Michigan Mobile Home Park Lease Law: What Operators Need to Include

What must a mobile home lot lease include in Michigan?

In Michigan, a mobile home lot tenancy cannot run on a handshake. The Mobile Home Commission Act makes it an unfair and deceptive practice for a park owner or operator to rent or lease a home or site without offering a written lease, and the Commission's rules require that a written lease be offered for every home site at the beginning of tenancy.

That lease is also governed by two statewide landlord-tenant laws: the security deposit act (1972 PA 348) and the Truth in Renting Act (1978 PA 454). Because a mobile home space is expressly covered by the Truth in Renting Act, your lot lease must avoid a specific list of prohibited clauses and must carry a specific disclosure notice, and any prohibited clause is void by operation of law.

This guide walks through the written-lease requirement, the 14 prohibited clauses, the disclosures, and the tiered rule-change notice periods. It is general information for operators, not legal advice; confirm specifics with Michigan counsel.

The written lease and park rules under the Mobile Home Commission Act

The statutory backbone is MCL 125.2328(1)(g): an owner or operator shall not rent or lease a mobile home or site without offering a written lease. A tenant can bring an action directly for a violation (MCL 125.2328(2)). The Commission rule adds the operational detail: a written lease shall be offered for each home site at the beginning of tenancy, and the lease shall conform to the procedures in 1972 PA 348 and 1978 PA 454 (Mich. Admin. Code R. 125.2005(1)).

Two practical rules follow. You may not charge a premium for the lease (R 125.2005(3)), and if a resident refuses the lease you offer, you must obtain a written statement of refusal (R 125.2005(2)). If you require a security deposit, you must use an inventory checklist at the start and end of tenancy to document damages (R 125.2005(9)).

Park rules and regulations are allowed and may govern the physical condition and aesthetic characteristics of homes, but the standards shall apply equally to all residents (MCL 125.2328a(1)(b)), and age or size alone cannot be used to block an on-site sale or force a home out (MCL 125.2328a(1)(a)). The Act also bars entrance fees and exit fees entirely (MCL 125.2328(1)(a),(c)).

Prohibited lease clauses under the Truth in Renting Act (MCL 554.633)

The Truth in Renting Act defines residential premises to include a mobile home and a mobile home space (MCL 554.632(b)), so it governs lot leases. MCL 554.633(1) opens by stating that a rental agreement shall not include a provision that does one or more of the following, then lists fourteen forbidden clause types.

Those clauses are: (a) waiving or altering habitability remedies; (b) waiving security-deposit rights under 1972 PA 348; (c) excluding or discriminating in violation of the Elliott-Larsen civil rights act or the persons with disabilities civil rights act; (d) a confession of judgment; (e) exculpating the lessor from liability for failing to perform a legal duty; (f) waiving a jury trial or other required notice or procedure; (g) shifting legal costs or attorney fees beyond what statute permits; (h) taking a security interest in the tenant's personal property; (i) accelerating rent without a statement about the duty to mitigate; (j) waiving possession or eviction rights under MCL 600.2918 or the summary-proceedings chapter; (k) releasing a party from the duty to mitigate damages; (l) letting the lessor unilaterally change the agreement without the tenant's written consent; (m) violating the Michigan Consumer Protection Act; and (n) requiring the tenant to give a power of attorney.

The consequence is automatic: a provision or clause of a rental agreement that violates this section is void (MCL 554.633(3)). A landlord can cure a violation by giving written notice that the clause is void or by correcting it (MCL 554.635), but a tenant who gives notice and is not cured within 20 days may sue for the greater of 250 dollars or actual damages, plus court costs and statutory attorney fees (MCL 554.636).

Required disclosures and how to notice rule changes

Two disclosures must appear in the lease itself. First, it shall state the name and address at which notice required under this act shall be given to the lessor (MCL 554.634(1)), so tenants know where to send legal notices. Second, the lease must include, in a prominent place in type no smaller than 12-point (or print with letters at least one-eighth inch), the statutory Truth-in-Renting notice advising tenants that the agreement must comply with the Act and that they may consult a lawyer (MCL 554.634(2)).

At the point of application, the Commission rule requires you to hand prospective residents the state's manufactured home buyer's and resident's handbook at the time an application for residency is signed (Mich. Admin. Code R. 125.2005a).

Notice periods for changing the deal are layered. General changes to rules that protect the health, safety, or peaceful enjoyment of tenants require at least 30 days' written notice, and that is the only route by which a lease may allow the lessor to alter terms (MCL 554.633(1)(l)). A change in the park's method of doing business, such as converting to a condominium or to total rental, requires not less than one year's notice to affected residents (MCL 125.2328a(2)). Rules restricting children or pets cannot be enforced against existing residents except on one year's notice (MCL 125.2328b).

Lease requirements at a glance in Michigan

• Written lease required
  It is an unfair and deceptive practice to rent a home or site without offering a written lease; one must be offered at the start of every tenancy (MCL 125.2328(1)(g); R 125.2005(1)).
• No lease premium; document refusals
  You cannot charge a premium for the lease, and a resident who declines it must sign a written statement of refusal (R 125.2005(2),(3)).
• 14 clauses are banned
  MCL 554.633(1) forbids clauses such as confession of judgment, exculpation, jury-trial waivers, personal-property security interests, and powers of attorney, and any violating clause is void (MCL 554.633(3)).
• No entrance or exit fees
  Charging or collecting an entrance fee or a refundable or nonrefundable exit fee is prohibited (MCL 125.2328(1)(a),(c)).
• Lessor notice address
  The lease must state the name and address where the lessor is to receive notices required under the Act (MCL 554.634(1)).
• Truth-in-Renting notice
  Include the statutory notice in at least 12-point type telling tenants the lease must comply with the Truth in Renting Act (MCL 554.634(2)).
• Give the state handbook
  Provide the manufactured home buyer's and resident's handbook when the residency application is signed (R 125.2005a).
• Layered rule-change notice
  30 days for health, safety, or peaceful-enjoyment rule changes (MCL 554.633(1)(l)); one year for a change in method of doing business (MCL 125.2328a(2)) or new child/pet rules (MCL 125.2328b).

Operator best practices in Michigan

• Use a Truth-in-Renting-compliant template
  Scrub your lease against the 14 prohibited clauses in MCL 554.633(1); a single voided clause can trigger 250-dollar-plus damages and attorney fees under MCL 554.636.
• Apply park rules evenly
  Physical-condition and aesthetic standards must apply equally to all residents (MCL 125.2328a(1)(b)); never use age or size alone to block an on-site sale.
• Calendar your notice periods
  Build 30-day and one-year notice triggers into operations so rule changes and business-model changes are noticed correctly (MCL 554.633(1)(l); 125.2328a(2); 125.2328b).
• Deliver the handbook and keep proof
  Hand out the state buyer's and resident's handbook at application and retain a signed acknowledgment (R 125.2005a).
• Document lease refusals and deposits
  Keep written statements of refusal and start/end inventory checklists for every security deposit (R 125.2005(2),(9)).
• Never charge entrance or exit fees
  Audit your fee schedule so nothing functions as a banned entrance or exit fee, including sale-related charges (MCL 125.2328(1)(a),(c); 125.2328a(1)(d)).
• Build a relationship with a Michigan MHP attorney
  Mobile home park law blends the Mobile Home Commission Act, the Truth in Renting Act, and RJA summary-proceedings rules; have Michigan counsel review your lease and rules before rollout.