Entitlement guide
Title and deed restrictions.
Some of the hardest limits on a site are not in the code at all. They are recorded against the land, and they bind the next owner.
The short answer
A deed restriction is a private rule recorded against the land. It can limit use, height, materials or the number of buildings. An easement gives someone else a right to use part of your land, often for utilities, drainage or access. Plat notes add building lines and other limits.
A title commitment lists recorded matters in its Schedule B exceptions. Reading those documents, not just the list, is how you learn what they actually say. A survey shows where they fall on the ground.
A city or county will not enforce most private restrictions for you, and a replat generally cannot remove them. If a restriction bars your use, you need a release, an amendment under its own terms, or a different plan.
- Recorded restrictions and their renewal terms
- Easements and where they likely fall on the site
- Plat notes and recorded building lines
- Mineral reservations on record
- Planning layers such as road reservations that title will not show
Why it can stop a deal
Where projects get caught.
A restriction bars the use
Old subdivision restrictions can limit land to residential or agricultural use, or require approval from a committee that may no longer exist.
An easement sits where the building goes
A pipeline, transmission or drainage easement can take the best part of the site and limit what can be built near it.
Minerals are owned by someone else
In Texas, the mineral estate is often separated from the surface. The mineral owner can have rights to use the surface reasonably.
How it works
How it usually works in Central Texas.
Rules differ by city, county and utility, and they change. Treat this as orientation and confirm with the approving authority.
What to read
Start with the title commitment and every document listed as an exception: deeds, restrictions, easements, plats, development agreements and mineral reservations. Many restrictions renew automatically unless owners act, so check the renewal terms, not just the original date.
How restrictions are read
Texas law generally reads restrictive covenants to give effect to their purpose. Expect a plain, strict reading. Restrictions that discriminate on protected grounds are void and are not treated as constraints.
Plat notes and building lines
Recorded plats often include building setback lines, utility easement widths, drainage easements and notes such as no further subdivision. These bind the lot just like a deed restriction.
What title does not show
A future road reservation in a thoroughfare plan usually appears only when you file a plat or permit. Unrecorded easements created by long use or necessity may only show up in a survey or a site visit. We check the planning layers alongside the title documents for that reason.
When it matters most
Before closing, while there is still time to negotiate, object to title or walk away. A VALITER pre-screen uses public records early. The full title commitment, read with your attorney, comes later in the path.
Who decides
The people and offices involved.
| Who | What they decide |
|---|---|
| Title company | What is listed in the commitment and what the policy covers |
| Your attorney | What a restriction means and whether it can be released or amended |
| Your surveyor | Where easements and building lines fall on the ground |
| Property owners or an association | Amendments under the terms of the restrictions |
- Do any recorded restrictions limit the use or the building?
- Where do the easements fall, and what can be built near them?
- Are the minerals severed, and is there a surface use agreement?
- Do the restrictions renew automatically?
- Is anything recorded that a replat will not change?
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