Michigan Notice to Quit — Health Hazard, Property Damage, or Lease Violation

NOTICE TO QUIT TO RECOVER POSSESSION OF PROPERTY (MICHIGAN)

Official Form Reference: SCAO Form DC 100e for Ground A, DC 100b for Ground B, or DC 100c for other applicable notice grounds.

Statutory Authority: MCL 600.5714(1)(b), (c), (d), or (e); MCL 600.5716; MCL 600.5718; MCL 554.134

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. To the Person in Possession
2. Description of Premises
3. Ground for Notice
4. Statement of Facts Constituting the Breach
5. Demand and Notice Period
6. Notice of Tenant Rights
7. Date and Signature
8. Certificate of Service
9. Practice Notes
10. Sources and References

1. TO THE PERSON IN POSSESSION

TO: [TENANT'S FULL LEGAL NAME]

and all other adult occupants of the premises described below ("Tenant")

From: [LANDLORD'S FULL LEGAL NAME] ("Landlord"), by [LANDLORD'S ATTORNEY / AGENT NAME].

2. DESCRIPTION OF PREMISES

[STREET ADDRESS, UNIT/APARTMENT NUMBER]
[CITY], MICHIGAN [ZIP CODE]
[COUNTY] COUNTY

(the "Premises").

3. GROUND FOR NOTICE

Landlord seeks to terminate Tenant's right of possession on the ground checked below:

☐ (A) Drug-Related Criminal Activity — 24 Hours. MCL 600.5714(1)(b). The lease at paragraph [___] contains a termination clause providing for termination upon unlawful manufacture, delivery, possession with intent to deliver, or possession of a controlled substance on the Premises. A formal police report alleging the conduct has been filed.

☐ (B) Serious and Continuing Health Hazard or Extensive and Continuing Physical Injury to the Premises — 7 Days. MCL 600.5714(1)(d). Tenant has willfully or negligently caused the condition. Any resulting summary proceeding must begin no later than 90 days after Landlord discovered or should have discovered the condition. (Use SCAO Form DC 100b for this ground; this template may be adapted.)

☐ (C) Physical Injury or Threat of Physical Injury — 7 Days. MCL 600.5714(1)(e). Tenant, a member of Tenant's household, or a person under Tenant's control has caused or threatened physical injury to an individual on property owned or operated by Landlord. The police department with jurisdiction has been notified. Do not select this ground if the tenant or a household member was the person injured or threatened, or if applying it would violate federal housing regulations.

☐ (D) Termination of Tenancy at Will or by Sufferance. MCL 554.134(1); MCL 600.5714(1)(c)(iii). Landlord terminates this tenancy by notice to quit. Rent is payable every [RENTAL INTERVAL]. The notice period is [ONE MONTH OR THE APPLICABLE INTERVAL BETWEEN RENT PAYMENTS]. Use this option only if the tenancy and notice period meet § 554.134(1); this option does not itself establish a right to terminate a fixed-term lease for breach.

☐ (E) Other Statutory Ground — Specify: [________________________________]

4. STATEMENT OF FACTS CONSTITUTING THE BREACH

Pursuant to MCL 600.5716, Landlord states the reasons for this Notice as follows:

4.1. [Describe the specific facts — dates, locations, conduct, witnesses, police-report numbers, photographs, written warnings previously given. Be factual, not conclusory.]

4.2. [Continue factual narrative. Cite the lease paragraph violated, if applicable.]

4.3. [List previous written notices, if any: date, manner of service, response.]

4.4. The lease provision violated reads: "[QUOTE THE EXACT LEASE LANGUAGE]" (Lease, ¶ [___]).

5. DEMAND AND NOTICE PERIOD

Landlord hereby demands that, within the period stated below, Tenant move out of the Premises and deliver possession to Landlord:

Cure Option (Ground B Only). If this Notice is based on Section 3(B), Tenant may avoid eviction by substantially restoring or repairing the Premises within 7 days of service. Specifically, Tenant must: [DESCRIBE THE REMEDIAL ACTION REQUIRED].

Other Grounds. For Grounds (A), (C), and (D), the notice directs the tenant to vacate within the stated period. Ground D terminates an applicable tenancy and does not assert an uncured lease breach.

If Tenant fails to vacate (and, where applicable, fails to repair) within the stated period, Landlord will commence summary proceedings under MCL 600.5701 et seq. in the District Court for the [___ ] Judicial District seeking possession, costs, and any other relief allowed by law.

6. NOTICE OF TENANT RIGHTS

IMPORTANT — READ CAREFULLY:

6.1. Right to Defend. If a complaint is filed in district court, you have the right to appear and answer. Defenses include: defective notice; the alleged conduct did not occur or was not willful/negligent; the condition was discovered more than 90 days before suit (Ground B); waiver by Landlord's continued acceptance of rent with knowledge of the breach; retaliation under MCL 600.5720; discrimination under the Elliott-Larsen Civil Rights Act, MCL 37.2502, or the federal Fair Housing Act, 42 U.S.C. § 3601 et seq.; failure to make a reasonable accommodation under the FHA or ADA; and breach of the implied warranty of habitability under MCL 554.139 and Rome v. Walker, 38 Mich. App. 458 (1972).

6.2. Right to Counsel. You have the right to consult an attorney. Free or low-cost legal help is available through:

• Michigan Legal Help: https://michiganlegalhelp.org
• Lakeshore Legal Aid: 1-888-783-8190
• Legal Aid of Western Michigan: 1-800-442-2777
• Detroit residents — Right to Counsel (effective Oct. 1, 2022, for tenants at or below 200% of the federal poverty level): Detroit Office of Eviction Defense, 313-244-0274.

6.3. No Self-Help. Landlord may not lock you out, remove your property, shut off utilities, or otherwise force you out without a court order. For unlawful interference with your possession, MCL 600.2918(2) provides actual damages or $200, whichever is greater, for each occurrence, and allows recovery of possession if lost. Forcible and unlawful ejectment is addressed separately in subsection (1).

6.4. Reasonable Accommodation. If a disability is contributing to alleged conduct (e.g., hoarding, support animal, service animal), you may have the right to request a reasonable accommodation under the federal Fair Housing Act and Michigan Persons with Disabilities Civil Rights Act. Request the accommodation in writing immediately.

7. DATE AND SIGNATURE

Date of Notice: [__/__/____]

Signature of Landlord, Attorney, or Agent:

X _______________________________________

Printed Name: [________________________________]

Title (check one):
☐ Landlord
☐ Attorney for Landlord (Michigan Bar No. [________])
☐ Authorized Agent for Landlord

Address: [STREET ADDRESS]
[CITY, STATE, ZIP]
Telephone: [(___) ___-____]
Email: [________________________________]

8. CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE

I certify under MCL 600.5718 that on [__/__/____] I served this Notice on the Tenant by the method(s) checked below:

☐ Personal delivery to the Tenant at the Premises.
☐ Substituted delivery on the Premises to [NAME, RELATIONSHIP], of suitable age and discretion, with a request that it be delivered to the Tenant.
☐ First-class mail addressed to the Tenant at the Premises (date of service is the next regular day for delivery of mail after the mailing date stated above).
☐ Electronic service to [EMAIL/PORTAL ADDRESS], the Tenant having previously given written consent affirmatively confirmed (consent attached as Exhibit A).

Signature of Server: X _______________________________________

Printed Name: [________________________________]

Date: [__/__/____]

9. PRACTICE NOTES

9.1. Computing the Notice Period

Under MCR 1.108, the day of service is excluded; the last day is included unless it falls on a Saturday, Sunday, or legal holiday. For first-class mail service, the date of service is the next regular mail-delivery day after mailing — the cure period runs from THAT date, not the mailing date.

9.2. Lease Termination Clauses (Ground A)

For the 24-hour controlled-substance ground under MCL 600.5714(1)(b), check the required lease-termination clause and police-report condition. The Michigan SCAO provides Form DC 100e for this ground. Without that clause, this ground is unavailable; a different notice is available only if its own statutory and lease conditions are met.

9.3. Discovery Window (Ground B)

MCL 600.5714(1)(d) requires summary proceedings for willful or negligent damage or a health hazard to begin no later than 90 days after the landlord discovered or should have discovered the condition. If that period has passed, the 7-day ground is unavailable. A notice terminating an at-will or periodic tenancy under MCL 554.134, or a notice under an applicable lease termination clause, requires its own basis and timing; do not use a 30-day notice merely to replace the expired 7-day ground.

9.4. Substantial Restoration Defense (Ground B)

Even after a 7-day Notice under (1)(d), Tenant may defeat eviction by "substantially restoring or repairing" the premises within 7 days. Document the pre-Notice condition with photographs, and monitor for repair efforts during the 7-day period.

9.5. 30-Day Notice and Rent Period

MCL 554.134(1) provides a one-month notice for a tenancy at will or by sufferance. If rent is payable at intervals shorter than three months, a notice period equal to the interval between rent payments is sufficient. Determine the applicable period from the tenancy and payment interval before completing Ground D.

9.6. Rent After Notice

Acceptance of rent that accrues AFTER the notice period commences may waive the breach in a 30-day notice case. Reject post-Notice rent or accept only with a written reservation of rights.

9.7. Detroit and Other Local Rules

Detroit, Hamtramck, Highland Park, and several other municipalities require Certificates of Compliance and impose additional obligations. Confirm local compliance and any "just cause" eviction requirements (some local ordinances limit no-cause termination).

10. SOURCES AND REFERENCES

• Michigan Legislature, MCL 600.5714 — https://www.legislature.mi.gov/Laws/MCL?objectName=mcl-600-5714
• Michigan Legislature, MCL 600.5716 — https://www.legislature.mi.gov/Laws/MCL?objectName=mcl-600-5716
• Michigan Legislature, MCL 600.5718 — https://www.legislature.mi.gov/Laws/MCL?objectName=mcl-600-5718
• Michigan Legislature, MCL 554.134 — https://www.legislature.mi.gov/Laws/MCL?objectName=mcl-554-134
• Michigan Legislature, MCL 554.139 — https://www.legislature.mi.gov/Laws/MCL?objectName=mcl-554-139
• Michigan Legislature, MCL 600.5720 (retaliation) — https://www.legislature.mi.gov/Laws/MCL?objectName=mcl-600-5720
• Michigan Legislature, MCL 600.2918 (anti-lockout) — https://www.legislature.mi.gov/Laws/MCL?objectName=mcl-600-2918
• SCAO Form DC 100b (Damage / Health Hazard) — https://www.courts.michigan.gov/siteassets/forms/scao-approved/dc100b.pdf
• SCAO Form DC 100c (Notice to Quit) — https://www.courts.michigan.gov/siteassets/forms/scao-approved/dc100c.pdf
• SCAO Form DC 100e (Unlawful Drug Activity) — https://www.courts.michigan.gov/siteassets/forms/scao-approved/dc100e.pdf
• SCAO Landlord-Tenant Forms — https://www.courts.michigan.gov/SCAO-forms/LTLC-forms/
• Rome v. Walker, 38 Mich. App. 458, 196 N.W.2d 850 (1972)
• Detroit Office of Eviction Defense — https://detroitmi.gov/departments/law-department/office-eviction-defense-right-counsel