Landlord / Tenant & Land Contact Forfeiture Cases

Case Types

Landlord/Tenant cases are intended to handle disputes between a landlord and tenant(s) occurring within the City of East Lansing. The following are the types of landlord tenant cases:

  • Non Payment of rent
  • Termination of tenancy (30-day notice)
  • Health hazard or injury to premises
  • Land contract forfeitures and disputes

Definitions

A tenant is a person renting an apartment, house, mobile home or building. A landlord is a person who is renting the apartment, house, mobile home, or building to the Tenant. Both landlords and tenants have legal rights.

Notice to Quit Forms

If a tenant is not paying rent, creating a health hazard or refusing to leave at the conclusion of the term of the lease, the landlord must first complete and serve the tenant one of the appropriate Notice to Quit forms:

The landlord will deliver the notice to the tenant by personal service, substitute service or first class mail. If the tenant has not vacated the property by the period of time specified on the particular notice you used, the landlord may file an action with the court.

Filing for Court Action

To file an action with the court, you will need the following documents:

The tenant must be served with two copies of each of these documents; one by a process server and one by first class mail. Please refer to the chart below for the number of copies of each document you will need to provide. You will also need to pay a filing fee when the action is filed.

Number of copies needed to file landlord/tenant action

One tenant

  • Summons (5 part form)
  • Complaint (4 part form)
  • Original Notice to Quit & 3 copies
  • Lease or written agreement - 3 copies
  • One envelope addressed to tenant with sufficient postage affixed, usually 98 cents

Two tenants

  • Summons (5 part form) plus two copies of the second page
  • Complaint (4 part form) plus two copies of the front page
  • Original Notice to Quit & 5 copies
  • Lease or written agreement - 5 copies
  • One envelope addressed to each tenant with sufficient postage affixed, usually 98 cents

Each additional tenant

  • Summons - add two copies of second page for each additional tenant
  • Complaint - add two copies of front page for each additional tenant
  • Notice to Quit - add two copies for each additional tenant
  • Lease or written agreement - add two copies for each additional tenant
  • One envelope addressed to each tenant with sufficient postage affixed, usually 98 cents

How much does it cost to file?

Resources for Tenants Facing Evictions