Legislative Analysis
Phone: (517) 373-8080
EVICTION RECORD EXPUNGEMENT
http://www.house.mi.gov/hfa
House Bill 5238 as passed by the House Analysis available at
Sponsor: Rep. Jimmie Wilson, Jr. http://www.legislature.mi.gov
Committee: Economic Development
and Small Business [Discharged]
Complete to 12-13-24
SUMMARY:
House Bill 5238 would amend the Revised Judicature Act to allow the expungement of eviction
records under certain circumstances.
Under the bill, a district court or municipal court, as applicable, could order the expungement
of records for an eviction proceeding under Chapter 57 or 57A of the Revised Judicature Act
if any of the following apply: 1
• The court determines that the plaintiff’s action is sufficiently without a basis in fact or
law, including a lack of jurisdiction.
• A judgment for possession (eviction order) was entered at least three years before the
motion to expunge the records, the court determines that the expungement is clearly in
the interests of justice, and the interests of justice are not outweighed by the public’s
interest in knowing about the records. (In making this determination, the court would
have to consider circumstances beyond the tenant’s control that led to the eviction and
any other extenuating circumstances under which the eviction order was granted.)
• The proceeding was brought when a person remained on the premises after being
served an eviction notice to quit the premises for nonpayment of rent, or after the
termination of their lease agreement, and a judgment of possession was not entered.
• The judgment was a judgment by stipulation of the parties and the moving party has
complied with the terms of the stipulated agreement.
• The judgment, including a judgment of dismissal, was entered in the moving party’s
favor.
A court could order the expungement of eviction records under Chapter 57 or Chapter 57A
upon the motion of a tenant, manufactured home park resident, or landlord, or upon the court’s
own motion, if at least one of the following applies:
• The premises were sold under the foreclosure of a mortgage or land contract, the
tenancy was terminated because the defendant remained on the premises after the time
limited by law for the redemption of the premises, and the defendant either vacated the
premises before the eviction proceedings were filed or did not receive an eviction
notice at least 90 days before the proceedings were filed.
• The eviction proceedings were filed during the state of emergency declared under
Executive Order No. 2020-4, 2 or any extension of that order.
1
Chapter 57 of the Revised Judicature Act pertains to summary proceedings to recover possession of premises
(eviction proceedings), while Chapter 57A pertains to the termination of tenancy in a mobile home park.
2
Governor Whitmer issued Executive Order No. 2020-4 in response to the COVID-19 pandemic:
https://www.legislature.mi.gov/documents/2019-2020/executiveorder/pdf/2020-EO-04.pdf.
House Fiscal Agency Page 1 of 3
 If the court determines that a record should be expunged, it would have to order to set aside the
judgment and expunge the official records of the action pertaining to the party that made the
motion for expungement. Upon the entry of the order, the judgment would be deemed not to
have been entered, and the moving party could answer accordingly any questions relating to
its occurrence.
Official records would mean all records, documents, and evidence relating to the
eviction proceedings that are maintained by the court, such as the complaint, other
pleadings, a proof of service, and court findings.
A motion for an expungement would not be subject to the $20 motion fee for civil actions.
MCL 600.8371 and proposed MCL 600.5755
BRIEF DISCUSSION:
According to testimony before the Economic Development and Small Business Subcommittee
on Housing, many people have old eviction-related notices that linger on their records and
prevent them from securing housing. However, most of these records, including rent payment
issues, are reportedly resolved before ultimately resulting in an eviction. Supporters of House
Bill 5238 argue that by automatically expunging notices that do not result in evictions and by
expunging other records, with some exceptions, the bill would better allow people to access
housing without facing discrimination.
Opponents of House Bill 5238, however, raise concerns that the bill does not require enough
time to have passed before a record is expunged. They argue that the bill would limit property
owners’ ability to perform background checks in order to ensure that their other tenants are
protected and that property owners should be able to know if a potential tenant is unlikely to
pay rent based on their record.
FISCAL IMPACT:
House Bill 5238 would have an indeterminate fiscal impact on local court funding units. Costs
would be incurred depending on how provisions of the bill affected court caseloads and related
administrative costs. Increased costs could be offset, to some degree, depending on whether
additional court-imposed fee revenue is generated.
POSITIONS:
Representatives of the following entities testified in support of the bill (12-5-24):
• Rent is Too Damn High
• We the People Action Fund
The following entities indicated support for the bill (12-5-24):
• Michigan’s Children
• Voting Access for All Coalition
House Fiscal Agency HB 5238 as passed by the House Page 2 of 3
 A representative of the Rental Property Owners Association of Michigan testified in opposition
to the bill. (12-5-24)
The following entities indicated opposition to the bill (12-5-24):
• Apartment Association of Michigan
• Home Builders Association of Michigan
• Michigan Bankers
• Michigan Manufactured Housing Association
• Michigan Realtors
• National Federation of Independent Business
• Property Management Association of Michigan
Legislative Analyst: Holly Kuhn
Fiscal Analyst: Robin Risko
■ This analysis was prepared by nonpartisan House Fiscal Agency staff for use by House members in their
deliberations and does not constitute an official statement of legislative intent.
House Fiscal Agency HB 5238 as passed by the House Page 3 of 3


Statutes affected:
Substitute (H-2): 600.8371
House Introduced Bill: 600.8371
As Passed by the House: 600.8371