Background and How it Works The housing crisis led to the State of Michigan lending a helping hand. In July 2015, the Michigan Supreme Court readjusted the Michigan Transfer Tax Act to allow more people to recoup taxes paid at the time of the sale of their home. If an individual qualifies for the coveted

What is Self-Help? A self-help eviction is where a landlord takes actions to evict a tenant without first obtaining a court order allowing the eviction.  Examples of self-help eviction include changing locks, removing a tenant’s possessions, and boarding up the premises.  Self-help is prohibited under Michigan law and a landlord engaging in self-help evictions can

Thinking about buying a home?  Or perhaps you’re in the market for a new residence and are planning on selling your current home? Your home is one of the biggest purchases or sales you make in your lifetime.  However, when either buying or selling this asset, many resort to using pre-printed purchase agreements provided by

Over the last four years, the State of Michigan, in general, and the communities of Mid Michigan, in particular, have been hard hit by the ongoing national recession.  In addition to high unemployment and a shrinking economy, we experienced unprecedented reductions in real estate property values. As a result of the recession, municipalities and assessors

Previously, I wrote about the process for a landlord to evict a residential tenant.  (See: Real Estate Primer for Landlords:  Your Tenant Stops Paying) While the process for evicting a commercial tenant is the same as in a residential setting, the requirements for the lease itself differ greatly.  The parties to a residential lease are

The most common issue that arises for a landlord is when a tenant, for whatever reason, stops paying rent. The reasons for non-payment may range from simply forgetting to pay rent a particular month, to unexpected financial difficulty, to not being able to afford the dwelling in the first place.  But, in the end, when