Co-owners, land contracts and recovering possession in Michigan

A partition action is an equitable lawsuit in circuit court to divide land that two or more people own together, or to sell it and divide the money. MCL 600.3304 says joint tenants may have their land partitioned, and tenants in common may too, subject to chapter 34. A person with only a remainder or reversion cannot sue under MCL 600.3308.

MCL 600.3301 allows partition claims in circuit court and calls them equitable in nature. MCL 600.3308 limits who may sue: a person with an estate in possession can maintain the claim, but a person who holds only a reversion or remainder cannot. Under MCR 3.401(A), the court decides whether the premises can be partitioned without great prejudice to the parties, values the use of the premises and improvements made, and considers other pertinent matters. A creditor with a lien on all or part of the premises need not be made a party under MCR 3.401(C), though the plaintiff may join creditors who hold a specific lien on a party's undivided interest. Since April 2, 2025, a family-held tenancy in common may also fall under the heirs property rules in chapter 34 of the Revised Judicature Act, which can change the process. Before filing, gather the deeds, the probate records, and any co-ownership agreement, because they determine who the co-owners are.

Authority: MCL 600.3301; MCL 600.3304; MCL 600.3308; MCR 3.401. Reviewed Oct. 2026.

Yes, but not automatically. If the court finds the premises cannot be partitioned without great prejudice to the owners, MCL 600.3332 allows it to order a sale at public auction to the highest bidder and to set a minimum price. A single house on one lot can be hard to divide. If the property is heirs property, chapter 34 applies first and lets the other co-owners buy out the owner who asked for the sale.

MCL 600.3332 gives the court a choice: partition in kind where division is workable, or sale where it is not. If part of the land can be divided and part cannot, the court may appoint partition commissioners to divide what can be divided and set aside the rest to be sold. MCR 3.401(B) tracks this, saying that if the court determines the premises can be partitioned, MCR 3.402 governs, and if they cannot be partitioned without undue prejudice to the owners, the court may order a sale in lieu of partition under MCR 3.403. The court determines the value of the use of the premises and improvements under MCR 3.401(A)(2), which can affect each co-owner's share. If the property is heirs property, chapter 34 adds steps before any court-ordered sale, including a right for other cotenants to buy out the owner who asked for the sale. Which rules apply depends on how title was acquired and who the co-owners are.

Authority: MCL 600.3332; MCR 3.401; MCL 600.3403; MCL 600.3407. Reviewed Oct. 2026.

Heirs property is real property held as tenants in common that has no binding partition agreement, where at least one co-owner got title from a relative, and where one of three 20 percent tests tied to relatives is met. Since April 2, 2025, courts must decide whether land is heirs property and, if it is, partition it under chapter 34.

2024 PA 215 added chapter 34 to the Revised Judicature Act, effective April 2, 2025. MCL 600.3402 defines heirs property by three requirements at the time the partition action is filed: no agreement in a record binding all cotenants that governs partition; at least one cotenant acquired title from a relative, living or deceased; and one of three 20 percent tests is met, based on interests held by relatives, interests held by an individual who acquired title from a relative, or the share of cotenants who are relatives. Under MCL 600.3403, in any partition action under chapter 33 the court must determine whether the property is heirs property. If it is, the property must be partitioned under chapter 34 unless all of the cotenants otherwise agree in a record. Chapter 34 applies to actions filed after its effective date and supersedes inconsistent parts of chapter 33. If your family owns land through several generations without a probate, collect the deeds and estate documents first.

Authority: MCL 600.3402; MCL 600.3403; MCL 600.3304. Reviewed Oct. 2026.

Often yes, if the property is heirs property. Under MCL 600.3407, once the court determines the value and a cotenant requests partition by sale, any cotenant who did not request the sale may elect, within 45 days after the court's notice, to buy all the interests of the cotenants who did. The price is the court-determined value of the whole parcel times each seller's fractional share.

The court first sets fair market value by ordering an appraisal under MCL 600.3406, unless all cotenants have agreed on a valuation or the court decides after a hearing that the appraisal would cost more than it is worth. After the 45-day election period, if one cotenant elects to buy, the court notifies the parties. If several elect, the court allocates the right in proportion to their existing fractional ownership. If none elects, the court resolves the action under MCL 600.3408. The court then sets a payment date not sooner than 60 days after its notice, by which electing cotenants must pay their apportioned price into court. If some do not pay, others who did may pay the remainder within 20 days. If no one pays, the action proceeds as though the interests were not purchased. A cotenant entitled to buy may also ask the court to authorize sale of the interests of cotenants who were served but did not appear. The deadlines are short, so lining up financing early matters.

Authority: MCL 600.3407; MCL 600.3402; MCL 600.3406. Reviewed Oct. 2026.

The contract must expressly provide for forfeiture. The seller must serve a written notice of forfeiture, and you have 15 days, or a longer time if agreed in writing, to pay the missed amounts and cure other material breaches. If you do not cure, the seller may start summary proceedings for possession in court.

MCL 600.5726 allows summary proceedings after forfeiture of an executory contract for purchase only if the contract expressly provides for termination or forfeiture on nonpayment or another material breach. Under that section, the money you must pay to cure does not include an accelerated balance of the whole contract. MCL 600.5728 sets the notice contents: the names of the parties and the date of the contract, the address or legal description, the unpaid amount of money required to be paid and the dates the payments were due, any other material breaches, and a declaration that forfeiture is effective in 15 days or a longer specified time unless the money is paid and other breaches are cured. The notice must be dated and signed by the person entitled to possession, an attorney, or an agent. Possession may be recovered only after you have been served and failed to cure in time. If you receive a notice, count the time from service, check each amount against your payment records, and keep proof of any payment you make.

Authority: MCL 600.5726; MCL 600.5728. Reviewed Oct. 2026.

Under MCL 600.5744(4), a writ of restitution after a land contract forfeiture judgment cannot issue until 90 days after the judgment if less than 50% of the purchase price has been paid, or until 6 months after the judgment if 50% or more has been paid. Paying the judgment amount and costs within the time provided stops the writ.

MCL 600.5744(7) says that if the judgment is for nonpayment or another material breach, the writ must not issue if, within the time provided, the amount stated in the judgment with taxed costs is paid and any other material breaches are cured. Once the writ does issue, MCL 600.5744(8) says it forecloses any equitable right of redemption the purchaser has or could claim in the premises. If an appeal is taken or a motion for new trial is filed and a bond to stay proceedings is posted, the waiting period is tolled until the appeal or motion is finally decided. The percentage paid is measured against the purchase price, so the contract and payment history matter. If you have paid a large share of the price, ask whether the seller sought forfeiture instead of foreclosure and what the buyer's equity is, because forfeiture can leave the buyer without that equity.

Authority: MCL 600.5744. Reviewed Oct. 2026.

The seller can try, but for forfeiture purposes, MCL 600.5726 says the moneys required to be paid under the contract do not include accelerated indebtedness caused by a breach. The notice of forfeiture should therefore list the actual unpaid installments and other material breaches, and curing those within 15 days is what the statute asks.

MCL 600.5726 allows summary proceedings after forfeiture only if the contract expressly provides for forfeiture, and expressly says that for purposes of that chapter the moneys required to be paid do not include any accelerated indebtedness by reason of breach of the contract. MCL 600.5728 requires the notice to specify the unpaid amount of the moneys required to be paid and the dates they were due, and any other material breaches. If the notice demands the full accelerated balance as the amount needed to cure, I would challenge the notice. Also, the 15-day cure period runs from service, and the statute allows a longer agreed time in writing. The seller may instead pursue judicial foreclosure under MCL 600.3101, where the court supervises the sale and you have a 6-month redemption right under MCL 600.3140(2). Bring the contract and every notice you received.

Authority: MCL 600.5726; MCL 600.5728; MCL 600.3140; MCL 600.3101. Reviewed Oct. 2026.

Division is the default, but a buyout comes first. If the property is heirs property under MCL 600.3402(e) and the action was filed after April 2, 2025, a cotenant's request for a sale triggers a court valuation and 45 days for the other cotenants to buy that interest (MCL 600.3407). If no one buys, MCL 600.3408 requires partition in kind unless, after weighing the MCL 600.3409 factors, the court finds great prejudice to the cotenants as a group; only then does it order a sale.

Heirs property is real property held as tenants in common where no agreement in a record binds all the cotenants on partition, at least one cotenant acquired title from a relative, and a 20 percent test is met (MCL 600.3402(e)). If the court finds heirs property, it orders an appraisal unless the cotenants agree on a value or the appraisal costs more than it is worth (MCL 600.3406), then offers the buyout. If no buyout happens, MCL 600.3409 requires the court to consider whether division is practicable, whether divided parcels would be worth materially less than the whole if sold, how long the cotenants and their relatives have owned or possessed the property, sentimental attachment, the lawful use a cotenant is making of the property and the harm of losing it, and each cotenant's payments toward taxes, insurance, maintenance, and improvements. No single factor is dispositive. If the court orders division, it may require one cotenant to pay another so the result is proportionate in value to fractional interests. If no cotenant requested a sale and division is not ordered, the court dismisses the action. Keep records of tax and insurance payments, because contribution is a listed factor.

Authority: MCL 600.3408; MCL 600.3409; MCL 600.3402; MCL 600.3403; MCL 600.3406; MCL 600.3407. Reviewed Oct. 2026.

Possibly. Under MCL 600.2919(2)(a), a joint tenant or tenant in common who commits or suffers waste of the land held in common, without a lawful license in writing to do so, is liable to the cotenant for double the actual damages. A cotenant may bring the claim, and the court can enjoin threatened waste of the land.

MCL 600.2919(2)(b) says each party recovers damages according to the party's estate in the premises, and a joint tenant or tenant in common may bring the claim for waste by another joint tenant or tenant in common. Under subsection (3)(b), where there is not a plain, adequate, and complete remedy for waste, or where waste is threatened, the circuit court may grant injunctions to stay and prevent the waste from occurring. Subsection (4) adds that after an action for waste, recovery of land, or possession of land is commenced, the defendant must not commit waste of the land in question while the action is pending. Whether activity is waste or ordinary use is a fact question, and cotenants generally have rights to use the property. The statute applies only when the waste is committed without a lawful license in writing. I would collect photographs, timber or contractor invoices, and any messages about what was allowed, and then decide whether to seek an injunction.

Authority: MCL 600.2919. Reviewed Oct. 2026.

Use the court process. MCL 600.5714(1)(f) allows summary proceedings to recover possession from a person who takes possession by forcible entry, holds by force after peaceable entry, or comes into possession by trespass without color of title or other possessory interest. Under MCL 600.5744(3)(d), a court may issue a writ immediately after judgment on proof that the defendant entered by trespass without color of title.

Michigan has a statute against self-help that applies to people who are put out of land by force. MCL 600.2918(1) says a person who is ejected or put out of lands in a forcible and unlawful manner, or kept out by force, may recover three times actual damages or $200, whichever is greater, in addition to possession. A tenant whose possession is unlawfully interfered with by an owner has a related claim in subsection (2), which lists lockouts, utility shutoffs, and removal of belongings. Whether a person is a squatter or someone with a claim, such as a tenant, family member, or buyer under a land contract, is not always obvious, and treating a person with a possessory interest as a squatter creates risk. I would gather the deed, proof the person has no lease or payments, photographs, and any police report, then file summary proceedings. Do not change the locks or remove belongings without advice.

Authority: MCL 600.5714; MCL 600.5744; MCL 600.2918. Reviewed Oct. 2026.

Not quickly. Adverse possession takes 15 years under MCL 600.5801(4), and the possession must be actual, visible, open, notorious, exclusive, continuous, and uninterrupted for that period, and hostile and under claim of right, proved by clear and cogent evidence. A short stay confers nothing. Owners who delay can still lose rights over a long time.

The elements are stated in Beach v Lima Township and repeated in Marlette Auto Wash v Van Dyke SC Properties. Title vests in the possessor only after the full statutory period, and then is not record or marketable until a court enters a decree, usually in a quiet title action. Meanwhile, the owner has the summary proceedings remedy in MCL 600.5714(1)(f) against a person who comes into possession by trespass without color of title or other possessory interest. A person who takes over a vacant house for a few months is not close to 15 years, but a long-running occupant with deed paperwork, tax payments, or a family history may be. The practical advice is not to ignore a vacant property: inspect it, keep the taxes paid, secure it, and act promptly if someone moves in. Adverse possession does not run against governmental land under MCL 600.5821.

Authority: MCL 600.5801; Marlette Auto Wash, LLC v Van Dyke SC Properties, LLC, 501 Mich 192 (2018); MCL 600.5714; MCL 600.5821; Beach v Lima Township, 489 Mich 99 (2011). Reviewed Oct. 2026.

MCL 600.2932(1) lets a person claiming a right to possession of land sue in circuit court against anyone claiming an inconsistent interest, and subsection (3) lets the court issue a writ of possession in an appropriate case. Summary proceedings under chapter 57 are a separate route, and MCR 3.411 does not apply to them.

People often call a suit to recover land ejectment. In practice, the modern action is the one in MCL 600.2932, which is equitable and decides the competing interests. If the plaintiff proves title, the defendant is ordered to release all claims, and the court may issue a writ of possession. MCR 3.411(E) lets the party with title claim the reasonable value of the use of the land for the period it was withheld, going back 6 years before the suit, and MCR 3.411(F) allows the other side to claim for improvements, unless made in bad faith. Time limits matter: MCL 600.5801 bars an action for the recovery or possession of land unless it is brought within the stated periods, generally 15 years. Summary proceedings under MCL 600.5714 apply in defined situations, such as holdover tenants, forcible entry, trespass without color of title, and possession after a mortgage redemption period. Which route fits depends on whether the occupant claims any right.

Authority: MCL 600.2932; MCR 3.411; MCL 600.5801; MCL 600.5714. Reviewed Oct. 2026.