Michigan Adverse Possession Laws

Created by FindLaw's team of legal writers and editors | Last reviewed June 20, 2016

When someone moves into possession of an otherwise neglected property, improves it, and possesses it in a transparent and public way, they may be able to claim title to the property under the doctrine of "adverse possession." The idea of these laws is to make sure property does not sit idle or otherwise be wasted to the community. Michigan adverse possession laws require a 15-year period of occupation before he or she may claim title to the property.

The main provisions of Michigan's adverse possession law are detailed in the following table. See FindLaw's Land Use Laws section for related articles and resources.

Code Section	§600.5801, 5851
Time Period Required for Occupation	15 yrs.-
Time for Landowner to Challenge/Effect of Landowner's Disability	After disability lifted: 1 yr.
Improvements	-
Payment of Taxes	-
Title from Tax Assessor	10 years

Note: State laws are constantly changing -- contact a Michigan land use and zoning attorney or conduct your own legal research to verify the state law(s) you are researching.

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