Landlord Tenant

Today I met with a landlord that had several basic questions about being a landlord. First, this gentleman named "Ed" had a property in a near Western Suburb in Cook County and lives in the Western Suburbs. The first mistake, Ed, made was using a generic real estate leasing form bought online. This was a mistake in his case because he wants to sue a tenant for breach of contract due to non-payment of rent that resides in a different state other than Illinois. This is important because a standard Cook County or Chicago Association of Realtor's Lease has a provision, which mandates that Circuit Court of Cook County is the choice of jurisdiction. Thus, in his case, Ed has limited options of collecting his back owed rent.

Ed's second question was how to approach a tenant that pays their late. Ed noticed that his tenant paid their rent around twenty days late and therefore, Ed thought that if he changed the rent due date to the 20th of the Month, it would solve the lateness of rent payments. This was a mistake because the tenant just paid 15 to 20 days late from the new due date. Thus, Ed needed to train the tenant that paying Ed is a priority. This could be done by delivering a five day notice to the tenant when they fail to pay rent in a timely manner (after 10 days late). If the tenant does not pay, then Ed should file a landlord/tenant eviction case. The damages should include attorney's fees and costs along with the outstanding rent.

The third question Ed had was how to approach a tenant that has two to three months left on their lease when their rent is past due by a significant time frame. A serious concern is a tenant deciding to withhold paying monthly rent and having the landlord use the security deposit as the last month's rent. Most real estate leases have a written provision against this but most tenants do not care especially if they are moving out after the term of their rental agreement. The second advice to Ed was provide at least thirty (30) day notice to the tenants that Ed is not renewing the lease. The third advice to Ed was mail the clients a letter of his concerns with me editing the letter. This is important because a letter from an attorney sends a strong message and a tenant should not be scared into non-payment of rent. If the letter is not careful, the tenant will determine that it is in their best interests to save their money for a new place. This causes problems for a Cook County landlord because the eviction process along with the Sheriff eviction process can take three to six months from beginning to close.

Sean Robertson is a litigation attorney that concentrates in civil and commercial litigation, landlord/tenant representation, and business disputes. Sean Robertson can be reached at (312) 498-6080 or (630) 364-2318.