Oak Park, Illinois landlords need to be aware that the Village has its own landlord tenant regulations. Although not at all as comprehensive as the CRLTO, the Oak Park Village Code imposes a number of obligations and requirements on landlords. Let’s begin today with a look at Section 12-2-11 which mandates a number of lease provisions to be included in any lease or lease application.
The required lease terms are simple enough. They are required for all leases and lease applications executed after October 1, 1991. There are just four of them. They are as follows:
1. The lease or application must specify the specific unit number of the dwelling unit to be leased. (Section 12-3-11(B))
This is simple enough. A lease just has to be descriptive enough to specify the unit being rented out.
2. The lease or application must specify the maximum occupancy of the dwelling unit to be leased as established by the owner and/or operator of the dwelling unit. However, owner and/or operator shall not set a maximum occupancy in any such lease or lease application which exceeds the maximum occupancy for the dwelling unit established by Section 12-1-6 of the Village Code and set forth in the annual building inspection report provided to every multiple-family dwelling building owner or operator by the Code Enforcement Department of the Village on an annual basis.
Every property has a maximum occupancy. Without getting too deep into fair housing issues, the landlord may set a maximum occupancy as long as it is within the Village occupancy maximum.
3. The lease or application must specify the full names and birth dates of all occupants of the dwelling unit leased or to be leased under the lease agreement. The individual occupancy of the dwelling unit may not be changed without an amendment to the existing lease agreement reflecting the change in occupancy and shall in no case exceed the maximum occupancy set forth in Section 12-1-6 of this Code.
The lease and application must list the names and birthdays of all occupants.
4. The lease or application must specify the name and phone number of an agent of the building owner or management who, in emergency situations, will be accessible to tenants on a twenty four (24) hour per day basis and capable of reasonably and effectively responding to tenant needs in such situations.
The landlord must provide an emergency contact name and phone number.
So, what if a landlord does not include this information? Here’s the kicker:
It shall be the responsibility of the lessor to set forth the information required herein in the lease agreement. Any lease not containing the information required herein shall be voidable by the lessee.
So, a lease that fails to include the information is voidable by the lessee. Get that one more time: the tenant can terminate the lease. So, its important for a landlord to include these things.
And unlike the Oak Park security deposit rules (that apply only to buildings with 4 or more units), this applies to all residential leases in Oak Park.
Landlords everywhere need to be aware of the myriad of local rules and regulations that affect their leasing activities. It is not easy to draft a lease and form leases rarely take these local issues into account. Oak Park landlords interested in discussing our services drafting leases should feel free to give us a call.