Landlords and rental managers often use rental applications to collect background information from prospective tenants.
This can help you decide whether you can comfortably rent to the tenant.
A Michigan Rental Application form can request information about applicants’ rental history, eviction history, employment, credit history, and income.
After you conduct the various background checks and are satisfied with the prospective tenant, you can use our Michigan lease agreement to rent out your property.
Michigan Rental Application Fees
In Michigan, no law limits the amount of money a landlord can request as the rental application fee.
Thus, you are free to ask the prospective tenant to pay any reasonable amount as a nonrefundable fee to cover the expenses you will incur to process the rental application and run background checks.
You can also ask tenants to pay a pet deposit if applicable. The pet deposit is typically a one-time, refundable amount the tenant deposits to cover any damage the pet may cause to the property.
Michigan laws do not state the maximum amount you can charge as a pet deposit.
You can also charge a security deposit to cover any damage to the property during the tenant’s occupation of the rental property.
Section 554.602 of the Michigan Compiled Law on landlord and tenant relationships provides that landlords can collect a security deposit that cannot exceed one and one-half month’s rent.
Authorization for Background Checks
Running a background check on prospective tenants may reveal information about their history that will give you an idea of the kind of tenant they will be.
However, according to the Federal Credit Reporting Act, before you can run a background check on anyone, you need to obtain a signed consent form from them.
You can get your prospective tenant’s permission as a part of the rental application form or use our separate background check authorization form to get the required consent.
How To Conduct an Eviction Record Search in Michigan
Eviction records may also signal previous issues that potential tenants have had with landlords.
You can access Michigan eviction records online via the court’s case system.
Here’s how you can access the eviction records:
- Go to Michigan Courts Case Search.
- Select the tab that allows you to search by party name.
- Enter the prospective tenant’s name.
- If there is a record, select the case number. This will take you to a docket sheet containing the details of the case.
- The documents will be linked in PDF format if they are available for viewing.
Other Resources for Landlords in Michigan
- State Fair Housing Laws: The Michigan Elliott-Larsen Civil Rights Act, Michigan Compiled Laws §§ 37.2101 – 37.2804, prohibits discrimination in housing on the grounds of religion, race, national origin, sex, color, familial status, age, height, weight or marital status.
- State Sex Offender Registry: You can also conduct further background checks on the potential tenant in Michigan’s sex offender registry.
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How to Write a Rental Application
Follow the steps below to write a rental application in Michigan.
Step 1 – Fill in Property Address Information
Write the date of the rental application and the address of the rental property.
Step 2 – Collect Basic Rental Applicant Information
This section provides the applicant(s) basic identifying information about themselves.
Step 3 – Collect Applicant’s Residence History
In this section, the applicant(s) provides their residence history including addresses, dates of residency, and reasons for moving.
Step 4 – Gather Applicant’s Employment History
This section is for the applicant(s) to provide current and previous employment information and other sources of income.
Step 5 – Gather Applicant’s Financial History
This section is for the applicant(s) to provide bank account and credit card information.
Step 6 – Collect References
The applicant(s) provides personal references’ names and contact information in this section.
Step 7 – Additional Questions and Verification
This section contains additional questions to determine more information about the applicant such as smoking or pets.
Sample Michigan Rental Application Form
Below, you can download our sample rental application form for Michigan. You can also customize it in our document builder.