Chicago's Fair Notice Ordinance MCC 5-14 requires landlords to give 60, 90, or 120 days' written notice before raising rent or terminating a lease without cause, scaled to how long the tenant has lived in the unit.
MCC 5-14-050, effective July 2020, scales notice based on tenancy length: 60 days when the tenant has occupied less than six months, 90 days when between six months and three years, and 120 days when over three years. The notice applies to non-renewal, lease termination, and rent increases. Landlords skipping the notice must let the tenant remain at the prior rent for the missed notice period. Section 8 and other subsidized tenancies retain federal notice rules. The ordinance does not require just cause for eviction outside the covered subset, but combined with deposit and retaliation rules it sharply limits sudden displacement.
Skipping or shortening the Fair Notice period extends the existing tenancy at the existing rent, creates an RLTO defense to eviction, and may support tenant damages and attorney fees in court.
Chicago, IL
Chicago tenants forced to vacate due to building code violations or condo conversion are entitled to relocation assistance. The RLTO and Condominium Ordinanc...
Chicago, IL
Chicago landlords offering cash-for-keys to buy a tenant out of a lease must follow RLTO duty-of-good-faith rules under MCC 5-12-150. Coercive or undisclosed...
Chicago, IL
Chicago does not have a formal just cause eviction ordinance, but the RLTO (MCC 5-12) provides substantial eviction protections including anti-retaliation pr...
See how Chicago's no-fault evictions rules stack up against other locations.
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