Electronic payment is an option
Michigan Public Act 102 took effect September 21 and allows landlords to return a security-deposit balance through direct deposit, electronic bank transfer or an internet or mobile payment account. It modernizes a payment route; it does not give landlords a new right to keep the whole deposit or waive the required notice.
Where a landlord claims damages or other permitted obligations against a deposit, the enacted section requires mailing an itemized notice within 30 days after occupancy ends. The notice describes claimed damages, estimated repair costs and the amount and basis of the assessment. An unexplained app transfer is not a substitute for those notice requirements.
The tenant response deadline remains
Under the new electronic route, the landlord must deposit the remaining amount into the tenant's account within ten days after mailing the damage notice. The route is optional under the statute, not a promise that every tenant now receives an instant deposit refund.
The notice must still warn that the tenant has seven days after receipt to respond by mail or forfeit the amount claimed for damages. Keep both the notice and transfer record and respond promptly if disputing a deduction. This newly effective law changes delivery of the balance, not the need to check a claimed charge or the other security-deposit protections.