Chicago security deposit law (RLTO)

Deadline

45 days after you move out, with interest (§ 5-12-080(d))

Damage deductions

Itemized statement with copies of paid receipts within 30 days

Holding

A federally insured, interest-bearing account at an Illinois bank, separate from the landlord's money

Receipt

A signed receipt when you pay the deposit; without it, you're entitled to it back immediately

Interest

Paid every year on deposits held over six months, at the city's announced rate

Penalty

2× the deposit plus interest for breaking the deposit rules (§ 5-12-080(f))

Attorney's fees

A tenant who wins recovers court costs and reasonable attorney's fees (§ 5-12-180)

The ordinance covers almost every rental agreement for an apartment in the City of Chicago, wherever the lease was signed (§ 5-12-010). It doesn't cover (§ 5-12-020):

• Units in owner-occupied buildings with six units or fewer
• Hotels, motels, rooming houses and similar, until a tenant has stayed 32 or more continuous days and pays monthly rent
• School dormitories, and student housing run or supervised by a college or university
• Co-op units occupied by the holder of a proprietary lease
• Units occupied by an employee whose housing depends on their job there

If you're outside the ordinance, or outside Chicago, the Illinois Security Deposit Return Act still applies. See the Illinois guide.

A Chicago landlord must keep deposits in a federally insured, interest-bearing account at a bank or other financial institution in Illinois. The deposit and its interest remain your property and can't be mixed with the landlord's own money (§ 5-12-080(a)(1)).

The name and address of the bank must be disclosed clearly in your written lease, or, without a written lease, in writing within 14 days of receiving the deposit. If the deposit moves to another bank, the landlord must tell you within 14 days (§ 5-12-080(a)(3)).

When you pay a deposit, the landlord must give you a signed receipt showing the amount, who received it (and, for an agent, the landlord's name), the date and a description of the unit. An electronic receipt with a digital signature works for electronic payments. A landlord who doesn't give one must return the deposit immediately (§ 5-12-080(b)).

For a deposit held more than six months, the landlord must pay interest from the start of your lease, at the rate for the year your lease was signed, within 30 days after each 12-month rental period, in cash or as a credit against rent (§ 5-12-080(c)). The City Comptroller announces the rate on the first business day of each year (§ 5-12-081).

Within 45 days after you move out, the landlord must return the deposit, or what's left of it, with the interest owed (§ 5-12-080(d)). They may deduct only:

For any damage, the landlord must deliver or mail an itemized statement within 30 days, with the estimated or actual cost of each item and copies of the paid receipts. If they gave estimates, the paid receipts, or a certification of actual costs for work by their own employees, must follow within 30 days of the statement.

After a sale or any transfer of control, the new landlord is liable for your deposit and its interest. They must notify you in writing within 14 days that they hold it, with their name, business address and phone number. The old landlord stays liable with them until the deposit is transferred and you're notified (§ 5-12-080(e)).

If a landlord fails to comply with any of the deposit rules in § 5-12-080(a) through (e), the tenant is awarded damages equal to two times the security deposit plus interest (§ 5-12-080(f)(1)). There's a narrow safe harbor when the only problem is that the interest paid was a little short and the landlord corrects it within 14 days of your written notice.

A tenant who wins can also recover court costs and reasonable attorney's fees (§ 5-12-180). That's why many Chicago tenant lawyers take deposit cases.

Our Illinois letter cites the state Security Deposit Return Act and, when your rental is in Chicago, also points to the ordinance.