Michigan guide
Michigan special assessments
Special assessments are how deferred costs in a Michigan association arrive at your door, and Michigan draws a distinction worth understanding: between additional assessments and special assessments. An additional assessment — a top-up for a budget shortfall — is typically within the board's sole discretion and requires no owner vote.
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A special assessment typically requires co-owner approval under the bylaws, commonly a majority of co-owners, though thresholds vary by project. The mechanics come from the master deed and bylaws, not the statute, so the specific documents control. Because thin reserves and a harsh climate make capital surprises common in Michigan, reading the budget, reserve picture, and minutes together is how you anticipate them.
Additional vs. special — a Michigan distinction
An additional assessment is typically a board-only budget-shortfall top-up that does not require an owner vote. A special assessment typically requires co-owner approval per the bylaws — often a majority (around 50%+) of co-owners, though some bylaws require higher percentages or a meeting quorum. Read the specific master deed and bylaws to learn which approvals apply. Where the bylaws are ambiguous about the owner-vote requirement, that ambiguity is itself a litigation risk.
Where the next assessment hides
The most reliable predictors of a coming special assessment in Michigan are an underfunded reserve (often at the 10% floor) paired with large near-term components, a pattern of board-only additional assessments signaling chronic underbudgeting, and an insurance renewal that spiked. Repeated additional assessments and steep year-over-year dues increases are warning signs. The minutes often telegraph an assessment months before it is formally levied.
Disclosure: demand the statement
No Michigan statute compels disclosure of pending or approved special assessments on resale. A buyer who closes can inherit an approved-but-unbilled assessment. So demand a written statement of any pending or approved special assessment, and read the minutes for assessment discussion that has not yet been formally levied. This is contract work — there is no statutory resale certificate to rely on.
Borrowing instead of assessing
Condo associations may borrow for capital projects where the documents permit, and lenders usually require evidence of the bylaw-mandated owner approval and may take a security interest in future assessments. An outstanding association loan is not inherently bad, but it commits future dues to debt service. Confirm any loan, its terms, and whether it was properly approved under the bylaws.
Michigan legal references
- MCL §559.154 — Bylaws, assessments, and annual financial statement
- MCL §559.205 — Reserve fund (drives capital-funding adequacy)
- MCL §559.190 — Bylaw amendments (2/3 vote, affecting assessment provisions)
Informational only. Not legal advice. Always confirm against current statute and counsel.
Need help applying these Michigan statutes to your specific situation? We can connect you with state-licensed counsel and specialists familiar with this exact regulatory environment.
Find a Michigan specialist →Reviewer's checklist
- Read the master deed and bylaws for the special-assessment approval threshold
- Distinguish board-only additional assessments from owner-approved special assessments
- Review the additional- and special-assessment history for the last several years
- Watch for repeated board-only additional assessments (a chronic-underbudgeting signal)
- Read the reserve picture for large near-term components driving a likely assessment
- Review insurance renewals for premium spikes that could trigger an assessment
- Read the minutes for assessment discussion not yet formally levied
- Demand a written statement of any pending or approved special assessment
- Confirm whether the association has borrowed against future assessments
- Confirm whether any approval-threshold ambiguity in the bylaws creates litigation risk
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Related risk areas
Read these next to round out your due diligence
Reserve studies
A reserve study tells you what the association expects to spend on long-term capital repairs and replacements, and whether it is funding those obligations adequately.
Insurance risk
The association's master insurance policy determines what your personal HO-6 policy needs to cover — and what it does not.
Condo document review
A condo document review is the structured analysis of every disclosure document your seller or association has provided — declaration, bylaws, rules, reserve study, budgets, financials, meeting minutes, insurance summary, estoppel or resale certificate, and any pending special assessment notices.
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