April 2020 Special Edition

Welcome to a special edition of the Real Property Law Section e-Newsletter. The shelter-in-place orders and other measures arising out of the COVID-19 pandemic are creating issues for real property attorneys and their clients. The editors have gathered information from a variety of sources we hope will be helpful. The list includes articles from other real estate practitioners as well as links to webpages from various agencies. This is not an exhaustive list of resources; if you have other information that would be useful for real property law practitioners, send them to the editors for possible inclusion in future editions.

• Bulletin 2020-11-BT/CF/CU from the Department of Insurance and Financial Services clarifying that banks, credit unions, and consumer financial service providers (e.g. mortgage companies, money transmitters, payday lenders, consumer installment lenders, sales finance lenders, debt management companies, and pawnbrokers), bond issuers, title companies, inspectors, appraisers, surveyors, registers of deeds, and notaries, are all included within financial services under Michigan’s shelter-in-place order that took effect March 24, 2020.
• Article from Stroock & Stroock & Lavan that discusses the impact on closings
• Article from Schulte Roth & Zabel that discusses considerations for purchase and sale agreements
• Article from Shumaker Loop & Kendrick that discusses considerations for homeowners associations
• Article from Bodman that discusses the applicability of force majeure clauses
• Article from DLA Piper about Coronavirus and the US commercial real estate sector (United States)
• Article from Ronan Daly Jermyn about Covid-19: Impact on the obligations of commercial landlords and tenants
• Article from Bradley about COVID-19 and the Mortgage Industry: 7 Things We Know Today
• Article on The COVID-19 Pandemic: Impacts on Real Estate Transactions
• Article on Coronavirus Issues for Commercial Real Estate Owners
• Article on Coronavirus and Commercial Real Estate Leases

Please note that the RPLS has gathered these articles but does not necessarily endorse the views expressed by the authors.

Websites and Links Related to the Coronavirus

• Federal Housing Finance Agency bulletins concerning mortgages and other matters

• Fannie Mae

• Freddie Mac

• Michigan Mortgage Lenders Association

• Mortgage Industry Standards Maintenance Organization resources, including information about online notarization

Real Property Law Section Website

An important resource always available to section members is the RPLS page on the State Bar of Michigan website. It provides access to a wealth of resources including the Michigan Real Property Review, materials from Homeward Bound, Groundbreakers, summer and winter conferences, videos of presentations, and more. These resources are not necessarily focused on the COVID-19 outbreak but may be useful in general and are always available to RPLS members.

Please submit articles, links, or other resources you have found helpful during the COVID-19 outbreak to e-Newsletter editors gzatz@bodman.com, pat.paruch50@gmail.com, or hlax@bodman.com. 

Thank you and best wishes for health and safety to you and yours.

View the Report

• All Articles
  
• Artists' Rights
  
• Condominium
  
• Construction
  
• Development
  
• Easements
  
• Environmental
  
• Landlord Tenant
  
• Leases
  
• Miscellaneous
  
• Mortgages & Foreclosures
  
• Property Rights
  
• Residential
  
• Restrictive Covenant
  
• Riparian Rights
  
• Taxes
  
• Title
  
• Zoning
  

Interested in writing an article for the e-Newsletter? Contact co-editors Samuel Kilberg at SKilberg@dykema.com or Glen Zatz at gzatz@bodmanlaw.com.

Can't remember where you saw that e-Newsletter article? Check the e-Newsletter article index.

We are also looking for suggested authors and topics for the Michigan Real Property Review. Please contact Chair-Elect, Jason Long at Jlong@wwrplaw.com for suggested topics and ideas.

The views and opinions expressed in these articles are those of the authors, and they do not reflect in any way the positions of the State Bar of Michigan or the Real Property Law Section. These columns are meant for informational purposes only and should not be construed as legal advice. IRS Circular 230 Disclosure: To ensure compliance with requirements imposed by the Internal Revenue Service, we inform you that any U.S. federal tax advice contained in this communication (including any attachments) was not intended or written to be used, and cannot be used, by any person for the purpose of (i) avoiding tax-related penalties or (ii) promoting, marketing, or recommending to another person any transaction or matter addressed in this communication.