Walk It Through: The Landlord Changed The Locks
A dead furnace, a complaint, a notice, and a lock that is not a judgment.
January. The furnace quits, and the landlord says it will be looked at when it is looked at.
Two things a person in this spot might do. Picking one shows what the law says about it.
One tenancy, one furnace and one lockout. Rent escrow procedure, what a court may order about repairs, and how quickly a writ issues after a judgment are not covered, and each has its own rules.
A practice walkthrough, not a prediction of how any real one will go. Legal information, not legal advice.
Words this turns on
Terms with a legal meaning that is narrower than the everyday one. Each links to the definition and the authority behind it.
- Demand for possessionThe written notice that starts an eviction for unpaid rent. A tenant who has not paid within 7 days from service of the demand is the one the court may remove.
- Summary proceedingsThe court process by which a Michigan landlord recovers possession of a rental.
- Unlawful interference with possessionAn owner interfering with a tenant's possession by force or threat, removing belongings, changing the locks without immediately handing over keys, boarding the premises, removing doors or windows, or cutting off heat, running water, hot water, electric or gas.
- Writ of restitutionThe court's order, issued after a judgment for possession, that a court officer or bailiff, the sheriff or a deputy, or a local police officer carries out by removing the occupants and their property.
- Retaliatory evictionAn eviction intended primarily as a penalty for trying to enforce rights, or for complaining to a government authority about a health or safety code violation. A judgment for possession may not be entered where the tenant establishes it.