Publications for Real Estate Law
On November 6, 2018, Michigan became the tenth state to legalize cannabis for recreational use, known as Proposal 1 (“Prop 1”). Prop 1 legalized, among other things, the consumption of cannabis for individuals 21 years or older, allows individuals to grow up to 12 cannabis plants, and permits an individual to possess up to 2.5 ounces of consumable cannabis on their person with up to 10 ounces stored at a person’s residence subject to certain storage requirements.
Given these often conflicting interests, landlords must strategically plan and carefully negotiate lease terms that will allow them to mortgage leased property. This means taking the steps necessary to make a transaction appealing to a lender while reducing the risk that a tenant could hold a financing deal hostage.
Most commercial leases, like other business contracts, are filled with provisions (often called “boilerplate”) the parties to the contract pay little attention to; that is, until a dispute arises. At that point, these provisions become critical to the outcome.
In a previous article (The Case for Putting it in Writing), the case was stated for putting “spoken” agricultural contracts in writing. This time, the focus shifts to a particular type of contract: the land lease.
Over the course of the coming months, we will be publishing a series of articles that discuss some of the common real estate, finance, and corporate issues that our clients face on a day-to-day basis.
In May 2017, the City of Detroit announced its intention to implement a city-wide effort to enforce tougher rental ordinance rules on landlords, including demanding that rental properties be registered and brought into compliance.
Most municipalities own at least some real property and often such property is underutilized. An effective way for a municipality to monetize that asset, and raise extra revenue, is to lease the property to a tenant.
Acquiring Michigan agricultural property involves a number of legal issues. One that should be addressed with an attorney is the effect of the acquisition on the qualified agricultural property exemption (“Ag Exemption”).
Michigan has the second longest coastline in the United States trailing only the state of Alaska. With the hot summer months quickly approaching, Michigan’s expansive coastline (including inland shorelines) will be taken over by beachgoers.
On February 6, 2018, Governor Snyder signed Public Act 16 of 2018, which creates a Uniform Commercial Real Estate Receivership Act (the “Act”) in Michigan. The bill was sponsored by State Representative Brandt Iden, of the 61st District. PA 16 can be viewed here.
At some point, a municipality and its leaders likely will be forced to grapple with the following question: Does a landowner have any rights if the landowner builds a home or other obstruction in a road right of way or other property dedicated to the public?
In a case involving a complex set of facts, the Michigan Court of Appeals (the “Court”) recently published an opinion concerning a priority dispute between mortgage lenders involving the doctrine of equitable subrogation (Wells Fargo Bank, N.A. Trustee v. SBC IV REO, LLC and Capitol National Bank, No. 328186, November 29, 2016).
On December 28, 2016, Governor Rick Snyder signed into law Public Act 378 of 2016 (the “Act”), which abolishes all statutory or common law rights of dower in Michigan, except in the case of a widow whose husband dies before the Act’s effective date.
What happens when: (i) a mortgagor, who has defaulted, assigns her rights to any surplus proceeds from the foreclosure sale to a third party, (ii) the mortgagee submits a partial credit bid, and (iii) the property sells for more than the credit bid, but less than the amount due under the mortgage? Is the assignee entitled to the proceeds in excess of the partial credit bid, or should those excess funds go to the mortgagee?
Pursuant to EPA federal regulations, beginning on April 22, 2010 individuals and contractors performing renovations, repairs, or painting activities in homes, child-occupied facilities, and schools built before 1978 must be certified and follow specific work practices to prevent lead-based paint contamination.
A recent Michigan Court of Appeals decision further explained the meaning of "transfer of ownership" within the context of a joint tenancy.
The Department of Treasury (State Tax Commission) has begun the filing of nearly 10,000 appeals with the Michigan Tax Tribunal to address the issue of property that is improperly classified as Industrial Real or Industrial Personal.