Townships Not Authorized to Enforce Deed Restrictions

document and penIn the recent unpublished case, Town Center Flats, LLC v. Shelby Township, the Michigan Court of Appeals held that courts are authorized to enforce deed restrictions on property, but townships are not.

In Town Center, the township had approved a property owner’s development plans that were purportedly in violation of a deed restriction. An adjacent property owner argued that the township’s approval of the development plans (and failure to enforce the deed restriction) constituted a discriminatory application of the law and resulted in the inverse condemnation of its property.

The Michigan Court of Appeals, however, upheld the lower court’s dismissal of the case stating:

[The Township] was not authorized by law to adjudicate the alleged dispute between plaintiff and Redwood. And [the Township] was not required, or authorized, by law to enforce any alleged deed restrictions. Deed restrictions are not land use regulations imposed by the municipality like, for example, zoning ordinances.

Therefore, although the township is responsible for enforcing things like zoning ordinances, it is not authorized to enforce deed restrictions – a matter of private contract. Instead, the proper forum for enforcing a deed restriction is in a court of law.

 

If you have any questions regarding how to resolve a property dispute, please contact the attorneys at Demorest Law Firm.