Illinois Lease Agreement

Required Landlord Disclosures (6)

State or local laws also require the tenant to sign certain disclosures during lease signing.

In Illinois, these disclosures include:

1. Lead Paint: Federal law requires landlords to disclose any known information about the status of lead-based paint or lead-based paint hazards contained within any property built before 1978.

2. Smoke Detectors: Landlords must notify tenants about smoke detector testing and maintenance (425 ILCS § 60/3(d)).

3. Carbon Monoxide Detectors: Like smoke detectors, landlords must inform tenants about the status and maintenance of carbon monoxide detectors in their units (430 ILCS § 135/10(c)).

4. Rent Concession: To protect tenants, the Rent Concession Act requires landlords to clearly label the amount, extent, and nature of any rent concessions granted to the tenant (765 ILCS § 730/3).

5. Shared Utilities: Landlords must notify tenants if utilities are shared with other tenants and include the written formula used to allocate utility payments (765 ILCS § 740/5(a)).

6. Radon Hazards: Landlords must disclose the existence of radon hazards or if radon has been detected in all units located below the third story and above ground level (420 ILCS § 46/25).

7. Residential Landlord Tenant Ordinance Summary: Cook County and the City of Chicago require a summary of the Residential Landlord Tenant Ordinance to be attached to the Lease.

8. Bed Bug Brochure. Cook County and the City of Chicago require an informational bed bug brochure prepared by the Department of Health to be attached to the lease.

Security Deposit Regulations

Maximum Security Deposit Amount: There is no state-imposed maximum on security deposit limits; however, some counties and cities do have a maximum, so it’s important to check local guidelines. Cook County states that the maximum amount that can be collected is 1.5 times the monthly rent.

Receipt of Deposit: No state laws require landlords to give tenants a receipt for the security deposit. However, the City of Chicago and Cook County require landlords to provide a receipt for the amount of the deposit and the date received (Residential Landlord and Tenant Ordinance).

Interest: When the property contains more than 25 units, landlords must pay interest on security deposits by keeping them in interest-bearing accounts. The interest rate should be equal to the interest paid by the largest bank in the state (765 ILCS § 715/1).

Deduction Tracking: If deductions are made from the security deposit to cover necessary cleaning or repairs, the landlord must give the tenant an itemized list of deductions with estimated or actual costs within 30 days (765 ILCS § 710/1(a)).

Returning a Tenant’s Security Deposit: Landlords have 30 days to return the security deposit to the tenant. If the landlord makes repair deductions, they must send the itemized list to the tenant within 30 days and the remainder of the deposit 15 days after that (765 ILCS § 710/1(a)).

Landlord’s Access to Property

Advance Notice: No specific state statute outlines when or how a landlord can enter a property. However, it’s expected that the landlord provides 24-48 hours of reasonable notice except in cases of emergency. In Cook County, however, landlords must provide 2-days’ notice and only enter between 8:00 am and 8:00 pm except in cases of emergency (MUN. CODE CH. 5-12-050).

Immediate Access: In cases of emergency, landlords can enter a property with or without the tenant present and without giving advance notice.

Landlord Harassment: Landlords who continually enter a property without cause could be subject to landlord harassment, which could allow a tenant to end a lease early with 15 days’ notice. In Cook County, landlord harassment could enable the tenant to end the lease early and recover up to one month’s rent (MUN. CODE CH. 5-12-050).

Rent Payment Laws

Grace Period: The State of Illinois has a 5-day grace period (770 ILCS 95/7.10(a)); however, the City of Chicago and Cook County have a 2-day grace period.

Late Rent Fees: The state of Illinois has a maximum late fee of $20 or 20% of the rent amount, whichever is greater (770 ILCS 95/7.10(b)). Cook County has a late fee of $10 a month for rent under $1,000 or 5% of any rent amount over $1,000.00, and the City of Chicago provides a late fee of $10 a month for rent under $500 plus 5% of any rent amount over $500.00

Tenant’s Right to Withhold Rent: Tenants can withhold rent only if a landlord fails to make a repair required by the law or the lease agreement and if the repair costs less than $500 or half of the monthly rent. Tenants may send written notice to the landlord, and if they do not make the repair within 14 days, the tenant can make the repair, submit the bill, and deduct the amount from a future rent payment. This action does not apply if the tenant caused the condition to require the repair (765 ILCS § 742/5).

Breach of Rental Agreement

Missed Rent Payment: If the rent is still late after the fifth (or 2nd day for Cook County and City of Chicago) day, landlords can send a 5-day notice to pay or quit, in writing, stating the amount of unpaid rent and the date when the lease will terminate (735 ILCS § 5/9-209).

Lease Violation: For lease violations, the landlord must deliver a 10-day notice to quit, in writing, stating the violation and the date the lease will terminate. Landlords in Illinois will need to give the tenant an opportunity to fix the violation in some instances (735 ILCS § 5/9-210).

Self-Help Evictions: It is illegal for a landlord to evict a tenant by themselves and without a court order. This is called a self-help eviction, and landlords should never attempt to do it (765 ILCS § 735).

Lease Abandonment: Tenants who abandon a lease early and without proper cause could be liable for the remaining rent on the lease term plus additional penalties.

Ending a Lease

Month-to-Month: Illinois does not specify exactly how much notice must be given when a landlord ends a month-to-month lease, but reasonable notice is 30 days (735 ILCS § 5/9-207).

Fixed-Term: Tenants can end a lease early only in certain conditions, like entering active military duty, landlord harassment, uninhabitable living conditions, or if the tenant is the victim of domestic or sexual abuse (765 ILCS § 705).

Property Abandonment: Illinois does not have a statewide statute that discusses abandoned property; however, Chicago requires the property to be stored on the premises for at least 7 days after the tenant has left (MUN. CODE CH. 5-12-130 (g)).

Renewing a Lease

Required Renewals: Illinois landlords are not required to allow tenants to renew their lease when the term ends.

Required Notice: Illinois landlords must notify tenants when they do not intend to renew the lease. For month-to-month leases, landlords must give 30 days written notice; for yearly leases, landlords must provide 60 days’ written notice (735 ILCS § 5/9-205).

Rent Control & Stabilization

There are currently no statewide laws that allow for rent control in Illinois. In fact, Illinois passed a law in 1997 that prevents rent control. (Rent Control Preemption Act)