Illinois's largest city and a major Midwest rental market, with landlord-tenant rules that combine state law with additional city-level ordinances landlords need to track separately.
Chicago landlords are governed by Illinois state law; some cities also add local ordinances beyond the state baseline. The summary below is Illinois state law — a general starting point, not legal advice — and doesn't capture any Chicago-specific ordinances. Verify current rules, including any local ordinances, with an attorney before relying on this for an actual tenancy.
Chicago is one of the few cities in the country with its own comprehensive landlord-tenant code — the Chicago Residential Landlord and Tenant Ordinance (RLTO) — which layers on top of Illinois state law with its own security deposit interest and receipt rules, notice requirements, and tenant remedies for landlord non-compliance that go beyond what state law alone provides. The RLTO applies within Chicago city limits; landlords with properties both inside and outside the city need to track which rules apply to which address.
Full Illinois details, including required disclosures and sources: Illinois landlord-tenant laws →
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