Residential Rental Lease Agreement
CHAPTER 765
Property
LANDLORD AND TENANT
Short title. This Act may be cited as the Landlord
and Tenant Act. (765 ILCS 705/0.01) Sec. 0.01. (Source: P.A. 89-82, eff.
6-30-95.) Every covenant, agreement or understanding
in or in connection with or collateral to any lease of real
property, exempting the lessor from liability for damages for injuries
to person or property caused by or resulting from the negligence of the
lessor, his or her agents, servants or
employees, in the operation or maintenance of the demised premises or the
real property containing the demised premises shall
be deemed to be void as against
public policy and wholly unenforceable. (765 ILCS 705/1) Sec.
1.
Class X felony by lessee or occupant.
(a) If, after the effective date of this amendatory
Act of 1995, any lessee or occupant is charged
during his or her lease or contract term with having committed an offense
on the premises constituting a Class X felony
under the laws of this State, upon a judicial finding of probable cause
at a preliminary hearing or indictment by a grand jury, the
lease or contract for letting the premises shall, at the option of
the lessor or the lessor's assignee, become void, and the owner or
the owner's ssignee may notify the lessee or occupant by posting a written
notice at the premises requiring the lessee or occupant to
vacate the leased premises on or before a
date 5 days after the giving of the notice. The notice shall state
the basis for its issuance on forms provided
by the circuit court clerk of the county in which
the real property is located. The owner or owner's assignee may
have the same remedy to recover possession of the premises
as against a tenant holding over after the expiration
of his or her term. The owner or lessor may bring a forcible entry and
detainer action.
(b) A person does not forfeit his or her security deposit
or any part of the security deposit due
solely to an eviction under the provisions of this Section.
(c) If a lessor or the lessor's assignee voids a contract
under the provisions of this Section, and a tenant or occupant has not
vacated the premises within 5 days after receipt of a written notice to
vacate the premises, the lessor or the
lessor's assignee may seek relief under Article IX of the Code of
Civil Procedure. Notwithstanding Sections 9-112,
9-113, and 9-114 of the Code of Civil Procedure, judgment
for costs against the plaintiff seeking possession of the
premises under this Section shall not be awarded to the defendant
unless the action was brought by the plaintiff in bad
faith. An action to possess premises under this Section shall not
be deemed to be in bad faith if the plaintiff based his
or her cause of action on information provided to him or her by a law enforcement
agency or the State's Attorney.
(d) The provisions of this Section are enforceable only if
the lessee or occupant and the owner or owner's assignee have
executed a lease addendum for drug free housing as promulgated by the United
States Department of Housing and Urban Development or a substantially similar
document. (765 ILCS 705/5) Sec. 5.
Short title. This Act may be cited as
the Security Deposit Return Act.
A lessor of residential real property, containing 5 or more units,
who has received a security deposit from a lessee to secure the payment
of rent or to compensate for damage to the leased property may not withhold
any part of that deposit as compensation for property damage unless
he has, within 30 days of the date that the lessee vacated the premises,
furnished to the lessee, delivered in person or by mail directed to his
last known address, an itemized statement of the damage allegedly
caused to the premises and the estimated or actual cost for
repairing or replacing each item on that statement, attaching the paid
receipts, or copies thereof, for the repair or replacement.
If the lessor utilizes his or her own labor to repair any damage caused
by the lessee, the lessor may include the reasonable cost of his
or her labor to repair such damage. If estimated cost is given, the lessor
shall furnish the lessee with paid receipts, or copies thereof, within
30 days from the date the statement showing estimated cost was furnished
to the lessee, as required by this Section. If no such statement and receipts,
or copies thereof, are furnished to the lessee as required
by this Section, the lessor shall return the security deposit in full within
45 days of the date that the lessee vacated the premises.
Upon a finding by a
circuit court that a lessor has refused to supply the itemized statement
required by this Section, or has supplied such statement
in bad faith, and has failed or refused to return the amount
of the security deposit due within the time limits provided, the
lessor shall be liable for an amount equal to twice the
amount of the security deposit due, together with
court costs and reasonable attorney's fees.
(765 ILCS 710/1) Sec. 1.
In the event of a sale, lease, transfer or other
direct or indirect disposition of residential real property, other
than to the holder of a lien interest in such property, by
a lessor who has received a security deposit or prepaid rent from a lessee,
the transferee of such property shall be liable
to that lessee for any security deposit, including statutory
interest, or prepaid rent which the lessee has paid to the
transferor. Transferor shall remain jointly and severally liable with the
transferee to the lessee for such security deposit or prepaid
rent. (765 ILCS 710/1.1)Sec. 1.
This Act takes effect January 1, 1974 and applies
to leases executed on or after that date. (765 ILCS 710/2) Sec. 2.
Short title. This Act may be cited as
the Security Deposit Interest Act. (765 ILCS 715/0.01) Sec. 0.01.
A lessor of residential real property, containing
25 or more units in either a single building or a complex of buildings
located on contiguous parcels of real property,
who receives a security deposit from a lessee to secure the payment of
rent or compensation for damage to property shall
pay interest to the lessee computed from the date of the deposit at a
rate equal to the interest paid by
the largest commercial bank, as measured by total
assets, having its main banking premises in this State on minimum deposit
passbook savings accounts as of December 31 of the calendar
year immediately preceding the inception of the rental agreement on any
deposit held by the lessor for more than 6 months. (765 ILCS 715/1)
Sec. 1.
The lessor shall, within 30 days after the end
of each 12 month rental period, pay to the lessee
any interest, by cash or credit to be applied to rent due, except when
the lessee is in default under the terms of the
lease. A lessor who willfully fails or refuses
to pay the interest required by this Act shall, upon a finding by a circuit
court that he has willfully failed or refused to pay, be liable for
an amount equal to the amount of the security deposit, together with
court costs and reasonable attorneys fees. (765 ILCS 715/2) Sec. 2.
This Act does not apply to any deposit made with respect to public
housing. (765 ILCS 715/3) Sec. 3.
Short title. This Act may be cited as the Retaliatory
Eviction Act. (765 ILCS 720/0.01) Sec. 0.01.
It is declared to be against the public policy
of the State for a landlord to terminate
or refuse to renew a lease or tenancy of property used as a
residence on the ground that the tenant
has complained to any governmental authority of a bona fide violation of
any applicable building code, health ordinance, or similar
regulation. Any provision in any lease, or any agreement or understanding,
purporting to permit the landlord to terminate or refuse to renew a lease
or tenancy for such reason is void. (765 ILCS 720/1) Sec. 1.
Short title. This Act may be cited as
the Property Taxes Of Alien Landlords Act. (765 ILCS 725/0.01)
Sec. 0.01.
No contract, agreement or lease in writing or by parol,
by which any lands or tenements therein are demised or leased by
any alien or his agents for the purpose of farming, cultivation or the
raising of crops thereon, shall contain any provision requiring the
tenant or other person for him, to pay taxes on
said lands or tenements, or any part thereof, and all such provisions,
agreements and leases so made are declared
void as to the taxes aforesaid. If any alien landlord or his agents shall receive in advance or at any other time any sum of
money or article of value from any tenant in lieu of such
taxes, directly or indirectly, the same may
be recovered back by such tenant before any court having jurisdiction of
the amount thereof, and all provisions or agreements
in writing or otherwise to pay such taxes shall be held in
all courts of this state to be void. (765 ILCS 725/1) Sec. 1. (Source:
P.A. 81-1509.)
Short title. This Act may
be cited as the Rent Concession Act. (765 ILCS
730/0.01) Sec. 0.01.
That the purpose of this Act is to regulate
the prevalent practice of making or using
written leases of real estate, which, because of concessions
to the lessees, do not truly state the real net rent
being paid, it being recognized that such practice
can be, and frequently is, used to mislead prospective purchasers and
lessees, and lenders of money on the security of such real estate,
into a belief that the rental value or market value thereof is greater
than it really is. (765 ILCS 730/1) Sec. 1.
A rent concession is made, within the meaning of
this Act, when, in case of a written lease of real estate
or a part thereof, the lessor before or at the time the lease or
any agreement therefor is entered into, and in
consideration of such lease or agreement therefor, directly or indirectly,
gives, or agrees or promises to give, to the lessee,
without express mention thereof in the
lease, any of the following:
(1) any credit upon the rent reserved by the lease
between the parties, or rebate of such rent or any part
thereof after payment thereof by the lessee, or
(2) the right, privilege or license to occupy the leased
premises for a period other than the term created by
the lease, rent free or for a rent less than the average rent fixed
by the lease for the entire term, or
(3) any other valuable thing, right or privilege. Repairing and
decorating the leased premises by the lessor shall not
be deemed a rent concession. An agreement by a lessor to waive any of the
terms or conditions of the lease other than those relating to the payment
of rent shall not be deemed a rent concession. (765 ILCS 730/2) Sec. 2.
When a rent concession shall be made in
the case of any lease hereafter entered into, it shall
be the duty of the lessor, at the time or immediately after the lease is
made, to cause such lease to bear a legend across the face and text thereof
plainly legible and in letters not less than one-half
inch in height consisting of the words
"Concession Granted," and to bear a memorandum on the margin or
across the face of such lease stating the amount or extent
and nature of each such concession, and any failure on the part of a lessor
so to do shall be unlawful and a violation of this Act. (765
ILCS 730/3) Sec. 3.
When a rent concession shall have been made in
the case of any lease heretofore or hereafter entered into,
it shall be unlawful and a violation of this Act for
any person knowing of such concession, to exhibit such lease to any purchaser
or lessee or prospective purchaser or lessee of real
estate, any part of which is covered by the lease, or to any lender of
money, or prospective lender of money on such
real estate or any part thereof as security, unless such lease shall bear
the legend and memorandum required by section 3 hereof in the case of leases
heretofore made. (765 ILCS 730/4) Sec. 4.
The terms "lessor," "lessee" and "person"
as used herein shall include the plural thereof and shall include
corporations. (765 ILCS 730/5) Sec. 5.
The provisions of this Act shall have
no application to farm or agricultural property,
or property used as such, nor to any leases or evidences of leasing
executed relative thereto. (765 ILCS 730/5a) Sec. 5a.
Any person or corporation violating the provisions
of this Act, by using or exhibiting to any person,
persons or corporation any written lease or other written evidence of leasing,
not having endorsed thereon any and all concessions as
herein provided, for the purpose of selling or effecting a sale of
the premises in question or a loan
thereon, shall be deemed guilty of a Class A misdemeanor. (765 ILCS 730/6)
Sec. 6.
Short title. This Act may be cited
as the Rental Property Utility Service Act.
(765 ILCS 735/0.01)Sec. 0.01.
Utility payments; termination and restoration
of service. Whenever, pursuant to any agreement,
either written or verbal, a landlord or his or her agent
is required to pay for any water, gas or electrical
service, and the landlord or his or her agent does not pay
for such service, the tenant, or tenants in the event
more than one tenant is served by a common system of water,
gas or electrical service, including electrical service
to common areas, which goes through a common meter in
a single building, may pay for such service
if the nonpayment jeopardizes the continuation of the service
to the tenant or tenants, as the case may be. The utility company
shall not terminate service for such nonpayment until the utility
company mails, delivers or posts a notice as specified
in Section 3 to all tenants of buildings with 3 or more residential apartments.
Upon receipt of such payment of the past due cost of
such water, gas or electrical service owed by the landlord, the provider
of such service shall immediately restore service to such tenant or tenants.
In the alternative, the provider of such service
shall immediately restore and continue such
service to any tenant who
(a) requests that the utility put the bill in
his or her name;
(b) establishes satisfactory credit references or provides for and
pays a security deposit pursuant to the rules and
regulations of the Illinois Commerce Commission applicable to applicants
for new utility service; and
(c) agrees to pay future bills. Any sums the tenant or tenants,
as the case may be, pay for water, gas or electrical
service that the landlord or his or
her agent was required to pay may be deducted from the rent
due by the tenant or tenants, and the total rent is diminished
by the amount the tenant or tenants, as the case may be, have paid for
the continuation of the water, gas or electrical service. (765 ILCS
735/1) Sec. 1.
Definitions. As used in this Act:
"Agreement" includes leases,
oral agreements, and any other understandings
or contracts reached between a landlord and a tenant.
"Individually metered utilities"
means that the utility service to one or more rental dwelling units in
a building is registered by an individual
meter for each dwelling unit.
"Master metered utilities"
means that the utility service to a building with one
or more rental dwelling units is registered
by a single meter for the building.
"Landlord" includes the owner of a building,
the owner's agent, and the lessor of a building.
"Tenant" includes occupants of a building or
mobile home, whether under a lease or periodic tenancy.
"Utility company" includes
all suppliers of utility service, including municipalities.
"Utility service" includes electric, gas, water,
or sanitary utility service rendered by a utility company
to a tenant at a specific location.
(765 ILCS 735/1.1) Sec. 1.1.
Certain tenant-paid utility payment
arrangements prohibited; Notice of change in payment arrangements
(a) No landlord shall rent or cause to be rented any unit
in which the tenant is responsible by agreement, implication, or
otherwise for direct payment for utility service to the
utility company and in which the utility company billing for that service
includes any service to common areas of the building
or other units or areas used or occupied by persons other than
the individual tenant and those occupying the unit with the tenant on the
utility account, unless, before offering
an initial lease or a renewal lease,
accepting a security deposit, or otherwise entering into an agreement with
the prospective tenant to let the premises:
(1) The landlord provides the prospective
tenant with a written statement setting forth the
specific areas of the building and any appurtenances that are served by
the meter that will be in the tenant's name and the nature of the utility
uses of those areas, including any that have not been reflected
in past utility company billings but that may arise (such as the
rental of a neighboring unit that has been vacant, the
installation of washers and driers in the basement, or the use of the garage
for mechanics);
(2) The landlord provides the prospective tenant
with copies of the utility bills for the unit for the previous 12 months,
unless waived by the tenant in writing;
(3) The landlord neither suggests nor requires the tenant
to collect any money for utility bills from neighboring tenants
whose utility usage will be reflected in the prospective tenant's utility
company billings; and
(4) The landlord sets forth in
writing the amount of the proposed rent reduction, if any, that is
offered to compensate for the tenant's payments
for utility usage outside of the tenant's unit.
(b) No landlord shall request or cause to be effected a change
(i) from landlord-paid master metered utilities to tenant-paid
individually metered utilities or
(ii) from landlord-paid to tenant-paid utilities, regardless
of the metering arrangement, during the term of a lease. The landlord
shall provide a minimum of 30 days notice to each
affected tenant before effecting such a change in service; for tenants
under a lease, the notice shall be provided to the tenants
no less than 30 days before the expiration of the lease
term. This subsection does not prohibit the
landlord and tenant from agreeing to amend the lease to effect
such a change; the amendment must be in writing and subscribed by both
parties.
(c) Any term or condition in a
rental agreement between the landlord and the tenant
that is inconsistent with this Section is void and unenforceable.
(d) Nothing in this Section affects the
relationship between a utility company and its customers. (765 ILCS
735/1.2) Sec. 1.2.
Tenant remedies and burdens of proof.
(a) A residential tenant shall be entitled to recover damages
from the landlord for the utility bills rendered in the
tenant's name as a result of the landlord's violation of this Act and
which the landlord has not paid to the utility
company. The tenant shall have the burden of establishing that the
tenant was billed for utility service as
a result of the landlord's violation of
this Act. Upon proof by the tenant that the tenant was billed an
amount for service not attributable to the unit or premises occupied by
the tenant, the landlord shall be liable to the
tenant for 100% of those utility bills. However, this sum shall be reduced
by whatever percentage of use that the court finds that the landlord has
established to have been attributable to the unit or
premises the tenant occupied during the
period that the violation continued. The tenant may recover
these damages by an action at law or by a counterclaim
in any action brought by the landlord against the tenant.
The court may treble the damage award when the court finds that the landlord's
violation of this Act was knowing or intentional.
The tenant may also recover costs and fees, including attorneys fees, if
the amount awarded by the court for utility service is in excess
of $3,000. The remedies contained in this Act do
not limit or supersede any remedies the
tenant may have under a lease, contract, or the
laws, including the common law, of this State.
(b) This Section shall be prospective in application; the
remedies shall not attach to any violation that occurred before July 1,
1992.
(c) Nothing in this Section affects
the relationship between a utility company and its customers. (765 ILCS
735/1.3) Sec. 1.3.
Prohibition on termination of utility service
by landlord.
No landlord shall cause or request utility service to tenants to
be interrupted, discontinued, or terminated in an occupied
building:
(i) by nonpayment of utility bills for which
the landlord has assumed responsibility by agreement or by implication
(such as where the utilities are master metered) or
(ii) by tampering with equipment or lines. This Section does not
prohibit temporary utility shutoffs in cases
of emergencies such as gas leaks or fire or, upon 7 days written
notice to each affected tenant, temporary shutoffs required for building
repairs or rehabilitation. (765 ILCS 735/1.4) Sec. 1.4.
Receivership; utility service termination.
(a) Tenants, upon receiving notice of utility service
termination pursuant to Section 1, and utility companies
may petition the circuit court, or any court having jurisdiction, for appointment
of a receiver of rents due for use and occupancy of the
building. No one building may be the subject of more than 2 such petitions
in any consecutive 12 month period. The petition shall be served
upon the landlord at his or her last known
address and upon the utility company which has
rendered notice of termination of utility service,
except when the utility company is the
petitioner. Upon a finding that the tenants' utility service
is subject to termination or has been terminated as a result of an
amount due and owing by the landlord to the utility
company, the court shall appoint a receiver who shall be authorized to
collect rents due from the tenants for use and occupancy
of the building. The court shall also design a payment plan through
which the receiver shall be required to
remit to the utility company such portion of the funds as are necessary for payment of current utility bills incurred
during the term of the receivership, including
any security deposit requested by the utility in accordance with the rules
and regulations of the Illinois Commerce Commission. The receiver
shall remit the remainder of the collected
rents as the court shall direct, taking into consideration the ordinary
and necessary expenses of the property including,
but not limited to, repair, maintenance, other utility bills,
property taxes, arrearages which were the
subject of the petition, and any capital expenditures deemed
necessary by the court. The landlord or his or her agent shall be liable for arrearages due to the
utility company which the court in its payment plan determines cannot feasibly
be remitted by the receiver from the collected rents within 12 months.
(b) Within 10 days of the appointment of the receiver, during
which time the utility company shall not discontinue service to the
building for reason of nonpayment, such receiver shall make a determination
as to whether or not the rents due for the use and occupancy
of the building can reasonably be expected to be sufficient to pay current
bills and to pay any security deposit which may be requested
by the utility. Upon a determination by the court that the rents
due for the use and occupancy of the building cannot
reasonably be expected to be sufficient to pay current bills and to pay
any security deposit which may be requested by the utility, such
receivership shall be terminated.
(c) In the event that a petition for receivership
is filed after utility service has been terminated, service shall be restored
as soon as the utility company receives
notice that a receiver has been appointed. The
receiver shall make all reasonable efforts to provide to the utility
access to the building at all times.
(d) Any receivership established pursuant to this Section
shall be terminated by the court upon its finding that the arrearage
which was the subject of the petition has been satisfied or
upon its finding that the income from the building has become
insufficient to pay current utility bills
and retire the arrearages as ordered by the court and
shows no reasonable likelihood of becoming sufficient. (765 ILCS
735/2) Sec. 2.
Tenant damages.
(a) A landlord's violation of Section 1.4 entitles the
residential tenant to damages from the landlord in the amount of a 100%
abatement of the rental obligation for each month, and
prorated for each part of a month, that the utility service was
terminated and to consequential damages. The tenant
has a duty to mitigate damages.
(b) When utility service is
terminated as a result of the landlord's
violation of Section 1.4 under circumstances demonstrating
the landlord's deliberate or reckless indifference or wilful
disregard for the rights of the tenants, or bad faith, the court may
additionally award each affected residential tenant in the building statutory
damages up to $300 each or the sum of $5,000 divided by the
number of affected tenants, whichever is less. (765 ILCS 735/2.1)
Sec. 2.1.
Recovery of damages; costs and fees.
In the case of a petition
filed on or after July 1, 1992, where termination of utility
service is averted as a result of action taken by the utility company or
tenant or tenants under Section 2, the petitioner is entitled to recover
its costs (including court costs), fees (including attorney's fees), and
expenses incurred in connection with
bringing the receivership proceeding. The costs,
fees, and expenses, and damages recoverable under Section 2.1, may be awarded
by the court in the receivership proceeding. The sum awarded by the court
to the utility company shall be paid by the receiver to the utility company
out of the rents paid to the receiver. (765 ILCS 735/2.2) Sec. 2.2.
Notice of utility service termination.
The utility company shall notify
all tenants of buildings with 3 or
more residential apartments of the proposed termination of utility service.
This notice shall contain the following information:
(1) the specific date, no sooner than 10 days after the notice
is rendered, that utility service is subject to termination;
(2) a statement of the tenants' statutory right either
(A) to pay the utility company the amount due and owing by
the landlord and to deduct the amount paid to the utility company
from the rent due on the rental agreement or
(B) to petition the court for appointment of a
receiver to collect the rents due for use and occupancy of the
building and remit a portion to the utility company for payment of utility
bills;
(3) the dollar amount of the utility bills due and owing
on the date such notice is given and the average monthly utility
bill; and
(4) the name and telephone number of any legal services agency within
the utility company's service area where the tenants may obtain
free legal assistance. Any notice provided to tenants
of a building under this Act shall be of a conspicuous size, on red paper,
and in at least 14 point bold face type, except that the words
"notice of (utility service) termination" shall be in 36 point bold
face type if the notice is posted, and shall state:
It is unlawful for the landlord or his or her agent to alter, deface,
tamper with, or remove this notice. A landlord or his or her agent
who violates this provision is guilty
of a Class C misdemeanor. (765 ILCS 735/3) Sec.
3.
The lessor, landlord or his agent shall not
increase rent paid by the lessees or tenants of the building
in order to collect all or part of the amount lawfully deducted for utility
service pursuant to this Act. (765 ILCS 735/4) Sec. 4.
Nothing in this Act shall be construed to prevent
a utility company from pursuing any other action or remedy
that it may have against the lessor, landlord or
his agent for any amounts due and owing to the utility company and nothing
in this Act shall be construed to prevent a utility
company from acting in the interest of public safety. (765 ILCS 735/5)
Sec. 5.
Short title. This Act may be cited as the Tenant
Utility Payment Disclosure Act.
(765 ILCS 740/1) Sec. 1.
Disclosure of utility payments included in rent.
(a) No landlord may demand payment
for master metered public utility services
pursuant to a lease provision providing for tenant payment
of a proportionate share of public utility service without
the landlord first providing the tenant with a
copy in writing either as part of the lease or another written agreement
of the formula used by the landlord for
allocating the public utility payments among the
tenants. The total of payments under the formula for the building
as a whole for a billing period may not exceed the sum demanded by
the public utility. The formula shall include
all those that use that public utility service and may reflect variations
in apartment size or usage. The landlord shall also make available
to the tenant upon request a copy of the public utility bill
for any billing period for which payment is demanded. Nothing
herein shall preclude a landlord from
leasing property to a tenant, including the cost of utilities,
for a rental which does not segregate or allocate the cost
of the utilities.
(b) No condominium or common interest
community association may demand payment for master metered public utility
services from a unit owner of a proportionate
share for public utility service without the condominium or common interest
community association first providing the unit owner with a copy in writing
of the formula used by the association for allocating the public utility
payments among the unit owners. The total of payments
under the formula for the association as a whole for the annual budgeted
billing period may not exceed the sum demanded by the
public utility, provided however, that the board of directors of the association
may direct that any payments received by the association in excess of actual
utility bills be applied to other budgeted items having a deficit, or be
applied to the association's reserve fund,
or be credited to the account of the
unit owners for the following year's budget. The formula shall
include all those that use that public
utility service and may reflect, but
is not limited to, percent interest, unit size, or
usage. The condominium or common interest
community association shall also make available to the unit
owner upon request a copy of the public utility bill for any
billing period for which payment is demanded.
A condominium association shall have the right to establish and maintain
a system of master metering of public utility services
pursuant to Section 18.4 of the Condominium Property Act. A
common interest community association shall have the right
to establish and maintain a system of master metering
of public utility services pursuant to Section 18.5 of the Condominium
Property Act. (765 ILCS 740/5) Sec. 5.
Applicability.
This Act shall regulate and determine legal
rights, remedies and obligations of the parties to any lease of a mobile
home or mobile home lot in a mobile home park containing five
or more mobile homes within this State. Any
lease, written or oral, shall be unenforceable insofar as any
provision thereof conflicts with any provision
of this Act. (765 ILCS 745/1) Sec. 1.
Jurisdiction.
Any person whether or not
a citizen or resident of this State,
who owns, holds an ownership or beneficial interest in, uses,
manages or possesses real estate situated in this
State, submits himself or
his personal representative to the jurisdiction
of the courts of this State as to any action proceeding for the enforcement
of an obligation arising under this Act. (765 ILCS 745/2) Sec. 2.
Definitions.
Unless otherwise expressly defined, all terms
in this Act shall be construed to have
their ordinarily accepted meanings or such meaning as the context
therein requires.
(a) "Person" means any legal entity, including but
not limited to, an individual, firm, partnership,
association, trust, joint stock company, corporation
or successor of any of the foregoing.
(b) "Mobile Home" means a structure
designed for permanent habitation and
so constructed as to permit its transport on wheels,
temporarily or permanently attached to its frame, from the place of
its construction to the location or subsequent
locations at which it is intended to be a permanent habitation
and designed to permit the occupancy thereof
as a dwelling place of one or more persons, provided that any such structure
served by individual utilities and resting on a permanent foundation,
with wheels, tongue and hitch permanently removed, shall not be construed
as a "mobile home".
(c) "Mobile Home Park" or "Park" means
an area of land or lands upon which five or more independent mobile homes
are harbored for rent.
(d) "Park Owner" means the owner of a mobile home
park and any person authorized to exercise
any aspect of the management of the premises, including
any person who directly or indirectly receives rents and has no obligation
to deliver the whole of such receipts to another person.
(e) "Tenant" means any person who
occupies a mobile home rental unit for dwelling purposes or a lot on which
he parks a mobile home for an agreed upon consideration.
(f) "Rent" means any money or other
consideration given for the right of use, possession and occupancy of property,
be it a lot or mobile home.
(g) "Master antenna television service" means any and
all services provided by or through the facilities of any
closed circuit coaxial cable communication system,
or any microwave or similar transmission services other than a community
antenna television system as defined in Section 11-42-11 of the Illinois
Municipal Code. (765 ILCS 745/3) Sec. 3.
Requisites for Rental or Offer of Mobile Home
or Lot for Rental. No person shall
rent or offer for rent any mobile home which does not conform to the sanitation,
housing and health codes of the State
or of the county or municipality in which
the mobile home is located.
No person shall rent or offer for rent any lot
in a mobile home park which does not conform to subdivision
ordinances of the county or municipality in which
the mobile home park is located. (765 ILCS 745/4) Sec. 4.
No park owner, after the effective date of this
amendatory Act of 1987, may require a tenant to remove
an outside conventional television antenna, or
require that a tenant subscribe to and pay for master antenna
television services rather than use
an outside conventional television antenna.
This Section shall not prohibit an owner from supplying free master
antenna television services provided that the
price of such services, is not made a part of the rent of the tenant. This
Section also shall not prohibit a park owner from requiring a tenant to
remove an outside conventional television antenna if
such owner makes available master antenna television
services at no charge above the rental stated in such tenant's lease.
(765 ILCS 745/4a) Sec. 4a.
Exemptions.
No mobile home park operated by the State
or the Federal Government, or park land owned by
either, and no trailer park operated for the use of recreational
campers or travel trailers shall be subject to the provisions
of this Act. (765 ILCS 745/5) Sec. 5.
Obligation of Park Owner to Offer Written Lease.
No person shall offer a mobile home or lot for rent or sale in a mobile
home park without having first exhibited to the prospective
tenant or purchaser a copy of the lease applicable to the respective mobile
home park.
(a) The park owner shall be required to offer to each
present and future tenant a written lease
for a term of not less than 12 months, unless the parties agree to a different
term subject to existing leases which shall be continued pursuant
to their terms.
(b) Tenants in possession on the effective date
of this Act shall have 30 days after receipt of the offer for a written
lease within which to accept or reject such offer; during which period,
the rent may not be increased or any other terms and conditions changed,
except as permitted under this Act; providing that if the tenant has not
so elected he shall vacate within the 30 day period.
(c) The park owner shall notify his tenants in writing
not later than 30 days after the effective date of this Act,
that a written lease shall be available to the tenant and that such lease
is being offered in compliance with and will conform to the requirements
of this Act. (765 ILCS 745/6) Sec. 6.
Effect of Unsigned Lease.
If the tenant shall fail to sign a written lease
which has been signed and tendered to him by the owner and
shall further provide the owner with a rejection in writing of such offer,
the tenant's continuation of possession and payment
of rent without reservation shall constitute an acceptance of the
lease with the same effect as if it had been signed by the tenant.
(765 ILCS 745/7) Sec. 7.
Renewal of Lease.
Every lease of a mobile home or lot in a mobile
home park shall contain an option which automatically renews the
lease; unless:
(a) the tenant shall notify the owners 30 days prior to the expiration
of the lease that he does not intend to renew the lease;
or
(b) the park owner shall notify the
tenant 30 days prior to the expiration of the lease that the lease will
not be renewed and specify in writing the
reasons, such as violations of park rules, health and safety codes
or irregular or non-payment of rent; or
(c) the park owner elects to cease the operation
of either all or a portion of the mobile home park. The tenants shall
be entitled to at least 12 months notice of such ceasing of
operations. If 12 months or more remain on the existing
lease at the time of notice, the tenant is entitled
to the balance of the term of his
lease. If there is less than 12 months remaining in the term of his
lease, the tenant is entitled to the
balance of his lease plus a written
month to month tenancy, at the expiring lease rate to provide him with
a full 12 months notice.
All notices required under this Section shall be by
certified mail or personal service. Certified
mail shall be deemed to be effective upon the date of mailing. (765
ILCS 745/8) Sec. 8.
The Terms of Fees and Rents.
The terms for payment of rent shall be clearly
set forth and all charges for services, ground or lot rent,
unit rent, or any other charges shall be specifically itemized in the lease
and in all billings of the tenant by the park owner.
The owner shall not change the rental terms nor increase
the cost of fees, except as provided herein.
The park owner shall not charge a transfer
or selling fee as a condition of sale
of a mobile home that is going to remain within the park unless a service
is rendered.
Rents charged to a tenant by a park owner may
be increased upon the renewal of a lease. Notification
of an increase shall be delivered 60 days prior to expiration of the lease.
(765 ILCS 745/9) Sec. 9.
Waiver of Provisions.
Any provision of a lease whereby any provisions
of this Act are waived is declared void. (765 ILCS 745/10) Sec. 10.
Provisions of mobile home
park leases. Any lease hereafter executed or currently
existing between an owner and tenant in a mobile home park in this
State shall also contain, or shall be made to contain, the
following covenants binding the owner at all times during the term of the
lease to:
(a) identify to each tenant prior to his occupancy
the lot area for which he will be responsible;
(b) keep all exterior property areas not in the possession
of a tenant, but part of the mobile home park property, free from
the species of weeds and plant growth which are
generally noxious or detrimental to the health of the tenants;
(c) maintain all electrical, plumbing, gas or other
utilities provided by him in good working
condition with the exception of emergencies after which
repairs must be completed within a reasonable period
of time;
(d) maintain all subsurface water and sewage lines and
connections in good working order;
(e) respect the privacy of the tenants and if only the lot
is rented, agree not to enter the mobile home without the permission of
the mobile home owner, and if the mobile home is the property of the park
owner, to enter only after due notice to the tenant, provided,the park
owner or his representative may enter without notice
in emergencies;
(f) maintain all roads within the mobile home park in good
condition;
(g) include a statement of all services and facilities
which are to be provided by the park
owner for the tenant, e.g. lawn maintenance, snow removal,
garbage or solid waste disposal, recreation
building, community hall, swimming pool, golf course,
laundromat, etc.;
(h) disclose the full names and addresses of all
individuals in whom all or part of the legal or equitable
title to the mobile home park is vested, or the
name and address of the owners' designated agent;
(i) provide a custodian's office and furnish each tenant
with the name, address and telephone number of
the custodian and designated office. (765 ILCS 745/11) Sec.
11.
Lease prohibitions.
No lease hereafter executed
or currently existing between a park owner and tenant in a mobile home
park in this State shall contain any provision:
(a) Permitting the park owner to
charge a penalty fee for late payment of rent without allowing a tenant
a minimum of 5 days beyond the date the rent is due in which to remit such
payment;
(b) Permitting the park owner to charge an amount in excess
of one month's rent as a security deposit;
(c) Requiring the tenant to pay
any fees not specified in the lease;
(d) Permitting the park owner to transfer, or move, a
mobile home to a different lot, including a different
lot in the same mobile home park, during the term of the lease. (765
ILCS 745/12) Sec. 12.
No lease hereafter executed between a mobile
home park owner and a tenant in such
a park in this State shall contain any provision requiring the tenant
to purchase a mobile home from the park owner, or requiring
that if the tenant purchases any mobile home during the lease term that
such mobile home must be purchased from the park
owner, and no such requirement shall be made as a condition precedent to
entering into a lease agreement with any such tenant. (765 ILCS 745/12a)
Sec. 12a.
Tenant's Duties.
The tenant shall agree at
all times during the tenancy to:
(a) Keep the mobile home unit, if he rents
such, or the exterior premises if he rents a lot, in a clean and sanitary
condition, free of garbage and rubbish;
(b) Refrain from the storage of any inoperable motor vehicle;
(c) Refrain from washing all vehicles except at an area
designated by park management;
(d) Refrain from performing any major repairs of motor vehicles
at any time;
(e) Refrain from the storage of any icebox, stove, building
material, furniture or similar items on the exterior premises;
(f) Keep the supplied basic facilities,
including plumbing fixtures, cooking and refrigeration equipment
and electrical fixtures in a leased mobile home unit in a clean
and sanitary condition and be responsible
for the exercise of reasonable care in their proper use and operation;
(g) Not deliberately or negligently destroy, deface, damage,
impair or remove any part of the premises or knowingly permit any person
to do so;
(h) Conduct himself and require other persons on the
premises with his consent to conduct themselves in a manner that will
not effect or disturb his neighbors peaceful enjoyment of the
premises;
(i) Abide by all the rules or
regulations concerning the use, occupation and maintenance of the premises; and
(j) Abide by any reasonable rules for guest parking
which are clearly stated. (765 ILCS 745/13) Sec. 13.
Rules and regulations of park.
Rules and regulations promulgated and
adopted by the park owner are enforceable against a tenant
only if:
(a) A copy of all rules and regulations was delivered by
the park owner to the tenant prior to his signing the lease;
(b) The purpose of such rules and
regulations is to promote the convenience, safety and welfare of the tenants,
preserve park property from damage or to fairly distribute
park services and facilities to the tenants;
(c) They are reasonably related to the purpose for which adopted;
(d) They apply to all tenants in a fair manner;
(e) They are sufficiently explicit in prohibition,
direction or limitation of the tenant's conduct to fairly inform
him of what he must or must not do to comply; and
(f) They are not for the purpose of evading the obligation
of the park owner.
A rule or regulation
adopted during the term of a lease
is enforceable against the tenant only if 30 days written notice
of its adoption is given the tenant
and such rule or regulation is not in violation of the terms and
conditions of the lease. (765 ILCS 745/14) Sec. 14.
The Department of Public
Health shall produce and distribute a pamphlet setting
forth clearly, and in detail, the tenant's and park operator's rights and
obligations under this Act. The pamphlet shall be produced
within 90 days of the effective date
of this amendatory Act of 1992.
Each park owner shall make these pamphlets available
to all current tenants within 60 days after receiving the pamphlets.
This requirement may be satisfied by distributing or
mailing the pamphlets to each tenant.
All new tenants shall be offered a pamphlet at or before the time
at which they are offered a written lease.
A violation of the provisions of this Section
shall not render any lease void or voidable nor shall it constitute:
(1) A defense to any action
or proceeding to enforce the lease.
(2) A defense to any action or proceeding for breach of the
lease. (765 ILCS 745/14-1) Sec. 14-1.
Statutory grounds for eviction.
A park owner may terminate the lease and evict
a tenant for any one or more of
the following acts:
(a) Non-payment of rent due;
(b) Failure to comply with the park rules;
(c) Failure to comply with local
ordinances and State laws regulating mobile homes.
(765 ILCS 745/15) Sec. 15.
Improper grounds for eviction.
The following conduct by a tenant shall not constitute grounds
for eviction or termination of the lease, nor shall
a judgment for possession of the premises be entered against a tenant:
(a) As a reprisal for the tenant's effort to secure or enforce
any rights under the lease or the laws of
the State of Illinois, or its governmental subdivisions of the United States;
(b) As a reprisal for the tenant's good
faith complaint to a governmental authority
of the park owner's alleged violation of any health or
safety law, regulation, code or ordinance, or State law
or regulation which has as its objective the regulation
of premises used for dwelling purposes;
(c) As a reprisal for the tenant's being an organizer or member
of, or involved in any activities relative to a home owners association.
(765 ILCS 745/16) Sec. 16.
Notice required by Law.
The following notice shall
be printed verbatim in a clear and conspicuous
manner in each lease or rental agreement of a mobile home or lot:
"IMPORTANT NOTICE REQUIRED BY LAW:
The rules set forth below govern the
terms of your lease of occupancy arrangement
with this mobile home park. The law requires all of these rules and
regulations to be fair and reasonable, and if not, such
rules and regulations cannot be enforced against you.
You may continue to reside in the park as long
as you pay your rent and abide by the rules and regulations of the park.
You may only be evicted for non-payment of rent,
violation of laws, or for violation of the rules and regulations of the
park and the terms of the lease.
If this park requires you to deal exclusively
with a certain fuel dealer or other merchant for goods
or service in connection with the use or occupancy of your
mobile home or on your mobile home lot, the price you pay for such goods
or services may not be more than the prevailing price in this
locality for similar goods and services.
You may not be evicted for reporting any violations
of law or health and building codes to boards
of health, building commissioners, the department of the Attorney General
or any other appropriate government agency." (765 ILCS
745/17) Sec. 17.
Security deposit; Interest.
(a) If the lease requires the tenant to provide any
deposit with the park owner for the
term of the lease, or any part thereof, said deposit shall be considered
a Security Deposit. Security Deposits shall be returned in full to
the tenant, provided that the tenant has paid all rent due in full for
the term of the lease and has caused no actual
damage to the premises. The park owner shall furnish
the tenant, within 15 days after termination or expiration
of the lease, an itemized list of the damages incurred upon the premises
and the estimated cost for the repair of each item. The tenant's failure
to object to the itemized list within 15 days shall constitute
an agreement upon the amount of damages specified
therein. The park owner's failure to furnish such
itemized list of damages shall constitute an agreement that
no damages have been incurred upon the premises
and the entire security deposit shall
become immediately due and owing to the tenant. The tenant's failure to
furnish the park owner a forwarding address shall excuse
the park owner from furnishing the list required by this Section.
(b) A park owner of any park regularly
containing 25 or more mobile homes shall pay interest to the tenant, on
any deposit held by the park owner, computed from
the date of the deposit at a rate equal to the interest paid
by the largest commercial bank, as measured
by total assets, having its main banking premises in this State on minimum deposit passbook savings accounts as of December 31 of the preceding year on any such deposit held by the park owner for more than 6 months. However, in the event that any portion of the amount deposited is utilized during the period for which it is deposited in order to compensate the owner for non-payment of rent or to make a good faith reimbursement to the owner for damage caused by the tenant, the principal on which the interest accrues may be recomputed to reflect the reduction for the period commencing on the first day of the calendar month following the reduction.
The park owner shall, within 30 days after the end of each 12-month period, pay to the tenant any interest owed under this Section in cash, provided, however, that the amount owed may be applied to rent due if the owner and tenant agree thereto.
A park owner who willfully fails or refuses to pay the interest required by this Act shall, upon a finding by a circuit court that he willfully failed or refused to pay, be liable for an amount equal to the amount of the security deposit, together with court costs and a reasonable attorney's fee.
(Source: P.A. 88-643, eff. 1-1-95.)
