Property Division in Texas

Texas presumes property is community property until a spouse proves otherwise

Texas Family Code Section 3.003 presumes that all property either spouse possesses during the marriage or when it ends is community property. The spouse claiming an item as separate property has to overcome that presumption with clear and convincing evidence, a tougher standard than most civil cases use.

Clear and convincing evidence means proof strong enough to give the judge a firm belief that the claim is true, usually through documents. Tracing means following separate money through accounts and purchases to show it never became community money. See Section 3.003.

What does a just and right division mean under Section 7.001?

Texas Family Code Section 7.001 directs the judge to divide the estate of the parties in a manner the court deems just and right, having due regard for the rights of each party and any children of the marriage. The statute does not require an equal split, so the community estate can be divided equally or unequally depending on the facts.

The division reaches the community estate. A Texas court cannot take one spouse's proved separate property and award it to the other spouse. Several other Family Code sections shape the result:

• Section 7.001 sets the just and right standard for the division.
• Section 7.002 covers property acquired while living in another state.
• Section 7.006 lets spouses sign a written agreement dividing their property. If the judge finds its terms just and right, the agreement binds the court.
• Section 7.009 addresses fraud on the community: if one spouse wasted or hid community assets, the court values the estate as it would have been without the fraud.

How does property division in Texas treat retirement accounts?

Texas Family Code Section 7.003 requires the divorce decree to determine both spouses' rights in pensions, retirement plans, annuities, individual retirement accounts, employee stock options and other employer savings or bonus plans. Benefits built up while the spouses were married are usually community property; benefits built up before the wedding can stay separate when they are traced.

For a 401(k) or another defined contribution plan, Section 3.007(c) allows the separate share to be traced like any other asset, and Section 3.007(d) supplies a formula for certain stock options and restricted stock.

Splitting an employer plan usually takes a second court order, a qualified domestic relations order or QDRO, telling the plan administrator what to pay the other spouse. Under Sections 9.101 through 9.104, the divorce court keeps jurisdiction to sign a QDRO, even one never prepared at the time of the decree.

When does one marital estate owe reimbursement to another?

Texas Family Code Section 3.402 creates a claim for reimbursement when property of one marital estate is used to benefit another marital estate and, without repayment, the benefited estate would be unjustly enriched. Section 3.401 names three marital estates: the community estate and each spouse's separate estate.

Paying the other estate's debt

Community funds pay down the mortgage on a house one spouse owned before the marriage.

Improving the other estate's real property

Community funds add a pool or a new roof that raises the value of separate real estate.

Uncompensated time and effort

A spouse's work grows a separate business beyond what managing it reasonably required, and the community was not adequately paid.

A reimbursement claim is not ownership. Under Section 3.404, the claim matures when the marriage ends, and Section 3.406 lets the court secure it with an equitable lien. Section 3.409 bars reimbursement for child support, alimony or spousal maintenance, living expenses of a spouse or child, nominal contributions and a spouse's student loans.

Property division in Texas: common questions

Last reviewed: November 8, 2026. Statute sections on this page were checked against the Texas Family Code on the Texas Legislature website on November 7, 2026.