, which is frustrating, but the cost of a self-help attempt is invariably higher.
Four Sub-Markets, Four Screening Approaches
Understanding Ellis County as a single market misses how differently its communities function. Midlothian is built on cement and steel — not metaphorically but literally. Three separate cement production facilities (Martin Marietta/TXI, CRH/Ash Grove, CEMEX) and Chaparral Steel have operated there for decades, making it the cement capital of North Texas. The Midlothian Economic Development Corporation has attracted warehousing, auto processing, data centers, and chemical operations that diversify the employment base, but the blue-collar character of the community remains defining. Tenant screening here should focus on verifying current employment at specific employers rather than relying on general income ratios alone — shift-work income can be stable but is more sensitive to plant slowdowns than salaried employment. When a plant is running full shifts, overtime pay inflates stated income; request pay stubs from the last 60 days rather than using any single month’s stub.
Waxahachie offers a more layered picture. The industrial park northeast of downtown — Owens Corning, Georgia-Pacific, James Hardie, Berry Global — generates substantial manufacturing employment. Healthcare has grown significantly: Baylor Scott & White’s 134-bed Waxahachie campus sees over 57,000 patient registrations annually, and its 510+ medical staff represent some of the county’s most income-stable tenants. SAGU (Southwestern Assemblies of God University) and a Navarro College campus bring an educational sector that creates a modest student market — use co-signer requirements for student applicants without independent income. The annual Scarborough Renaissance Festival, held each spring southwest of Waxahachie, is one of the largest in the country and creates short-term rental demand that some landlords have monetized; verify city zoning and HOA compliance before listing.
Ennis, the county’s Czech heritage city on the eastern US-287 corridor, runs at a lower price point. Ennis Regional Medical Center and light manufacturing drive employment. Expect higher turnover and more price sensitivity than in Waxahachie; keeping units clean and move-in ready matters more here than in markets where demand is less contested. The bluebonnet festival each April draws visitors but doesn’t meaningfully drive rental demand.
Red Oak and Glenn Heights, in the county’s northern tier along I-35E, function as Dallas suburbs. The freeway puts downtown Dallas within 30–40 minutes for most commuters. Demand is strong and vacancy is low, but this market carries exposure to remote-work shifts. A tenant who moved to Red Oak because of a daily Dallas commute may reassess if their schedule changes. Gauge this at renewal conversations — tenants in this segment who lose their commute rationale sometimes choose to relocate closer to their employer.
This page is for general informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Verify current eviction procedures with the appropriate Ellis County JP court before filing. Evictions filed in the wrong precinct will be dismissed. JP Precinct 4 in Midlothian does not accept e-filing — in-person filing required. Consult a licensed Texas attorney for specific guidance. Last updated: March 2026.
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