Which properties require the coastal area notice?

Under Natural Resources Code Section 33.135, the notice is required when a person sells or conveys an interest — other than a groundwater, surface-water, mineral, leasehold, or security interest — in real property adjoining and abutting the tidally influenced waters of the state. In short, coastal property whose boundary touches state-owned tidally influenced submerged land. The notice must be included in the executory contract for the sale, or delivered as a separate written statement before recording if there is no contract.

What does the notice warn buyers about?

That the property shares a boundary with tidally influenced submerged lands of the state; that the boundary can change and can only be fixed by a licensed state land surveyor working from the original sovereign grant; that the owner may gain or lose land as the boundary shifts; and that state law prohibits building or placing structures on state-owned submerged land below the tide line without permission. It also advises seeking legal advice and points to the General Land Office for tide-line information.

Can I build a pier on my coastal property?

Not automatically. The notice warns that state law prohibits the use, encumbrance, construction, or placing of any structure on state-owned submerged lands below the applicable tide line without proper permission. The submerged portion below the tide line is state land, so a pier, bulkhead, or similar structure extending onto it requires authorization. This is one of the practical reasons the statute directs buyers to seek professional advice before purchasing coastal property.

Does the notice affect public beach access?

No. Section 33.135(e) expressly states that the section, and the actions of any party subject to it, do not diminish or modify the beach access and use rights of the public as acquired by statute or under common law. The notice is about informing the buyer of boundary and submerged-land issues; it does not alter the public's separately established rights to use Texas beaches, which are protected under other law including the Open Beaches Act.

Texas Coastal Area Notice: Natural Resources 33.135

TL;DR

Property along the Texas coast comes with a boundary that literally moves, and Section 33.135 of the Texas Natural Resources Code requires sellers to warn buyers about it. The statute applies to the sale or conveyance of an interest in real property adjoining and abutting the tidally influenced waters of the state — coastal land whose boundary is the shifting edge of state-owned submerged land. For those properties, the seller must include a written "Notice Regarding Coastal Area Property" in the executory contract. The notice tells the buyer several things: the property shares a common boundary with tidally influenced submerged lands of the state; that boundary can change and can be determined accurately only by a licensed state land surveyor working from the original sovereign grant; the owner may gain or lose land as the boundary shifts; state law prohibits building or placing structures on state-owned submerged land below the tide line without permission; and the buyer should seek legal advice, with tide-line information available from the General Land Office. If the seller fails to include the notice, the buyer may terminate the contract and recover earnest money, and failing to provide it before closing is a deceptive act under the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act. This is separate from the open-beaches notice under Section 61.025, which applies to property seaward of the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway.

Why coastal boundaries need a notice

On the Texas coast, the line between private property and state-owned submerged land is not a fixed survey line — it is the tide. As the tide line moves with erosion, accretion, and storms, the boundary of the private tract moves with it, so an owner can literally gain or lose land over time. That makes coastal property fundamentally different from an inland parcel with fixed corners, and a buyer who does not understand it may pay for land that later becomes state-owned submerged bottom. Section 33.135 exists to put that risk in front of the buyer in writing before the sale closes.

The notice also flags a use restriction that surprises many buyers: state law bars building or placing any structure on state-owned submerged land below the applicable tide line without proper permission. A buyer imagining a private pier or bulkhead needs to know that the submerged portion is state land and that construction there requires authorization. Because the boundary can only be fixed by a licensed state land surveyor working from the original grant, the notice steers buyers toward professional advice. This coastal notice is one of several specialized Texas seller disclosures, alongside the general condition disclosure covered in our guide to the seller's disclosure notice under Section 5.008.

What the notice must contain

Section 33.135(a) sets out the required "Notice Regarding Coastal Area Property," and its content is specific. It states that the property adjoins and shares a common boundary with the tidally influenced submerged lands of the state; that the boundary is subject to change and can be determined accurately only by a survey on the ground by a licensed state land surveyor in accordance with the original grant from the sovereign; and that the owner may gain or lose portions of the tract because of changes in the boundary. It also states that the seller has no knowledge of any prior fill as it relates to the property, that state law prohibits the use, encumbrance, construction, or placing of any structure on state-owned submerged lands below the applicable tide line without proper permission, and that the buyer should seek the advice of an attorney or other qualified person. Information about the tide-line location is available from the surveying division of the General Land Office in Austin.

The notice must be included as part of the written executory contract for the sale. Under Section 33.135(b), if the property is conveyed without an executory contract, a written statement containing the notice must be delivered to the buyer for execution and acknowledgment of receipt before the conveyance is recorded. As with the water-level disclosure, the standard TREC coastal-area addendum satisfies the requirement, so a seller using the promulgated form delivers the notice through the contract. This coastal notice interacts with the water-level rules for adjoining impoundments, covered in our guide to the notice of water level fluctuations under Section 5.019.

Remedies and the Section 61.025 distinction

Section 33.135 carries real consequences for a seller who omits the notice. Under Section 33.135(c), failure to include the statement in the executory contract is grounds for the buyer to terminate the contract, and on termination any earnest money must be returned. Under Section 33.135(d), failure to provide the notice before closing — whether in the contract or a separate written statement — constitutes a deceptive act under Section 17.46 of the Business and Commerce Code, the core provision of the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act. That exposes the seller to the remedies available under the DTPA. Section 33.135(e) clarifies that nothing in the section diminishes the public's beach access and use rights.

It is important not to confuse this coastal-area notice with a different coastal disclosure. Section 33.135 applies to property adjoining tidally influenced waters and focuses on the shifting state-land boundary. Section 61.025 of the Natural Resources Code is a separate notice that applies to property located seaward of the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway and warns about the public beach easement and the vegetation line under the Texas Open Beaches Act. The two use different TREC addenda and cover different property. A coastal transaction may trigger one, the other, or both, so knowing which statute governs which situation is a common exam distinction. To see how these coastal disclosures are tested, our guide to the exam retake waiting period is worth reviewing if a first attempt does not go as planned.

Frequently Asked Questions

Which properties require the coastal area notice?: Under Natural Resources Code Section 33.135, the notice is required when a person sells or conveys an interest — other than a groundwater, surface-water, mineral, leasehold, or security interest — in real property adjoining and abutting the tidally influenced waters of the state. In short, coastal property whose boundary touches state-owned tidally influenced submerged land. The notice must be included in the executory contract for the sale, or delivered as a separate written statement before recording if there is no contract.
What does the notice warn buyers about?: That the property shares a boundary with tidally influenced submerged lands of the state; that the boundary can change and can only be fixed by a licensed state land surveyor working from the original sovereign grant; that the owner may gain or lose land as the boundary shifts; and that state law prohibits building or placing structures on state-owned submerged land below the tide line without permission. It also advises seeking legal advice and points to the General Land Office for tide-line information.
What happens if the seller omits the notice?: Under Section 33.135(c), failure to include the notice in the executory contract lets the buyer terminate the contract and recover any earnest money. Under Section 33.135(d), failing to provide it before closing is a deceptive act under Section 17.46 of the Business and Commerce Code — the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act — which exposes the seller to DTPA remedies. So the seller faces both a contract-termination right and potential DTPA liability for omitting the required notice.
Can I build a pier on my coastal property?: Not automatically. The notice warns that state law prohibits the use, encumbrance, construction, or placing of any structure on state-owned submerged lands below the applicable tide line without proper permission. The submerged portion below the tide line is state land, so a pier, bulkhead, or similar structure extending onto it requires authorization. This is one of the practical reasons the statute directs buyers to seek professional advice before purchasing coastal property.
How is Section 33.135 different from Section 61.025?: Section 33.135 is the coastal area property notice for land adjoining tidally influenced waters, focused on the shifting state-land boundary and submerged-land restrictions. Section 61.025 is a separate notice for property located seaward of the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway, warning about the public beach easement and vegetation line under the Open Beaches Act. They use different TREC addenda and apply to different property. A coastal sale may require one, the other, or both depending on the location.
Does the notice affect public beach access?: No. Section 33.135(e) expressly states that the section, and the actions of any party subject to it, do not diminish or modify the beach access and use rights of the public as acquired by statute or under common law. The notice is about informing the buyer of boundary and submerged-land issues; it does not alter the public's separately established rights to use Texas beaches, which are protected under other law including the Open Beaches Act.

Bottom Line

Texas Natural Resources Code Section 33.135 requires a seller of real property adjoining and abutting the state's tidally influenced waters to include a written "Notice Regarding Coastal Area Property" in the executory contract. The notice warns that the property shares a shifting boundary with state-owned tidally influenced submerged land, that the boundary can be fixed only by a licensed state land surveyor, that the owner may gain or lose land as it moves, and that building on state-owned submerged land below the tide line requires permission. Omitting the notice lets the buyer terminate and recover earnest money, and failing to provide it before closing is a deceptive act under the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act. This coastal-area notice is distinct from the Section 61.025 open-beaches notice for property seaward of the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway. For related topics, see our guides to the seller's disclosure notice, the water level fluctuations notice, and the exam retake waiting period.

Source: Texas Natural Resources Code § 33.135 (notice to purchaser of coastal area property); DTPA § 17.46, Business & Commerce Code. Nat. Res. Code § 33.135 (FindLaw) · Nat. Res. Code § 61.025 (Texas Public Law) · Nat. Res. Code Ch. 33 (capitol.texas.gov)