Two things changed for Michigan landlords heading into 2026, and only one of them is law yet. The one that is: source-of-income protection. Senate Bills 205 to 207, signed December 30, 2024 (SB 207 became Public Act 180 of 2024), amended the Elliott-Larsen Civil Rights Act so landlords can no longer reject applicants because their rent comes from a housing voucher, SSI or SSDI, veterans' benefits, child support, or other lawful assistance. The protections generally reach landlords with five or more units, and companion bills signed in January 2025 adjusted how voucher income is counted in screening ratios. If your application still says "no Section 8," fix it before you advertise again.

The one that isn't law: the Tenant Empowerment Package (SB 19 to 22), which would force repairs within 48 hours on safety issues, require 90 days' notice for renewal rent increases, and mandate electronic deposit returns. It cleared committees and sat on the Senate's third-reading calendar in mid-2025, but as of this writing it has not been enacted. Worth tracking; not yet worth changing your lease over.

Everything else about Michigan practice is stable, statutory, and full of small deadlines that bite. Here's the map, and the Michigan quick-reference page has the condensed version.

Michigan's deposit rules: 1.5 months and a chain of deadlines

The cap is 1.5 months' rent (MCL 554.602), and Michigan counts pet deposits and most "nonrefundable" move-in fees toward it. Hold the money in a regulated financial institution or post a surety bond (MCL 554.604); there's no interest owed to the tenant.

What trips people up is the deadline chain that starts the day the tenant leaves:

  • Within 14 days of move-in, you owed the tenant written notice of where the deposit is held and of their duty to send a forwarding address within 4 days of moving out (MCL 554.603). Skip this and your right to claim damages weakens.
  • Move-in and move-out inventory checklists are mandatory, in duplicate, with the tenant getting 7 days to return the move-in copy (MCL 554.608).
  • Within 30 days of move-out, mail an itemized damage list with estimated repair costs plus a check for the undisputed balance (MCL 554.609).
  • Within 45 days of move-out, if the tenant disputes your deductions in writing, you must actually sue for the money you're keeping. Keep it without suing, or ignore the process, and MCL 554.613 makes you liable for double the amount wrongfully withheld.

That 4-day / 7-day / 30-day / 45-day sequence is the whole game. Rentari tracks these state-specific deposit clocks automatically, which matters in a state where the penalty for a missed date is doubling. Full statutory text is on the Michigan Legislature's site, and chapter 554 collects the rest.

Rent, late fees, and raising rent in a state that bans rent control

Michigan preempted local rent control back in 1988 (MCL 123.411), so no city, including Detroit or Ann Arbor, may cap what you charge. There's no statewide limit on increases and no statutory late-fee cap either; your lease sets the late fee, and Michigan courts will enforce it only to the extent it's reasonable rather than a penalty. A flat 5% or a modest fixed amount survives scrutiny; $25 per day usually doesn't.

Raising rent has no dedicated notice statute. On a month-to-month tenancy, an increase is a change of terms, so give at least one month's written notice, matching the termination interval in MCL 554.134. Fixed-term leases change only at renewal. If SB 21 ever passes, renewal increases would need 90 days' notice, so recheck before your next renewal cycle.

Compare that laissez-faire posture with Illinois, where Chicago's RLTO adds a thick local layer, or with Indiana and Ohio, which run leaner deposit rules but different eviction clocks.

Entry: no statute, so your lease does the work

Michigan has no statewide entry-notice law. No 24-hour rule, no 48-hour rule, nothing. The lease governs, layered over the tenant's right to quiet enjoyment and the covenants in MCL 554.139. The professional standard is to write a 24-hour written-notice clause into the lease and honor it; it protects you in court and keeps inspections from becoming harassment claims.

What is statutory: you cannot force your way in to pressure a tenant out. Unlawful interference with possession (lockouts, utility shutoffs, removing doors, seizing belongings) makes you liable for three times actual damages or $200, whichever is greater, per occurrence (MCL 600.2918).

The 7-day demand and Michigan summary proceedings

Evictions run as summary proceedings in district court, and the notice you serve depends on the ground (MCL 554.134; MCL 600.5714):

  • Nonpayment: a written 7-day demand for possession for nonpayment of rent. Payment in full within the 7 days ends it.
  • Extensive damage or a serious health hazard: 7-day notice.
  • Illegal drug activity on the premises: a 24-hour notice to quit, but only with a formal police report on file and a lease clause allowing it.
  • Other lease violations: a 30-day notice where the lease provides for termination on breach.
  • Ending a month-to-month: one month's notice, either party, timed to the rental period; year-to-year tenancies take a year's notice ending at the anniversary.

After the notice runs, you file, the court sets a hearing (often within a couple of weeks), and judgment for possession comes with a 10-day pause before a writ of restitution can issue. Only a court officer executes the writ. Michigan also funnels many nonpayment cases through court-connected eviction diversion, so bring your ledger and expect a conditional dismissal offer if the tenant lands rental aid. Notice templates that match the statutory grounds are in the forms library.

Truth in Renting and the paperwork Michigan expects

Michigan's Truth in Renting Act (MCL 554.631 to 554.641) polices the lease document itself. It bans clauses that waive habitability, deposit rights, or the landlord's negligence liability, and it requires the lease to carry the statutory notice telling tenants the agreement must comply with the Act and that a violation may be reported to the Attorney General. An unenforceable clause doesn't just fail quietly; using prohibited terms can draw AG action.

The rest of the disclosure stack: the deposit-location and forwarding-address notice (MCL 554.603), the inventory checklists (MCL 554.608), your name and address for notices in the agreement, and the federal lead-paint disclosure with the EPA pamphlet for any pre-1978 building. Habitability itself rides on MCL 554.139's implied covenants to keep the premises fit and in reasonable repair; Detroit adds a city layer, requiring rental registration and a certificate of compliance, and Detroit tenants in uncertified buildings can escrow rent under the city ordinance until you certify, which converts a paperwork lapse into a cash-flow problem. Ann Arbor regulates how early you can push renewal decisions on student leases, so check the local code in college markets. Wherever you own, keep proof of registration and inspections with the lease file; in a Michigan courtroom, the landlord with organized paper usually wins the close calls.

Michigan landlord FAQ

How much security deposit can I collect?

1.5 months' rent, total (MCL 554.602). Pet deposits and prepaid "fees" that function as security count toward the cap. A true first month's rent payment does not.

Do I have to pay the deposit back with interest?

No. Michigan requires the deposit be held at a regulated financial institution or bonded (MCL 554.604), but unlike some states there is no tenant interest requirement.

Is there a limit on late fees or rent increases?

No statutory cap on either. Late fees must be reasonable to survive a court challenge, and rent control is preempted statewide (MCL 123.411). Month-to-month increases need one month's written notice; the pending SB 21 would stretch renewal-increase notice to 90 days if it ever passes.

What notice do I give before entering a unit?

None is required by state statute; Michigan has no entry-notice law. Put a 24-hour notice clause in your lease and follow it. Self-help pressure tactics are a different story: MCL 600.2918 awards treble damages or $200 minimum for lockouts and utility shutoffs.

How fast can I evict for nonpayment?

Serve the 7-day demand for possession; if the rent isn't paid in full, file in district court. Hearings come quickly, but budget for the 10-day post-judgment pause, the writ, and possible diversion offers. Realistic start-to-finish for an uncontested nonpayment case is roughly 4 to 8 weeks.

General information for Michigan landlords, not legal advice. Statutes are quoted as researched in mid-2026 and bills pending then may have moved since; verify against the current MCL text or with a Michigan attorney before relying on any deadline here.