1.7Discrimination in Housing

The Elliott-Larsen Civil Rights Act (ELCRA), MCL 37.2101 et seq., prohibits any form of housing discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, age, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, familial status, or marital status. MCL 37.2502. The ELCRA, which covers housing and other real estate transactions, recognizes and declares the opportunity to obtain housing to be a basic civil right. MCL 37.2102(1).

Under the ELCRA and the Landlord-Tenant Relationship Act (LTRA), MCL 554.601 et seq., a person that is a landlord and owns five or more rental units in Michigan, including all related entities to that person, is prohibited from discriminating against an individual “based on the source of income of an otherwise eligible prospective or current tenant[.]” MCL 37.2502(3)-(4); MCL 554.601c(1)-(2).¹

In addition to the ELCRA, the Persons With Disabilities Civil Rights Act (PWDCRA), MCL 37.1101 et seq., guarantees the opportunity to obtain housing or other real estate without discrimination because of disability.

Both the PWDCRA and the ELCRA exclude from coverage the rental of housing accommodations in a building providing not more than two families can live there independently where the owner or a member of the owner’s immediate family occupies one part of the property, or the rental of a room(s) in a single-family dwelling where the lessor or member of the lessor’s immediate family resides in the dwelling. MCL 37.1503; MCL 37.2503(1)(a). The ELCRA alone excludes those dwellings for which the owner is only temporarily leasing the home following his or her immediate prior occupancy of the premises. MCL 37.2503(1)(b). In addition, the ELCRA permits owners to establish senior citizens housing for persons 50 years of age or older. MCL 37.2503(1)(c).

Federal law also precludes discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, sex, handicap, and familial status.² See 42 USC 3604.