Can I sue my apartment complex if I only twisted my ankle falling off the stairs?

You can only sue for the injuries you had.

You cannot sue for the damages you might have sustained, but only for the damages that you actually did suffer.

No you don't sue anybody for "almost" being hurt. that is what is wrong with the court system today. Get on with your life

In Michigan a landlord has a statutory duty to provide a habitable premises. Sometimes Michigan courts/judges strain to interpret facts to help landlords and take away valid claims of injured folks and say that the parking lot, or the sidewalk, etc. aren't part of the premises that you are renting or only have to be safe for cars, etc. So you probably have a case of some liability, moreso if you can also show poor construction, but you never know what a Michigan judge will do to your case when the defense files to throw it out. Another "problem" is that you can only collect for injuries that actually happened, not for what could have happened. So if your injuries are a twisted ankle, the value of such an injury would not be very great. Value would, in part, depend on the amount of medical treatment, the diagnosis and prognosis, the cost of treatment, whether there is any permanency, etc.

Yes you can sue.

You are able to sue your landlord, but it does not sound as though you will be able to get a judgement against him if you do sue him. When people suffer an injury, they have a right to recover for pain and suffering as well as a right to recover money for out of pocket losses such as their medical expenses. If you were not hurt, then you cannot be awarded damages for pain and suffering. If you have no out of pocket losses such as medical expenses, then you cannot recover medical expenses either. It does sound as though there is a dangerous condition on the premises. But, if there is no harm (even when a dangerous condition does exist), then there is no right to a judgement against the landlord. It sounds as though you should let the landlord know right away about the dangerous step on the stairs so he can fix it before you or someone else gets hurt. You should let him know as quick as possible, and you should notify him of the same in writing at the same time. Also, you should keep a copy the writing for your records.

You can only sue for your actual damages.

If people could sue for almost getting injured then there would be a huge number of lawsuits all depending on guess work if injury would really occur. Can you be sued for unlawful detainer because you might miss a rent payment? Of course not, so why can you sue for damages for something that did not occur? You can sue for his creating a dangerous condition and get an injunction to fix the stairs, but it is much better to try t get him to fix the problem.

No, you have no case.