Landlord Atlas

Chicago, Illinois: Rent Control (none; barred by state law)

Verified August 16, 2026 All Illinois topics →

Chicago has no rent control: Illinois' Rent Control Preemption Act has barred every city in the state, Chicago included, from limiting rents since 1997, and Chicago's own code has no rent-cap chapter.

Cited to Rent Control Preemption Act, 50 ILCS 825 and 8 more sources · Verified August 16, 2026

Guides that describe Chicago as rent-controlled, or say its landlord-tenant ordinance caps rent, are wrong. What the city does regulate is security deposits and deposit interest, disclosures, lockouts, advance notice before a rent increase (30, 60 or 120 days by length of tenancy), and late fees ($10 a month on the first $500 of rent plus 5% of the rest). Bills to repeal the state ban or let local voters lift it are pending in the 2025–2026 legislature and have not advanced.

What is in force

Chicago has no rent control or rent stabilization, and Illinois law does not let it adopt one. The Rent Control Preemption Act (50 ILCS 825), in force since August 1, 1997, bars every unit of local government — expressly including home-rule cities such as Chicago — from enacting, maintaining, or enforcing any ordinance that would have the effect of controlling the amount of rent charged for private residential or commercial property. The Act has not been amended since it was passed. Chicago's Municipal Code contains no rent-cap chapter; its only chapter ever titled 'Rent Control' was a wartime-era appendix formally repealed on October 3, 2001.

What housing is covered

The state ban covers all private residential and commercial rentals in Chicago. The one carve-out is housing in which the local government itself has a property interest, which the city may still manage and control.

Eviction and termination rules

State law governs evictions; the city adds no rent-regulation-related eviction rules. Chicago's Residential Landlord and Tenant Ordinance does require advance written notice before a landlord ends a tenancy, declines to renew, or raises the rent: at least 30 days for tenancies under 6 months, 60 days for tenancies of 6 months to 3 years, and 120 days for tenancies over 3 years (Municipal Code § 5-12-130(j)). A Protecting Renters Ordinance introduced June 29, 2026 would add just-cause eviction rules if adopted.

Other requirements

Chicago's Residential Landlord and Tenant Ordinance (Municipal Code Chapter 5-12, in force since 1986) regulates security deposits and deposit interest, receipts and disclosures, landlord access, habitability, lockouts, and lease terms — but not the amount of rent. It caps late fees at $10 per month on the first $500 of monthly rent plus 5% per month on any rent above $500 (§ 5-12-140(h)); a lease term charging more is unenforceable. Most rentals are covered; owner-occupied buildings of 6 or fewer units are excluded except for the notice and lockout rules. Bills to repeal the state ban (SB 1260) or to let local voters lift it by referendum (HB 3687 and SB 2884, the 'Let the People Lift the Ban Act') are pending in the 2025–2026 Illinois General Assembly; none has advanced past initial committee referral.

Notes and caveats

Citations

This page records local law. Statewide rules — deposits, notice periods, late fees, entry, evictions — live on the Illinois hub, and the state-level position on local rent regulation appears there with its own citations and verification date.