Housing Your Rights to Buy or Rent It is against the law to refuse to let you buy or rent a place to live just because you have a disability. This is called discrimination. Laws like the Fair Housing Act, Americans with Disabilities Act and the Michigan Persons with Disabilities Civil Rights Act give you rights. You have the right to buy a home if you can pay for it. It could be discrimination if someone won't let you see or buy a house for sale for no reason. It could also be discrimination if a company won't give you a loan or mortgage to buy the house just because you have a disability. You have the right to rent a house or an apartment. It might be discrimination if someone refuses to rent to you, evicts you, or threatens to evict you just because you have a disability. You have the right to reasonable accommodations for your disability when you rent. If your landlord has a rule that you cannot do something or you cannot ask for accommodations because of your disability, you can ask your landlord to change the rule. You can also ask the landlord to make physical changes to your place if your disability makes it hard for you to get around. These are accommodations. Your landlord cannot evict you just for asking for an accommodation. When you ask, put it in a letter to your landlord and keep a copy for yourself. You have the right to a 30-day notice before the day the landlord wants you out. If the landlord says you did not pay your rent, then you only get a 7-day notice. This notice must be in writing. If you do not leave, then you will get another notice with a court date. If you want to stop the eviction, you can go to the court hearing by yourself or get a lawyer to help you. If the judge orders you to leave the home, you can appeal. You have only 10 days from the day of the judge's decision to appeal. Sometimes, a landlord will try to get you to agree to something else before you see the judge. Then you tell the judge your agreement. This is called a CONSENT JUDGEMENT. Sometimes, you can change the consent judgment if you did not have a lawyer with you when you made it. You have only 3 days after court to do this. The law gives you other rights. Contact your local legal aid office or a Landlord-Tenant agency or community resolution center for more information. You have the right to file a complaint if you think you have been discriminated against in your choice of housing. You can complain to the Michigan Department of Civil Rights within 180 days of when it happened. Michigan Department of Civil Rights Cadillac Place 3054 W. Grand Blvd. Ste. 3-600 Detroit, MI 48202 1.800.482.3604 or 313.456.3700 for Wayne county; 1.877.878.8464 TTY You may also complain to HUD for up to one year after it happened. U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Region V 77 W. Jackson Blvd. #2600 Chicago, IL 60604-3507 1.800.765.9372; 1.800.927.9275 TTY This information is a service of Disability Rights Michigan (DRM). It provides general information, based on the law at the time we wrote it, and is not legal advice. You do not have an attorney-client relationship with DRM. If you need legal advice, you should contact an attorney. If you would like more information about this topic or would like to receive this information in an alternative format call DRM at 800.288.5923 or visit our website, www.drmich.org. Disability Rights Michigan (DRM) is mandated by federal and state law to protect the legal rights of individuals with disabilities in Michigan. DRM receives part of its funding from the Administration on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities, the Center for Mental Health Services-Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), the Rehabilitation Services Administration and the Social Security Administration. Updated August 2020 1