Tenant walked no notice - Texas

[Stacy Eisenberg]

I live in Texas. We have a tenant who texted us last week stating that they have moved out and left keys and garage door openers on the counter - no notice and with 5 more months on their lease. She did not provide a fowarding address and has said that she feels her deposit will constitute the next months rent (as if she had given 5 weeks notice). We have been lucky and have never had to deal with this situation before. What is the proper procedure to take with this? Do I have to file for eviction? Will her text support abandonment? Do I simply tally up the costs, mail the letter certified to her last known address (our rent house) and then try to file in court? Can I file in court without a forwarding address? What suggestions do you have? Anyone with experience (especially in Texas) with suggestions are very appreciated.

[James Wise]

It's not worth it to spend time chasing down this tenant. 

The tenant left so your not out any time were the tenant lived in the home for free. Assuming the place is not trashed your actual damages likely will not be much more than the security deposit. You cannot sue a tenant for the remainder of the lease. Once the house is re-rented your damages from lost rent stop.

The time & effort it would take to get a judgement, then collect on said judgement is completely cost & effort prohibitive.

Focus your attention on getting your home occupied again as quickly as possible.