Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel sued three MV Realty companies on October 23 over agreements that, she alleges, put 40-year liens on Michigan homes in exchange for cash payments of $300 to $500. The state says MV Realty signed more than 1,000 of the agreements and more than 900 are still active. Homeowners who want out say they were asked for a termination fee.
What the complaint says MV Realty sold
The suit, filed in the 30th Circuit Court in Ingham County, names three MV Realty LLCs described as Michigan- and Florida-based. Nessel’s office says the company marketed a Homeowner Benefit Program that promised cash with no obligation to repay or sell.
In practice, the complaint alleges, each agreement gave MV Realty an exclusive 40-year right to represent the homeowner in any sale. When the home sold, the homeowner owed either a 3 to 6 percent commission or what the state calls a “predatorily structured” early termination fee. MV Realty then recorded the agreement in the homeowner’s chain of title, which the attorney general says created a lien.
Most consumers received between $300 and $500. The state also alleges MV Realty has no valid Michigan real estate broker license and no licensed staff to provide real estate services in the state. These are allegations, and no court has ruled on them. The release does not name the three LLCs individually, and the complaint is posted as a PDF on the attorney general’s site.
How a lien blocks a sale or refinance
The release says consumers reported they could not sell or refinance, and that people who asked for a lien release were told to pay an early termination fee.
Oakland County Clerk and Register of Deeds Lisa Brown told WXYZ in an earlier investigation, reported by the Detroit station, “It is viewed legally as a lien.” She said her office had recorded more than 100 of the filings, and the station reported that Macomb County’s clerk stopped accepting them.
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In the WXYZ case, a father’s contract paid about $820 for a 40-year exclusive right to sell, and WXYZ reported that his heirs would have had to pay MV Realty more than $8,200 to sell the house. MV Realty cancelled the contract after the station called, and said it had voided any obligation of the heirs.
The legal claims and what Michigan wants
The state brings claims under the Michigan Consumer Protection Act, alleging MV Realty misrepresented that the cash payments were not loans, that homeowners would work with the company for only six months and that the recorded memoranda were not liens.
It also brings two public-nuisance claims. One says the 40-year liens were placed without a license. The other says interest paid through commissions or early termination fees tops 25 percent a year, which the state ties to Michigan’s Criminal Usury Act, Interest Rates Act and Regulatory Loan Act. The Interest Rates Act bars written agreements above 7 percent annually.
A federal claim under the Consumer Financial Protection Act is included. Nessel asks the court to rescind, strike or limit every Homeowner Benefit agreement with Michigan consumers, bar commissions and termination fees for customers who were given loans under a “promotion fee,” order MV Realty to give back amounts already collected, award restitution to people who paid termination fees and impose civil penalties.
“Homeownership is, for most Michigan families, their single largest financial investment,” Nessel said in the release, adding that “nobody deserves to be swindled out of a lifetime investment.”
The same contract, sued in other states
Michigan joins a string of state suits. Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison sued in September 2024, alleging a 40-year term that bound heirs, a termination fee of 3 percent of home value and $500 paid to agents for each signed agreement. His release listed similar suits in 10 other states, including California, Florida, Illinois, Massachusetts, North Carolina, Ohio and Pennsylvania.
Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser said when he sued that MV Realty “preyed on people who were struggling financially,” according to a FOX31 Denver report. Weiser asked the court to release homeowners from their agreements and to order restitution.
Ellison’s release says Florida won summary judgment on September 24, 2024, with the court finding the agreement unconscionable under Florida law. Those findings were made under other states’ laws and do not decide the Michigan case.
Michigan homeowners who signed one of these agreements can file a consumer complaint through the attorney general’s complaint page, which says to send copies rather than originals and not to include Social Security or card numbers. The consumer line is 517-335-7599, and the department’s main line is 517-335-7622.
The next steps are in court: whether Ingham County rescinds the agreements, and what MV Realty says in reply. A homeowner holding one of the 900 active agreements is waiting on that answer.
Holding a 40-year MV Realty agreement on a Michigan home?
The Michigan complaint describes homeowners who took $300 to $500 and then found a lien on the title for 40 years. Short-term cash needs are what made the offer attractive, and the same squeeze is what a lump-sum contract exploits.
This lawsuit is about a lien, not a benefit, and The Benefits Checklist does not address it; the turn here is to the household costs behind the cash need. The Benefits Checklist scans 11 benefit programs, among them Medicare Savings Programs, Extra Help, SNAP and heating help, with the 2026 income limits and a 50-state phone directory. Several of those programs cover bills that must be applied for.
Get the 11-program benefits checklist with 2026 income limits and state phone directory →
More Financial Reading
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This article was produced with AI assistance and edited for accuracy against the sources linked above.
Warren Cohen is a finance writer based in Phoenix, Arizona, covering personal finance topics including credit, banking, and beginner investing. He earned his degree in business administration from Arizona State University and began his career working in consumer finance, where he gained direct experience with lending and credit systems. He now writes for personal finance websites and fintech platforms, focusing on clear, practical content that helps readers make informed financial decisions.
