• You might be entitled to money damages from your landlord if they violate Chicago or Evanston ordinances.
  
  
• Mishandling of your security deposit by your landlord may entitle you to damages in the amount of two times your security deposit.
  
  
• If you feel that you have been in this situation, please contact Robert Cohen, Attorney at Law for a free consultation.
  
  
  For Tenants in the City of Chicago (***The Chicago Residential Landlord Tenant Ordinance was recently changed in the fall of 2010***):*

§5-12-080 of the Chicago Residential Landlord Tenant Ordinance, (CRLTO), governs a landlord’s handling of a security deposit.

Some examples of misconduct:

• A landlord generally cannot comingle a security deposit with rent and other assets. The amended CRLTO however allows for a cure period if the a landlord comingles funds paid for on a single check or through a single electronic payment.  Commingling is a violation of §5-12-080(a) of the CRLTO.  Commingling occurs when a landlord accepts rent and a security deposit on the same check and deposits it in their bank account.  If your security deposit is commingled with rent, a landlord’s creditors may be able to seize it. The Chicago City Counsel has taken legistlative steps to prevent creditors from seizing a security deposit in, for example, a bankruptcy.

• Failure of a landlord to give a tenant a receipt. A landlord must give a receipt to a tenant upon receiving a security deposit. This receipt must strictly follow certain rules set forth in §5-12-080(b) of the CRLTO.

• Under the amended CRLTO 5-12-080(a)(2), a landlord must also indicate the name and address of the financial institution where one's security deposit will be deposited. This information must be disclosed in one's written lease. The new CRLTO provides a cure period if a landlord fails to provide this information to a tenant.

• A landlord must give a receipt to a tenant upon receiving a security deposit.  This receipt must strictly follow certain rules set forth in §5-12-080(b)(1) of the CRLTO. Section 5-12-080(b)(2) is a new provision that deals with the receipt requirement if a tenant uses an electronic payment method.

• Failure of a landlord to pay a tenant yearly interest on their security deposit held for more than 6 months. Under the CRLTO, a landlord must not only pay interest at the end of a 12 month lease period, but the landlord must do so within 30 days after the end of the 12 month period.  A landlord can also credit the tenant’s monthly rent. The new CRLTO provides a cure period and resolution method if interest is timely returned to a tenant but where the landlord has miscalculated the interest amount.

• Failure of the landlord to return a tenant’s security deposit within 45 days after the tenant vacates the apartment. The failure of a landlord to return a security deposit or returning a security deposit late is a violation of §5-12-080(d) of the RLTO.

• Failure of a landlord to properly notify a tenant that they have purchased the tenant’s apartment building. §5-12-080(e) of the CRLTO contains strict rules on the content of these notices.

• The CRLTO is not limited to security deposits, other types of landlord misconduct might be failure of a landlord to provide at least 48 hours notice before entering your apartment. Many landlords, when showing an apartment to a prospective tenant may simply knock on your door or give you phone call that same day. This conduct may violate the CRLTO. A landlord may also be held accountable under the CRLTO for failure to provide essential services to a tenant such as heat and water. To see the full CRLTO, click here.

For Tenants in Evanston:*

Examples of misconduct under the Evanston RLTO, (ERLTO), are:

• Failure of a landlord to return a tenant’s security deposit within 21 days of the tenant moving out

• Failure to provide a tenant with essential services such as heat and water.

To see the complete Evanston RLTO, click here.

If you believe that your Evanston landlord has violated the ERLTO, contact attorney Robert Cohen for a free consultation (for tenant's security deposit cases). You may also be able to recover your security deposit and damages under Illinois law.