Previous Owner Stole My House

[alauzara]

My question involves real estate located in the State of: TX
Some time ago, we bought a mobile home in TX. We were having difficulties to pay at the end, but we were managing to do it. Then I found a job in PA, and my wife and I moved there. At that time, we had only two months left to pay. The previous owner showed a lot of interest in getting the house back (I was doing some repairs while I had it), but we had a daughter who needed it. We spoke with him and told him that, although we could pay the two remaining months, we were struggling and ask if instead, he would agree that he would forgive us the two months and let our daughter live there for a year, then he will get the house back and he will pay us what we had paid him, therefore getting the house back at cost. He did agree. When my daughter left the house, she gave him the keys in good faith. He never contacted me again. Now I had to come back to TX for my job and went to see him. He says that he will not pay anything, and he has somebody renting the house now.
I only have a paper signed by him stating that he had sold the house to us, and a sms that I sent him asking if he wanted me to send him the money or not (that was right before the agreement). He never sent me any eviction notes or anything, he played the "nice guy" and I think he had everything planned the way it went. I had other sms that we crossed talking about the deal, but I changed my phone and they got lost.
My questions are: what are my chances to get the money back? If I need the sms back, can the court retrieve them? And finally, how can I do this from PA, do I have to go to TX to do it?

Thanks in advance.

[Mr. Knowitall]

You will need to sue him. Have a lawyer review your contract and your other evidence - we cannot asses your chances based upon documents we have never seen.

[alauzara]

Thank you for the reply. Would I be able to do it from PA, or I have to go to Texas to do it? What about the sms, is that a possibility for me in order to prove what has happened?

[llworking]

Thank you for the reply. Would I be able to do it from PA, or I have to go to Texas to do it? What about the sms, is that a possibility for me in order to prove what has happened?

You would have to sue in TX.