Skokie, IL Rental Property Rules: Rent Control (2026)

Illinois's Rent Control Preemption Act (50 ILCS 825), enacted in 1997, prohibits all Illinois units of local government from enacting, maintaining, or enforcing any ordinance or resolution controlling the amount of rent charged for leasing private residential or commercial property. This statewide preemption means Skokie cannot legally adopt rent control or rent stabilization regardless of local housing conditions or political preferences. Landlords may set initial rent, renewal rent, and rent increases freely subject to lease terms, market conditions, and general contract law. Tenants may negotiate lease terms but have no statutory right to a capped rent increase. Periodic legislative proposals to repeal the preemption have been introduced in Springfield but have not passed. Federal Section 8 voucher program rents are set by HUD's Fair Market Rent and Payment Standards, which functions as a cap for voucher-assisted housing but is not rent control. Rent-stabilized affordable housing created through tax credit programs or inclusionary requirements on new developments operates under the specific program rules, not municipal rent control. Cook County's Residential Tenant and Landlord Ordinance (RTLO) applies in unincorporated Cook County but NOT in Skokie, which is an incorporated municipality with its own legal framework.