NOTE: The form below is NOT the current form. Please see here. Landlords placing an eviction with the Cook County Sheriff have a new form to fill out when they place their eviction for execution by the Sheriff. The form is informational in nature and must be presented to the Sheriff’s office at the same time the eviction fee is paid and the order is placed. In my opinion, this form (which can be found after the jump) is much improved from previous versions.In the past, the form was two pages, was disjointed, and did not really explain its purpose. The new form purports to make the placement process more clear for landlords and their attorneys and to provide information the Sheriff’s office is looking for to facilitate the eviction.
The form provides the landlord or attorney to determine who the Sheriff will call before the eviction and indicates the person who will greet the Sheriff on the day of the eviction. The form goes on to request information on any occupants in the building who are children, elderly, have mental health conditions, are disabled or have pets. On the form, the Sheriff’s office indicates that that the information provided will not delay the scheduling of the eviction. The form also goes on to provide those external reasons when a forcible entry order for possession might be delayed.
QUESTION (IL)
Do I need a sheriff to take possession of the rental unit if the tenant no longer lives there but a few of the tenants belongings are left in the apartment (major appliances and furniture all moved out to their new apartment)? The stay judgement is until Jan 24th,2011. When can I change the locks.
I wouldn’t. Possession is a question of fact. Could your tenant make a case that they did not yet turn over possession? Did they turn over keys? Did they indicate that they were “gone”? A landlord who takes back an apartment without being certain that possession has been tendered takes a major risk of being accused of a wrongful eviction or illegal lockout by a tenant. Do some landlords take back possession without any bad result? Sure, but who wants to be exposed to that potential liability? I can’t recommend taking back possession without the assistance of the Sheriff unless there is a certainty that possession has been transferred. There are far too many horror stories of landlord who go all the way through the process to obtain an Order for Possession only to engage in “self help” at the last minute and get into deep trouble.
I don’t have enough facts from your message to give you any legal advice upon which you can rely. I urge you to speak with an attorney to advise you of your rights.