 |
||
|
|
||
| Are you a
tenant or a landlord with a
question about your security deposit? Contact us: Reda | Ciprian | Magnone, LLC 8501 W. Higgins Suite 440 Chicago, Illinois 60631 773.399.1122 fax 773.399.1144 email us |
Questions
from the Email - because email is necessarily brief, the
answers below are generalizations and are not intended to be specific legal
advice. Every case is different and no situation can be
properly evaluated without a full consultation with an attorney. Question 1 - What law applies to me? one emailer writes: "The illinois Security Deposit Return Act says a lessor containing 5 or more units. I was renting a house in Decatur Illinois...just left 12/31/2008. Its been more than thirty days and I have no itemized statement of damage, no recaipts of repair. I don't understand the law when it says 5 or more units....what law pertains to me, I was renting a house? I think she only has three rental houses in town. We left the house in top shape (a little cleaner than before). I have felt like the landlord is taking advantage of our age. Please, any information will be helpful. Thank you for your reply in advance. Answer: Unfortunately, there are cracks in the law of security deposit return. The first place to check for help is with your local municiplaity. If the city where you live, such as Chicago or Evanston, has a landlord tenant ordinance, there might be a local law that applies to you. If your local municipality does not have a law, then you have to look to the Illinois statute. As the emailer noted, certain landlords are exempt from the law. The Illinois Security Deposit Return Act is applicable to all landlords of residential property with five or more units. Usually, the state law does not apply to a four flat or a single family home. This does not mean that a tenant has no rights. Instead, the written lease between the landlord and tenant will govern along with the common law (from court decisions) of contracts and landlord tenant law in Illinois. What this really means is that a tenant does not have the added protection of a local ordinance or a state statute. A landlord, without just cause, still has a contractual or legal obligation to return an unapplied security deposit. Without the extra protections of the statute, however, the landlord does not have the benefit of pre-determined time limits, disclosure requirements, nor the penalties that provide for double damages, attorneys fees, or court costs. In these cases, a tenant may still have many rights. However, it may not be cost-effective to pursue a remedy against the landlord through an attorney. Many tenants can and do bring their landlord's to small claims court to recover all or part of a deposit. Even if a statute or local ordinance does not apply, a tenant should consult with an attorney to know and understand its rights and statutes of limitations on an action against the landlord. Have an issue? If you believe your landlord has violated the obligation to make a timely return of your deposit or to pay interest on your deposit, please feel free to telephone us at 773-399-1122 for a free telephone consultation (most consultations require approximately ten to fifteen minutes) or email us. |
|
|
|
||
| Disclaimer:
This website is purely a public resource of
general information which is intended, but not promised or guaranteed,
to be correct, complete, or up-to-date. This Web site is not intended
to be a source of solicitation or legal advice nor should it be the
basis of legal-hiring decisions. The reader should not consider this
information to be an invitation for an attorney-client relationship,
should not rely on information provided herein, and should always seek
the advice of competent counsel. The owner of this website,
Reda | Ciprian | Magnone, LLC, is a law firm
licensed to practice only in Illinois. Furthermore, the owner of this
website does not wish to represent anyone desiring representation based
upon viewing this website in a state where this website fails to comply
with all laws and ethical rules of that state. In
a good faith effort to comply with the rules and regulations of the
various states, Reda | Ciprian | Magnone, LLC would like to inform the
readers of this website that it consists of advertising and promotional
materials. Reda | Ciprian | Magnone, LLC makes no
representations or
promises that it can obtain the same results as reported in cases on
this website in other legal matters. Copyright: Copyright Reda | Ciprian | Magnone, LLC. All copy and images. All links to sites found herein are publicly available on the World Wide Web and are provided solely for the convenience of Web site visitors. These sites may not be sponsored by, affiliated with, or the responsibility of Reda | Ciprian | Magnone, LLC. The possession of these sites and their content and the possessors of any trademarks used by Reda | Ciprian | Magnone, LLC are not represented as a sponsor and may not be directly affiliated with Reda | Ciprian | Magnone, LLC. |
||