Need Legal Help? Legal Information Judicial Information Civics Education

• Site Search
  
  Your Guide to Landlord-Tenant Law
  
  Landlord-Tenant Law
  
  At some time throughout their lives a lot of people will be included with the rental of realty, either as landlord or renter. Laws that impact proprietors and can differ substantially from city to city. This handout provides basic information about being an occupant in Illinois. You need to talk to an attorney or your municipality or county as they might provide you with higher defense under the law.
  
  Tenancy Agreement
  
  The relationship in between proprietor and occupant occurs from an arrangement, composed or oral, by which one celebration occupies the genuine estate of another with the owner's approval in return for the payment of certain amount as lease.
  
  Written Agreement: Most tenancies are in composing and are called a lease. No specific words are needed to create a lease, but typically the regards to a lease include a description of the property, the length of the agreement, the amount of the lease, and the time of payment. TIP: You should put your contract in writing to avoid future misconceptions.
  
  Provisions in a lease arrangement that secure a proprietor from liability for damages to individuals or residential or commercial property brought on by the neglect of the property manager are deemed protesting public policy and are for that reason unenforceable. Certain municipalities and counties have other restrictions and prohibition on particular lease terms, so you must seek advice from with an attorney or your town or county.
  
  Oral Agreement: If a tenancy contract is not in writing, the term of the contract will, generally, be thought about a month-to-month occupancy. The duration is typically determined by the frequency of the rental payments. For instance: week to week, month to month, or year to year. Although the terms of an oral lease may be tough to identify, a celebration might be bound to the regards to an oral arrangement simply as much as a written one.
  
  Termination of the Lease or Tenancy Agreement
  
  If a lease is not for a particular term, it might be ended by either celebration with appropriate notification.
  
  - For year-to-year tenancies, besides a lease of farmland, either celebration might terminate the lease by giving 60 days of composed notification at any time within the four months preceding the last 60 days of the lease.
• A week-to-week tenancy may be ended by either celebration by providing 7 days of written notification to the other celebration.
• Farm leases typically run for one year. Customarily, they start and end in March of each year. Notice to end need to be offered at least four months before completion of the term.
• In all other lease agreements for a duration of less than one year, a celebration must give one month of composed notification. Any notice given should require termination on the last day of that rental duration.
• The lease might also have mentioned requirements and timeframe for termination of the lease.
• In particular towns and counties, property owners are needed to give more than the above stated notification period for termination. You ought to consult with a lawyer or your municipality or county.
  
  If the lease does specify a particular expiration or termination date, no termination notification is essential. Know that your lease may also require notification of termination in a particular form or a higher notice period than the minimum needed by law, if any. Landlords must keep in mind that no matter what the lease needs or states, you may be required to give more than the notification duration mentioned in the lease for termination and in composing. You must seek advice from an attorney or your municipality or county.
  
  Termination of a month-to-month tenancy typically only needs 1 month of notice by occupant and a property owner is required to serve a written notification of termination of tenancy on the renter (see Service as needed area below). In particular municipalities and counties, landlords are needed to give more than 1 month of notice, so you ought to seek advice from with speak with a lawyer or your municipality or county.
  
  Renewal of the Lease or Tenancy Agreement, Rental Increases
  
  Generally, a lease may be restored at any time by oral or written agreement of the celebrations. If a lease term ends and the property manager accepts lease following the expiration of the term, the lease term immediately ends up being month-to-month based on the very same terms set forth in the lease.
  
  The lease may require a particular notice and timeframe for restoring the lease. You ought to examine your lease to confirm such requirements. Landlords and renters ought to keep in mind that no matter what the lease needs or specifies, property managers might likewise have restrictions on how early they can require renewal of a lease by an occupant and are needed to put such in composing. You ought to seek advice from a lawyer or your town or county.
  
  Month-to-month occupancies automatically renew from month to month up until terminated by either proprietor or tenant.
  
  Unless there is a composed lease, a proprietor can raise the rent by any quantity by providing the occupant notice: Seven days of notification for a week-to-week occupancy, 1 month of notice for a month-to-month occupancy, and 90 days of notification for mobile home parks. In particular towns and counties, proprietors are needed to offer more than seven or 1 month of notification of a rental increase, so you must seek advice from speak with a lawyer or your town or county.
  
  Eviction, Termination of Tenants Right to Possession
  
  In Illinois, a property manager does not have a right to self-help and should submit an expulsion to get rid of a renter or resident from the properties.
  
  Five-Day Notice. The most typical breach of a lease is for non-payment of lease. In this case the property owner should serve a five-day notification upon the overdue occupant unless the lease requires more than five days of notice. Five days after such notice is served, the property manager may commence eviction proceedings versus the tenant. If, however, the occupant pays the total of rent required in the five-day notification within those 5 days, the landlord might not continue with an expulsion. The proprietor is not needed, however, to accept rent that is less than the precise quantity due. If the property manager accepts a tender of a lower quantity of lease, it may affect the rights to continue under the notice.
  
  10-Day Notice. If a property manager wants to end a lease because of a violation of the lease agreement by the occupant, aside from for non-payment of rent, he or she should serve 10 days of written notice upon the occupant before expulsion proceedings can begin, unless the lease needs more than 10 days of notification. Acceptance of lease after such notification is a waiver by the proprietor of the right to terminate the lease unless the breach suffered is a continuing breach.
  
  Holdover. If an occupant stays beyond the lease expiration date, normally, a property owner might file an expulsion without having to first serve a notification on the occupant. However, the regards to the lease or in particular towns or counties, a property manager is required to offer a notification of non-renewal to the occupant, so you ought to speak with an attorney or your town or county.
  
  Service as needed Notice
  
  The five-day, 10-day, or termination of month-to-month tenancy notifications may be served upon tenant by providing a written or printed copy to the renter, leaving the very same with some individual above the age of 13 years who lives at the party's house, or sending a copy of the notification to the party by certified or signed up mail with a return invoice from the addressee. If no one remains in the real belongings of the premises, then publishing notice on the facilities suffices.
  questionsanswered.net
  Subletting or Assigning the Lease
  
  Often, written leases forbid the occupant from subletting the facilities without the composed consent of the proprietor. Such permission can not be unreasonably kept, however the prohibition is enforceable under the law. If there is no such prohibition, then an occupant might sublease or designate their lease to another. In such cases, nevertheless, the occupant will stay accountable to the property owner unless the property manager releases the initial renter. A breach of the sublease will not change the preliminary relationship between the proprietor and tenant.
  
  Breach by Landlord, Tenant Remedies
  
  If the landlord has breached the lease by stopping working to meet their duties under the lease, particular treatments develop in favor of the occupant:
  
  - The occupant might take legal action against the proprietor for damages sustained as an outcome of the breach.
• If a landlord stops working to preserve a rented house in a livable condition, the tenant might have the ability to vacate the properties and end the lease under the theory of "constructive eviction."
• The failure of a proprietor to keep a rented home in a livable condition or comply considerably with regional housing codes might be a breach of the property owner's "suggested warranty of habitability" (independent of any composed lease arrangements or oral pledges), which the tenant may assert as a defense to an expulsion based upon the non-payment of lease or a claim for decrease in the rental value of the premises. However, breach by proprietor does not instantly entitle a tenant to keep rent or a reduction in the rental worth. The commitment to pay rent continues as long as the tenant stays in the rented properties and to assert this defense successfully, the occupant will have to show that their damages arising from landlord's breach of this "implied guarantee" equivalent or surpass the lease declared due.
  
  A proprietor's breach and tenant's damages might be tough to show. Because of the limited and technical nature of these rules, occupants ought to be incredibly careful in keeping rent and should probably do so just after seeking advice from an attorney.
  
  Please note that certain municipalities or counties supply for particular obligations and requirements that the property owner should carry out. If a property manager stops working to abide by such obligations or requirements, the tenant might have extra remedies for such failure. You ought to talk to a lawyer or your town or county.
  
  Breach by the Tenant, Landlord Remedies
  
  In addition to termination for particular breaches by renter, a landlord likewise has the following remedies:
  
  If rent is not paid, the property manager may: (1) take legal action against for the lease due or to become due in the future and (2) terminate the lease and collect any previous lease due. Under specific scenarios in the occasion of non-payment of rent the property owner may hold the furniture and individual residential or commercial property of the occupant until past rent is paid by the occupant.
  
  If a renter fails to abandon the leased property at the end of the lease term, the occupant may end up being accountable for double rent for the period of holdover if the holdover is considered to be willful. The occupant can likewise be kicked out.
  
  If the renter damages the premises, the proprietor might demand the repair of such damages.
  
  Please note that particular towns or counties offer certain commitments and requirements that the renter need to fulfill. If an occupant stops working to adhere to such obligations or requirements, the property manager may have additional remedies for such failure. You ought to speak with a lawyer or your town or county.
  
  Discrimination
  
  Under the federal Fair Housing Act and Illinois law, it is unlawful for a proprietor to discriminate in the leasing of a home house, flat, or home versus prospective occupants who have kids under the age of 14. It is also unlawful for a proprietor to victimize an occupant on the basis of race, faith, sex, national origin, income, sexual origination, gender identity, or disability.
  
  Down Payment, Move-in Fee
  
  Security Deposit. A renter can be needed to deposit with the landlord an amount of cash prior to inhabiting the residential or commercial property. This is typically described as a down payment. This money is deemed to be security for any damage to the premises or non-payment of rent. The down payment does not eliminate the occupant of the duty to pay the last month's rent or for damage caused to the properties. It needs to be returned to the occupant upon vacating the facilities if no damage has actually been done beyond normal wear and tear and the rent is completely paid.
  
  If a property manager fails to return the down payment promptly, the occupant can take legal action against to recover the portion of the security deposit to which the occupant is entitled. In some towns or counties and specific circumstances under state law, when a landlord wrongfully withholds a tenant's security deposit the occupant might have the ability to recuperate extra damages and lawyers' charges. You must speak with a legal representative.
  
  Generally, a landlord who gets a down payment might not keep any part of that deposit as compensation for residential or commercial property damage unless he provides to the tenant, within one month of the date the occupant leaves, a declaration of damage supposedly triggered by the renter and the approximated or actual cost of repairing or changing each product on that statement. If no such statement is provided within thirty days, the property manager should return the down payment in full within 45 days of the date the tenant abandoned.
  
  If a structure contains 25 or more residential units, the property owner should also pay interest on the deposit from the date it was paid, if held more than 67 months. Interest is determined at the rate paid by the biggest bank in Illinois, as figured out by overall assets, on a passbook security account.
  
  The above declarations concerning down payment are based upon state law. However, some towns or counties might enforce extra obligations. For instance, Cook County, Evanston, Chicago, and Oak Park all have additional requirements that a property owner need to abide by when taking down payment and supply high charges when a landlord fails to comply.
  
  Move-in Fee. In addition to or as an option to a security deposit, a proprietor might charge a move-in charge. Generally, there are no particular restrictions on the quantity of a move-in cost, nevertheless, specific municipalities or counties do provide restrictions. TIP: A move-in cost ought to be nonrefundable, otherwise it could be deemed to be a security deposit.
  
  Landlord and renter matters can end up being complex. Both landlord and renter must seek advice from a lawyer for support with specific problems. To find out more about your rights and responsibilities as an occupant, including specific landlord-tenant laws in your town or county, contact your local bar association, or go to the Illinois Tenants Union at www.tenant.org.
  
  Additional Resources
  
  - Illinois Lawyer Finder: isba.org/public/illinoislawyerfinder
• Illinois Legal Aid Online (ILAO): illinoislegalaid.org
• Illinois Standardized Court Forms: illinoiscourts.gov/ approved-forms.
• Illinois Court Help: ilcourthelp.gov.
• Illinois Free Legal Answers: il.freelegalanswers.org
  askmoney.com
  Prepared by the Illinois State Bar Association's Real Estate Law Section (2024 )
  
  This pamphlet is prepared and released by the Illinois State Bar Association as a public service. Every effort has been made to provide precise info at the time of publication.