Tenant keys

[scytheye]

Hi all,

I rent a room. Lease states that the landlord/roommate may enter upon reasonable notice and also states that I may install a lock on the room's door.

Do I need to give him a copy of the key permanently (if so, what's the point of a lock?) or can I give it to him temporarily when he reasonably notifies me of a need to enter. I can't find any Michigan law that deals with this.

Thank you -

 

[dee_dub]

I'm not sure what the exact law is in Michigan, but a landlord usually has the right to have a copy of the key. The point of the lock is to protect your room from entry by other people. The point of the copy is to give the landlord access to property they own in certain circumstances. Not all of those circumstances (e.g. emergencies, fire, flood) involve your landlord having the opportunity to give you reasonable notice and obtain a temporary key. At the same time, they are only supposed to use the key to enter unannounced in emergency type situations.