How rental housing works

House and high rise apartment building

House & Apartment

Happy woman on couch at home
How rental housing works

Find out the law about renting a place to live in Illinois, including applying for housing, signing a lease, and landlord and tenant responsibilities.

Applying for rental housing
Learn about rental housing applications, what landlords must disclose before a lease is signed, and how to avoid rental scams.
FAQ
Rental junk fee ban
Understand the new Illinois law that limits application fees and requires fee disclosures for many Illinois rentals.
FAQ
Spoken and written leases
Discover how spoken (oral) and written agreements create leases, rules for lease restrictions, and when landlords can increase rent.
FAQ
Landlord-tenant laws
Understand how laws from many sources, including local landlord-tenant ordinances, apply to Illinois rental housing.
FAQ
Housing protections for survivors of domestic violence, dating violence, stalking, and sexual assault
Learn more about the housing rights and protections survivors have under the Illinois Safe Homes Act and the Violence Against Women Act.
FAQ
Sample Illinois lease
A sample lease for tenants and landlords that you can use to create your own version.
Form download