By Trey Wilson, Texas Real Estate and Water Lawyer · Published October 2026 The State’s utility regulator has sued the Attorney General to keep two pieces of information about Texas data centers out of public view: the county each facility is in, and the regional water planning area it draws from. The headlines say the…
By Trey Wilson, Texas Real Estate and Water Lawyer · Published October 2026 The Texas Attorney General is investigating hundreds of data center developments for failing to report their water use to the State. If a data center is planned or running near your land, the investigation raises the question you have been asking all…
By Trey Wilson, Texas Real Estate and Water Lawyer · Published October 2026 The land agent was polite. The letter says the company wants to be a good neighbor, there is a check attached to a signature line, and the deadline is two weeks out. Before you sign a data center neighbor agreement, you need…
The San Antonio Data Center Lawsuit Won’t Pay the Neighbors. Texas Nuisance Law Might. What the Vantage and VoltaGrid Clean Air Act Case Means for Texas Landowners Living Next to a Data Center Power Plant On September 21, 2026, two national environmental groups sued the companies behind two data center campuses on San Antonio’s far…
By Trey Wilson, Texas Real Estate and Water Lawyer · Published October 2026 You signed an option, a purchase contract, or a ground lease with a data center developer. Now the State of Texas has frozen data center permits, and a letter arrives saying the freeze is “force majeure,” the deadlines are suspended, and the…
By Trey Wilson, Texas Real Estate and Water Lawyer · Published September 2026 The developer does not want to buy your land. It wants to lease it for 40 years, maybe 70 with extensions, and it has sent a letter of intent with a rent number that looks very good. Before you sign, understand what…
By Trey Wilson, Texas Real Estate and Water Lawyer · Published September 2026 · Local information last reviewed September 2026 Drive west on U.S. 90 out of San Antonio and the change is hard to miss. Land that was pasture and row crops a few years ago is fenced, graded, and under construction. If you…
By Trey Wilson, Texas Real Estate and Water Lawyer · Published September 2026 You just learned the land next door is going to a data center. Maybe you saw survey stakes, maybe a neighbor told you at the feed store, maybe it was on the commissioners court agenda. The first question almost everyone asks me…
By Trey Wilson, Texas Real Estate and Water Lawyer · Updated August 26, 2026 Across Texas, local governments are reaching for whatever authority they think they have to slow or stop data center development. Some of those tools are solid. Some are symbolic. At least one has already cost a county money. Here is my…
Governor Abbott Paused Texas Data Centers: What It Means for Landowners (and What It Doesn’t) Updated August 26, 2026. This is a developing situation, and the details will keep changing as the state audit runs. Since early August I have fielded a version of the same question from landowners across South and Central Texas: “The…
Water Diversion and Section 11.086 of the Texas Water Code: What Landowners Should Know The statute that decides who pays when a neighbor’s grading, driveway, or new construction sends water onto your land. The water was never a problem for twenty-five years. Then someone changed the land next door. A neighbor built a wall, poured…
Will a Data Center Next Door Lower My Property Value? A Texas Landowner’s Guide to Diminished Value, Stigma, the Proof That Actually Wins, and What Happens When You Sell You have watched the announcements, the rezoning notices, and the survey trucks, and now a data center is going up within sight of your land. The…
Will a Data Center Drain My Water Well? A Texas Landowner’s Guide to Groundwater Ownership, the Rule of Capture, and Where You Actually Have Leverage When a Data Center Comes for the Water Your well has produced clean water for as long as you have owned the place, maybe longer than anyone in the family…
What if Data Center Lights or Noise Are Driving Me Crazy? A Texas Landowner’s Guide to Private Nuisance, the Crosstex Standard, and When a Data Center’s Hum and Glare Cross the Line The data center went online, and now your nights are different. A low mechanical hum rolls off the cooling banks and never stops,…
What Happens When Data Center Construction Floods My Land? A Texas Landowner’s Resource Guide to Surface Water Diversion, Water Code Section 11.086, and Drainage Claims Against Data Center Developers A developer strips the vegetation off a hundred acres next to you, regrades the whole tract so it falls toward your fence line, pours concrete pads…
The Texas Landowner’s Guide to Living Next to a Data Center What every Texas landowner should know when industrial development comes to the fence line. Trey Wilson Real Estate and Water Attorney. Representing Texas Landowners. Not Developers. Most of what has been written about data centers in Texas is written for the people building them….
A Texas Landowner’s Guide to Selling Property for a Data Center What Every Texas Landowner Should Know Before Signing an Option, Easement, or Purchase Agreement. By Trey Wilson, San Antonio Real Estate Attorney and Texas Water Lawyer. We represent Texas Landowners. Not Data Center Developers. Call 210-354-7600 What This Guide Covers What to do in…
Texas Real Estate & Water Law Blog When Government Construction Cuts Off Access to Your Property: A New Texas Court Explains When It Becomes a Constitutional Taking A road-widening project barricaded the only usable route to a Collin County ranch. The Dallas Court of Appeals just reminded us that when the government closes off the…
The Next Frontier of Texas Data Center Litigation: Challenging Governmental Approvals By Trey Wilson | San Antonio Real Estate Attorney | Texas Water Lawyer Every major development boom in Texas eventually ends up in court. We have seen it with pipelines, reservoirs, transmission lines, wind farms, master-planned communities, and virtually every other project requiring…
Easement by Necessity in Texas: What Early v. Cameron Teaches Landowners and Their Attorneys By Trey Wilson | San Antonio Real Estate & Water Law Attorney If you own rural land in Texas, buy it, finance it, or litigate over it, the Texas Third Court of Appeals just handed down a decision you should read….
Rescission in Texas Real Estate Disputes: What It Is, When It Is Available, and Why It Is Hard to Win By Trey Wilson, San Antonio Real Estate Attorney and Texas Water Lawyer Rescission is one of the most powerful remedies potentially available in a Texas real estate dispute. It is also…
Same Gulf, Very Different Paths: Two Bets on Seawater Desalination in South Texas By Trey Wilson, San Antonio Real Estate Attorney and Texas Water Lawyer The Water Problem Is Not Theoretical South Texas is running short of water, and the numbers are not close. The Rio Grande Valley’s population of 1.4 million is projected…
When a Government Agency Signs a Contract, Can You Sue It? Texas Law Says “Maybe.” Every day across Texas, governmental entities enter into contracts worth thousands, and sometimes millions, of dollars. Cities purchase land. Water districts contract for engineering services. River authorities acquire easements. Municipal utility districts construct infrastructure. Contractors build public projects. Developers dedicate…
A Shared Water Well Agreement Is Not Just About Sharing Water By Trey Wilson San Antonio Real Estate Attorney and Texas Water Lawyer What Texas Landowners Need to Think About Before Multiple Lots Rely on One Well When people hear the phrase “shared water well agreement,” they often assume it is a simple arrangement. One…
Texas Lis Pendens FAQ: What It Means, When It’s Allowed, and How to Remove It A lis pendens can shut down a Texas real estate deal overnight. It can block refinancing, derail a sale, and force disputes into court faster than most parties expect. It is not a judgment, but it often functions like…
WHAT IS AN EASEMENT? An easement is a liberty, privilege, or advantage without profit granted to a person, either personally or by virtue of his ownership of a specified parcel of land, to use another parcel of land for a specific purpose. Daniel v. Fox, 917 S.W.2d 106, 110 (Tex. App.—San Antonio 1996, writ denied)….
In Texas, a prescriptive easement is one of the most common ways property owners end up in court over driveways, roads, and access routes. It is a claim that someone has earned a legal right to keep using part of your land, even though there is no written easement. Prescriptive easements are hard to prove,…
IMPORTANCE OF TEXAS LANDOWNERS’ RIGHT TO EXCLUSIVE USE & ENJOYMENT OF THEIR OWN PROPERTY The Supreme Court of Texas has expressly acknowledged Texas’ emphasis on one’s right to exclusively use their own land: A property owner’s right to exclusive enjoyment of property is “one of the most essential sticks in the bundle of rights…
Proposed Texas Law Would Require New Disclosure Form to Record Real Estate Transfers By Trey Wilson, San Antonio Real Estate Attorney and Texas Water Lawyer A new bill filed in the Texas House by Representative Holt —House Bill 285—could significantly change the process for recording real property transfers in Texas. If passed, this law would…
New Law Changes the Rules for Real Estate Agents Representing Buyers in Texas By Trey Wilson, San Antonio Real Estate Attorney and Texas Water Lawyer Starting January 1, 2026, a new Texas law—Senate Bill 1968—will significantly change the way real estate agents interact with buyers. This bill, passed with near-unanimous support in both chambers…
On July 28, 2025 Rep. Cody Harris, the Palestine-based representative of Texas House District 8 filed four bills that collectively seek to invoke huge changes to the way that groundwater is permitted in Texas. The bills — sequentially numbered HB 215, HB 216, HB 217 and HB 218 — each propose to amend Water…
Do Real Estate Brokers Have a Lien Right in Texas? By Trey Wilson, San Antonio Real Estate Attorney and Texas Water Lawyer In Texas commercial real estate, unpaid broker commissions can lead to expensive disputes—and sometimes litigation. Fortunately, Chapter 62 of the Texas Property Code provides licensed real estate brokers with a powerful statutory remedy:…
In recent years, deed fraud has become one of the fastest-growing forms of real estate crime in Texas. Bad actors forge signatures, falsify notary seals, and record fraudulent deeds with county clerks—quietly “stealing” land right out from under legitimate owners. And because recording doesn’t require verification of authenticity, victims often don’t discover the theft until…
Taming the Untamable Rivers: How the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Built Central Texas’ Flood Control Lakes Trey Wilson, San Antonio Real Estate Attorney and Texas Water Lawyer For Central Texas landowners, rivers are both a blessing and a tremendous threat. The same Texas waterways that nourish the soil and support recreation can, with little…
What Is a Causal Fence in Texas? Introduction In rural Texas, fences do more than keep livestock in and neighbors out. They can become decisive legal battlegrounds—especially in boundary disputes and adverse possession claims. One concept that frequently arises is the “causal fence” doctrine. While the term might sound like it belongs in a philosophy…
Can a Texas HOA Restrict My Right to Harvest Rainwater or Maintain Rain Barrels? By Trey Wilson, Texas Real Estate and Water Lawyer Water conservation in Texas isn’t just smart policy—it’s backed by law. With drought cycles, population growth, and aquifer strain across the state, rainwater harvesting has become a protected activity. In fact, Section…
Eisenhower Park: From Army Land to Public Parkland in San Antonio By Trey Wilson, Real Estate, Land Use and Water Lawyer – San Antonio, TX Just south of Camp Bullis, in the southernmost fringes of Hill Country brush and limestone escarpments, sits Eisenhower Park — 320 acres of rugged, scenic terrain managed by the City…
Exempt Groundwater Wells in Texas: What Landowners Need to Know By Trey Wilson, Real Estate and Water Law Attorney | San Antonio, TX If you’re a Texas landowner with access to groundwater, you may have heard the term “exempt well.” But what does it really mean? And how does it affect your legal rights, your…
What San Antonio Property Owners and Professionals Need to KnowBy Trey Wilson, San Antonio Real Estate Lawyer As a real estate lawyer based in San Antonio, I closely monitor the legal shifts that affect property owners, developers, and professionals in our region. Recent developments at both the state and local levels are reshaping the way…
WHAT IS A ZONING CONTINGENCY? A zoning contingency is a provision in a real estate contract that conditions the obligations of one party (usually the buyer) upon successful modification to the property’s zoning designation. Zoning contingencies are frequently used when the buyer desires to use the property in a way that is not permitted under…