Cannabis Friendly Real Estate in Michigan

Once you decide to enter the cannabis industry, the search for cannabis friendly real estate should begin immediately. Whether you want to directly serve the consumer, or sell to other commercial marijuana facilities, you must find a suitable property to get full licensure.

The size and scope of the property depends on your resources, the license(s) you need and the geographic region you want to operate in.

Using publicly available information, cannabis real estate agents, and a cannabis lawyer immensely cuts down on the time and money spent in your search.

Below, we detail the best ways to jumpstart your search for cannabis friendly real estate.

Interested in finding or purchasing cannabis friendly real estate? Request a consultation now.

1. Explore Specific Municipalities

The Marijuana Regulatory Agency (MRA) states that cannabis friendly real estate is defined as a, “fully built out property that’s ready to pass inspection within 60 days of the Step 2 application is submitted.”

The MRA provides a list of communities opted-in to the Michigan Regulation and Taxation of Marijuana Act (MRTMA) and Medical Marihuana Facilities Licensing Act (MMFLA).

Additionally, this list includes the restrictions (“caps”) that municipalities have placed on the number of licenses.

If it’s not unlimited, there’s only a certain number of licenses that are granted under the available types of marijuana licenses.

Furthermore, determining which municipalities have opted-in is the best place to start searching for cannabis friendly real estate.

In rare cases, a municipality may have opted-in for marijuana facilities, but the MRA hasn’t included that municipality on their list.

For this reason, you should review municipality websites for city council minutes and/or any current or proposed cannabis business ordinances.

You may find that a municipality is just starting to accept marijuana facilities, or are in the beginning stages of ordinance drafting.

Interested in finding or purchasing cannabis friendly real estate? Request a consultation now.

2. Review Municipality Ordinances

The next step is to find property that’s for sale in the municipality.

To do this, research online listings for commercial properties.

Most online listings state whether the property is in a “green zone”; zones where marijuana facilities can operate.

In most cases, the adult-use and/or medical marijuana ordinances are available via the municipality’s website or online databases.

However, you may need to directly call the municipality to retrieve a copy of their marijuana business ordinances.

For instance, ordinance(s) typically detail:

• where a property may be located,
• the zoning classification required for each license type, and the
• minimum distance from a school or park.

Additionally, you should review the municipality’s zoning map to see the property’s zoning classification.

Many zoning maps include buffer zones from protected property types.

This may provide a clearer representation of available marijuana friendly real estate properties.

Therefore, you should hire an attorney that knows cannabis municipal and zoning requirements before purchasing or leasing property.

3. Hire a Cannabis Friendly Real Estate Agent

There are many industry experts that can help find a suitable property for your marijuana business.

This is why you should hire a real estate agent that specializes in cannabis friendly real estate.

They will know all of requirements for the typical cannabis related property in a specific area.

Moreover, a real estate agent will share off-market listings with you, or have a database of “green zoned” properties available for sale.

Additionally, there are cannabis specific broker sites that list properly zoned properties for marijuana facilities.

In some cases, the property is already licensed as marijuana friendly real estate. Along with the property, this license is also available for sale.

This is a unique opportunity to purchase a property that’s already licensed and, in some cases, fully operational.

An experienced cannabis attorney can determine whether the municipality allows for license transfers, and the best way to do so.

Interested in finding or purchasing cannabis friendly real estate? Request a consultation now.

Don’t Search for Cannabis Friendly Real Estate Alone

Now, you can begin your preliminary search for cannabis friendly real estate.

However, you need to hire a cannabis realtor and cannabis business attorney before purchasing or leasing your facility.

Hiring these industry experts is the best way to know all available properties and any others that may go up for sale in the future.

Finding cannabis friendly real estate is a long, difficult process.

However, having a cannabis lawyer by your side is the best investment of both your time and money.