Illinois Lease Agreement: What to Include
December 3, 2025Illinois landlord-tenant law has a notable split: statewide baseline rules, and a substantially more detailed set of local rules in Chicago under its Residential Landlord and Tenant Ordinance (RLTO). A lease that only accounts for state law can miss meaningful requirements for a Chicago property.
Security deposits
Illinois has no statewide cap on security deposit amounts. Interest on deposits is required for certain buildings and localities — Chicago and some other municipalities have their own specific deposit interest rules that go beyond baseline state law. Deposit return with an itemized statement is generally required within 45 days in many cases, though local rules can be stricter.
Chicago is a different rulebook
If your property is in Chicago, the RLTO imposes its own entry notice requirement (48 hours), its own disclosures, and other tenant protections beyond state law — a generic "Illinois" lease that doesn't distinguish Chicago from the rest of the state is a common gap. Evanston and some other Illinois municipalities have their own local ordinances as well.
Required disclosures
An Illinois lease should include or accompany:
- • Federal lead-based paint disclosure (for pre-1978 buildings)
- • Radon disclosure
- • Utility cost disclosure, where the landlord doesn't pay utilities directly and costs are shared or estimated
- • Chicago RLTO-specific disclosures, if the property is in Chicago
The bottom line
The biggest thing to get right in Illinois is knowing whether Chicago's (or another municipality's) local ordinance applies to your property, since it can add meaningfully more requirements than state law alone. See LeasePilot HQ's full Illinois landlord-tenant law summary for the complete breakdown with sources, or generate a lease with Illinois-specific clauses built in automatically.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does the Chicago RLTO apply to my property if I'm just outside city limits?
No — the RLTO is specific to properties within Chicago city limits. Properties outside Chicago follow state law and whatever local ordinance (if any) applies to their specific municipality.
How much notice do I need to enter a unit in Illinois?
There's no fixed statewide entry notice statute, but Chicago's RLTO requires 48 hours' notice for non-emergency entry. Outside Chicago, reasonable notice is still expected practice even without a specific statewide hour requirement.
Is the security deposit return deadline the same everywhere in Illinois?
The 45-day itemized deduction framework is common under state law, but some municipalities (Chicago among them) have stricter local requirements and penalties for late or improper return — check your specific city.