Illinois landlord and tenant law

No. The Landlord and Tenant Act, 765 ILCS 705, covers selected subjects such as negligence waivers, rent-payment methods, lock changes, military lease termination, certain senior-property temperature standards, flood disclosures, and reusable screening reports. Deposits, repair-and-deduct rights, retaliation, eviction procedure, fair housing, utilities, safe-homes protections, and local rules appear in other statutes and ordinances. The exam move is to identify the subject before choosing the source.

A lease covenant that exempts the lessor from liability for personal injury or property damage caused by the negligence of the lessor or the lessor's agents, servants, or employees in operation or maintenance is generally void as against public policy. The Act has a narrow exception allowing a nonresidential lease provision to exempt the lessor from liability for property damage. Do not extend that commercial property-damage exception to personal injury or residential leasing.

For residential leases, renewals, or extensions covered by Section 4, a landlord may not require payment by electronic funds transfer. If a third-party portal imposes a transaction fee for e-check or another portal method, Section 3.5 requires a paper-check, cash, or other fee-free payment route for agreements executed after January 1, 2025. A large property with 100 or more units and an on-site business office may also have to accept timely payments at that office under Section 9-218, although it may refuse cash there.

Section 15 applies only in counties with more than 3 million residents, currently Cook County, and to a dwelling unit under a written lease. After the prior tenant vacates and no later than the day the new tenant takes possession, the landlord must change or rekey immediate access. Exceptions include an owner-occupied building of four units or fewer, an owner-occupied private-room rental, and a written lease giving the tenant the right to rekey. Liability requires a theft attributable to the failure.

Yes, when Section 16's conditions are met. A qualifying Illinois service member entering military service for more than 29 consecutive days, receiving a permanent-change-of-station order, or deploying for at least 90 days can terminate covered residential, nonresidential, farm, or mobile-home-lot leases. The tenant or resident family member must deliver the required orders. Timing is generally 30 days after delivery, or for monthly rent, 30 days after the next rent due date.

It is a consumer-reporting-agency report requested and paid for by the prospective tenant that includes specified current screening information. If it was prepared within the previous 30 days, is made directly available through a lawful route at no landlord cost, and contains every criterion the landlord consistently uses, the landlord may not charge an access fee or application screening fee. The landlord may still process an application and may ask whether the report materially changed, but cannot charge for the additional screening report.

For a property-damage deduction, the statewide Security Deposit Return Act generally requires an itemized damage statement and actual or estimated cost within 30 days after the tenant vacates or the right of possession ends, whichever is later. Receipts are normally attached, and estimated costs require later receipts within 30 days after the statement. If no compliant statement and receipts are furnished, the deposit must be returned in full within 45 days. Damage must exceed normal wear and tear.

The Residential Tenants' Right to Repair Act permits a qualifying residential tenant to follow a strict notice-and-repair process when a required repair costs no more than the lesser of $500 or half of one month's rent. Written restricted-delivery notice is required, the landlord generally gets 14 days or a shorter emergency period, and the repair must be lawful and workmanlike through a properly licensed and insured provider. The Act excludes public housing, condominiums, cooperative housing, owner-occupied property with six or fewer units, mobile-home units, and nonresidential tenancies.

Since January 1, 2025, the broader Landlord Retaliation Act has protected good-faith code complaints, repair requests, tenant organizing, testimony, use of community organizations, and exercise of legal rights. A landlord may not knowingly terminate, raise rent, reduce services, sue or threaten to sue for possession, or refuse renewal because of that conduct. Evidence of protected conduct within one year before the alleged retaliation creates a rebuttable presumption, subject to a proven legitimate basis or action begun earlier.

The new rental-fee transparency and limitation provisions enacted in Public Act 104-0479 are not yet effective on the August 1, 2026 review date. A companion enactment, Public Act 104-0514, moved their effective date to January 1, 2027. They should be planned for, but they are future law for a question expressly asking what applies on August 1, 2026. Current electronic-payment, screening-report, deposit, and local fee rules still apply.