Picture this scenario:
A tenant notified me yesterday that his water heater stopped working. A repairman came to the property today, but the water heater requires a part that won’t arrive until tomorrow. The tenant is upset and wants the landlord to pay for a hotel room for tonight. Is the landlord obligated to do this?
To answer the question, No, the landlord is not obligated to pay for any hotel stay.
Nothing in the Texas Property Code or TAR Residential Lease (TAR 2001) requires the landlord to put the tenant in a hotel while repairs are being made. A landlord isn’t obligated to provide alternative housing for a tenant based on a needed repair, even if that repair relates to a condition that could be constructed as materially affecting the physical health and safety of the ordinary tenant.
If the landlord fails to make a diligent effort to remedy a condition that materially affects the physical health and safety of an ordinary tenant, the tenant’s remedies are found in Section 92.056 of the Texas Property Code.