Michigan Truth in Renting Act: What Landlords Must Include in Every Lease

Every residential lease in Michigan is subject to the Truth in Renting Act (MCL 554.631). If you're using a lease template sourced from another state, downloaded from a generic legal site, or written without awareness of Michigan's specific requirements, you may be operating with a lease that contains void provisions — provisions you cannot enforce — or missing mandatory disclosures that give tenants grounds to challenge your lease entirely.

Here's what the Act requires and what it prohibits.

What the Truth in Renting Act Covers

The Michigan Truth in Renting Act governs residential leases for dwelling units. It sets minimum disclosure requirements that every lease must include, and it explicitly voids certain categories of lease provisions that attempt to waive tenant rights guaranteed under Michigan law.

The Act operates in tandem with the Landlord and Tenant Relationships Act (MCL 554.601) and the Security Deposit Act. Understanding all three frameworks together — rather than any one in isolation — gives you the complete picture of what your Michigan lease can and cannot say.

Required Disclosures in Every Michigan Residential Lease

Michigan law mandates that residential leases include a baseline rights disclosure informing tenants of their statutory protections. Landlords who omit these disclosures are not necessarily operating an illegal lease, but the omission gives tenants standing to claim they were not fully informed of their rights — a complication in any enforcement proceeding.

The required disclosure must notify tenants of their right to:

• Receive a full copy of the lease
• Have the lease written in clear, understandable language
• Access local housing codes and ordinances
• Be protected against illegal lease provisions

This disclosure doesn't have to appear as a separate document — it can be incorporated into the body of the lease — but it must be present.

Lease Provisions the Act Renders Void

This is the part that catches investors using out-of-state or generic lease templates most often. The Truth in Renting Act explicitly voids any lease provision that:

Waives the landlord's duty to maintain habitable premises. Michigan imposes an implied warranty of habitability on all residential landlords. Any lease clause that attempts to shift the responsibility for maintaining basic livability — functioning heat, plumbing, structural soundness — to the tenant is void and unenforceable.

Imposes penalties beyond actual damages for lease violations. Punitive damage clauses built into the lease (beyond what Michigan law permits) are void.

Requires tenants to pay attorney fees in disputes. One-sided attorney fee provisions in residential leases are not enforceable under Michigan law.

Waives the tenant's right to notice before entry. Michigan requires landlords to provide reasonable advance notice before entering a rental unit (generally 24 hours, except in emergencies). A lease provision claiming the landlord may enter at any time without notice is void.

Allows the landlord to terminate utilities as a remedy for non-payment. Michigan strictly prohibits self-help evictions, including utility shutoffs. Any lease provision purporting to authorize this is void, and actually executing it as a remedy creates significant civil liability.

The Security Deposit Rules You Must Follow

The Truth in Renting Act and the Security Deposit Act together create a strict compliance framework around deposits.

Maximum deposit amount: Michigan caps residential security deposits at 1.5 times the monthly rent. Charging more is a violation.

Deposit handling: Deposits cannot be commingled with operating funds. They must be deposited into a regulated financial institution or secured with the Michigan Secretary of State via a cash or surety bond.

Move-in procedure: Within 7 days of taking possession, the landlord must provide the tenant with an itemized list of pre-existing damage and a statement of the tenant's rights under the Security Deposit Act. If you skip this step, you weaken your claim to deduct for any pre-existing damage conditions later.

30-day return window: Within exactly 30 days of move-out (after the tenant provides a written forwarding address within 4 days of move-out), you must mail an itemized statement of claimed deductions and return the undisputed balance. Miss the 30-day deadline and you forfeit all claims to the deposit — the entire sum must be returned immediately under MCL 554.609.

This 30-day deadline is the single most common security deposit compliance failure among Michigan landlords. Calendar it from move-out date, not from when you receive the forwarding address.

Domestic Violence Lease Termination Rights

Michigan law (MCL 554.601b) grants tenants the right to terminate a lease without financial penalty when the tenant or a household member is a victim of domestic violence, sexual assault, or stalking. The tenant must present a verified third-party report, police record, or court order documenting the situation.

This means your lease cannot include early termination penalties for tenants invoking this protection. Any clause attempting to impose such penalties is void under the Truth in Renting Act. More practically: if a tenant terminates under this statute with proper documentation, you cannot hold them liable for the remaining rent balance on the lease term.

Common Michigan Lease Errors to Avoid

Beyond what the Act explicitly requires and prohibits, Michigan-specific compliance requires attention to several additional points:

Detroit-specific. If your property is in Detroit, the lease must be consistent with the city's registration and Certificate of Compliance requirements. You cannot legally collect rent on a property without a valid Certificate of Compliance — a fact that makes the lease's enforceability directly tied to your regulatory compliance status.

Non-homestead classification. Your lease should not include provisions that would conflict with the property's non-homestead tax treatment. This is primarily a tax matter, not a lease matter, but some investors try to structure lease arrangements that blur the occupancy status — which can create legal complications.

Month-to-month notice requirements. For month-to-month tenancies, Michigan generally requires a 30-day notice to terminate from either party. Your lease should specify this clearly.

The Michigan Investment Property Guide covers the full Michigan landlord-tenant legal framework — the Truth in Renting Act, Security Deposit Act, eviction procedures, and Detroit-specific compliance requirements — in a single operational reference.

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