7th Circuit clears up Fair Debt Collection issue

five day noticeIn 2009, the Third District of the Illinois Appellate Court issued an opinion in American Management Consultant LLC v. Carter that, in part, confused landlords and their legal counsel.  In the case, involving an appeal of a Bolingbrook forcible entry and detainer case, the Defendant argued that the landlord had violated the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act.  The Illinois court agreed saying:

Read more

Partial Payment after 5 Day Notice in Chicago

five day noticeThe first step in just about all evictions for nonpayment of rent is to serve a notice for non-payment of rent.  Unless the cure period is modified (or even waived in some jurisdictions), this is usually a five day notice.  Once the notice is served, the tenant has five days to make payment in full to avoid an eviction.

Read more

February Makes One Think

UPDATE:  Click here for what happens in a leap year!

A 28 day month can cause all sorts of confusion for landlords.  One of the most common methods of terminating a tenancy is the use of a landlord’s thirty day notice.  This notice is used to terminate a written or oral month-to-month lease.

The thirty day notice is a strange animal.  Like all of Illinois eviction law, the requirements of a thirty day notice are strict. The law for a 30 day notice can be found in 735 ILCS 5/9‑207 as follows:

Read more

What Should a Landlord do if a Tenant’s First Security Deposit & Rent Check Bounces?

In most cases, trouble with tenants usually begins some time after the tenant has paid the first month’s rent and a security deposit.  There are times, however, when a tenant “breaks bad” right off the bat and bounces the initial check or checks given to the landlord.

Before getting too deep into the topic, lets examine the state of the law in Chicago. 

Read more

Breaking Down the Landlord’s Five Day Notice

five day noticeThe most common notice to terminate a tenancy is a five day notice.  This is the notice that is generally required when a tenant fails to make timely payment of rent.  The requirements for a demand for rent are contained in Section 9-209 of the Illinois Forcible Entry and Detainer Act.  The act provides in part:

Read more