Evanston Tenant Rights: 90-Day Notice, 1.5-Month Deposit Cap, IL

Short answer: Evanston tenant rights come from the city’s own Residential Landlord and Tenant Ordinance (RLTO), which was rewritten effective January 1, 2025. It caps deposits at 1.5 months’ rent, requires 90 days’ notice before a rent increase or non-renewal, limits late fees, and gives tenants repair-and-deduct and essential-service remedies. Illinois law bars rent control, and Evanston has no just-cause eviction rule, so the 90-day notice is the main protection when a lease ends.

Evanston, Chicago and Mount Prospect are the three places Cook County names as having their own landlord-tenant ordinances. That is why the county’s Residential Tenant Landlord Ordinance does not apply here, according to the Cook County RTLO brochure. The City Council approved a major RLTO update on July 22, 2024, through Ordinance 52-O-24. For questions, the city sends residents to Evanston 311, reachable at 311 or (847) 448-4311, and contracts with two tenant-landlord help organizations.

Evanston tenant rights at a glance

Topic	Evanston rule	Source
Rent control	None; Illinois Rent Control Preemption Act. Rent increases need 90 days’ written notice	City RLTO page
Just cause	No; but non-renewal needs 90 days’ notice or the tenant may stay 90 days from receipt	City RLTO page
Deposit cap and return	1.5 months’ rent; separate account; returned within 21 days; double damages for wrongful withholding	City RLTO page
Entry notice	At least two days’ notice; 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. presumed reasonable (RLTO 5-3-4-3)	Ordinance 52-O-24
Eviction court	Circuit Court of Cook County, Second Municipal District, Skokie Courthouse	Circuit Court of Cook County
Key local agency	Evanston 311, (847) 448-4311; Community Development Department, Housing and Grants	City of Evanston

Why Evanston has no rent cap

Illinois blocks local rent control through the Illinois Rent Control Preemption Act, 50 ILCS 825, which the Illinois Legal Aid housing manual lists among the state statutes governing rentals. The manual notes that an Illinois appellate court in 2021 held part of a Chicago housing ordinance preempted by that Act, which shows how far it reaches. The Illinois Attorney General’s tenant guide says it plainly: Illinois has no rent control law, and a landlord can’t raise rent during a fixed-term lease.

What Evanston can control is notice. Under the RLTO, a landlord must give 90 days’ written notice of any proposed rent increase, as explained on the city’s RLTO FAQ. That is three times the 30 days the state guide describes for month-to-month tenancies elsewhere in Illinois. Our Illinois rent increase laws page compares the state rules.

What the 2025 RLTO covers

The ordinance applies to nearly every rental in Evanston. The city lists only these exemptions: dorms and fraternity or sorority houses, religious facilities and licensed shared housing, medical or geriatric facilities, short hotel and motel stays, shareholder-occupied co-ops and lease-to-own units. Landlords must tell you in writing, before taking any money, if a unit is exempt.

That broad coverage matters in a college town: a privately rented off-campus apartment is covered like any other unit, while dorms and fraternity or sorority houses are on the exemption list.

Leases and required disclosures

Leases must be in writing and list the full names and birthdates of all occupants. If a landlord accepts rent without a written lease, the agreed terms are treated as a valid lease for up to one year. Before you sign, the landlord must disclose:

The owner or manager’s name, address and phone number, and the successor’s if ownership changes.
Who pays which utilities, the past 12 months of utility costs, and any city or utility threat to cut service.
Building code violations from the last year, known lead hazards, any pending foreclosure, and how to detect, report and remediate bedbugs.

Leases can’t include non-disparagement clauses, waivers of your rights, excessive late fees, bans on calling emergency services, or a requirement that you pay the landlord’s attorney fees. Renter’s insurance isn’t required by the RLTO, though a lease may require it. The city publishes an Evanston Model Lease on its RLTO page.

The late fee formula

Evanston uses a specific cap. If your rent is $1,600 or less, the most a landlord can charge is $25. If your rent is higher, the cap is $25 plus 5% of the amount over $1,600. On $2,000 rent that works out to $25 plus $20, or $45. Our late fee laws by state page shows how unusual a formula cap is.

Notice, renewal and eviction rules

The RLTO uses three different notice periods, and each one has a consequence if the landlord gets it wrong:

Non-renewal or rent increase: 90 days. If the landlord gives late notice, you may stay for 90 days from the day you receive it, on your current lease terms.
Unpaid rent: 10 days. The landlord must serve a 10-day written notice and must accept the full amount owed if you pay within that period. The ordinance allows 48 hours only for owner-occupied units with two or fewer rooming units.
Lease violations: 30 days. The notice gives you 30 days to correct the problem before the landlord can file.

Lockouts are illegal without a court order. The city tells tenants who are locked out to call the police, and you can sue for damages.

Retaliation protections

Section 5-3-9-1 of the ordinance bars a landlord from raising rent, cutting services, threatening or filing for possession, or refusing to renew because you complained in good faith to a government agency, a community group or the news media, sought help from legal aid, organized or joined a tenant union, testified about conditions, or used your rights under the Illinois Safe Homes Act. If the landlord retaliates, you have a defense to eviction and can recover up to two months’ rent or twice your damages, whichever is greater, plus attorney fees. A complaint made within one year before the landlord’s action creates a presumption of retaliation, unless you complained only after receiving notice of a rent increase.

Repairs, heat and essential services

The city’s RLTO FAQ lays out what you can do after giving written notice:

Ordinary repairs, after 10 days: make a minor repair costing less than $500 or half a month’s rent and deduct it from rent with receipts; seek a rent reduction if the problem has been cited as a code violation; or end the lease and move out within 30 days. If you move out, you may still owe rent unless the landlord re-rents the unit.
No heat, water or electricity: buy the service and deduct the cost, move to substitute housing and deduct that cost, end the lease if it isn’t fixed within seven days, or sue for damages.

If you end a lease because essential services were cut off, the ordinance requires the landlord to settle your deposit within 48 hours after the seven-day notice expires, instead of the usual 21 days. Our repair request letter generator produces the dated written notice these remedies depend on.

Security deposits in Evanston

An Evanston landlord may not collect more than 1.5 months’ rent in security and prepaid rent combined, and first month’s rent paid when due doesn’t count toward that cap. The deposit must be kept in a separate account. Within 21 days after you move out, the landlord must return it, minus deductions listed in an itemized notice. If the landlord fails to comply, you can recover twice the amount wrongfully withheld plus attorney fees.

Those local rules are stricter than Illinois law. The Attorney General’s guide notes that state law sets no limit on deposit size, requires interest only in buildings of 25 or more units, and allows 30 days to send an itemized statement and 45 days to return a deposit in buildings of five or more units. See our Illinois security deposit law page for the statewide version, or send a demand with our security deposit demand letter tool.

Where Evanston evictions are heard

Eviction cases go to the Circuit Court of Cook County, Second Municipal District, which covers Evanston, Skokie and other north suburbs and lists eviction proceedings among its civil case types. The Skokie Courthouse is at 5600 Old Orchard Road, Skokie, and the Clerk of the Circuit Court’s line for the district is (847) 470-7250, per the Clerk’s District 2 page.

Evanston eviction cases follow the Illinois Eviction Act, 735 ILCS 5/9-101 and following, layered with the RLTO’s notice periods, so a notice that doesn’t meet the city’s 10-day or 90-day rules is worth raising in court. Our Illinois eviction process page covers each step under state law, and landlord tenant court near me lists other Cook County courthouses.

Who to call in Evanston

Evanston 311: 311 or (847) 448-4311, for RLTO questions, code complaints and referrals.
Metropolitan Tenants Organization (MTO): the city’s contracted tenant hotline, reachable through 311, or text “Evanston” to the MTO text line listed on the city’s resources page.
Lawyers’ Committee for Better Housing (LCBH): also under contract with the city for landlord-tenant help.
Rent assistance: the city directs renters to the Suburban Cook County Entry Point and to Connections for the Homeless prevention services to learn about city, county and state programs.
Health and Human Services: (847) 859-7831, for lead and Healthy Homes questions in pre-1978 housing.

Worked example: a late renewal notice near downtown Evanston

Priya rents a one-bedroom in a courtyard building off Chicago Avenue for $2,000 a month. Her lease runs through July 31. On June 15 her landlord emails a renewal offer at $2,150, a 7.5% increase, starting August 1.

Illinois doesn’t limit the size of the increase, but Evanston controls the timing. The landlord needed to give 90 days’ notice, by early May. Because the notice came late, Priya may stay 90 days from June 15, until September 13, under her current terms, including the $2,000 rent. That gives her time to decide whether to accept or move.

In August her rent is two days late, and the landlord adds a $100 late fee. Under the RLTO formula the cap on $2,000 rent is $25 plus 5% of $400, or $45. Priya pays the rent and $45, writes to the landlord citing the ordinance, and calls 311 to reach MTO if the landlord pushes back. When she moves out in September, the landlord has 21 days to return her deposit or itemize deductions.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does Evanston have rent control?

No. Illinois law preempts local rent control, so Evanston can’t cap increases. It does require 90 days’ written notice before any rent increase.

How much can an Evanston landlord charge for a security deposit?

No more than 1.5 months’ rent. It must be returned within 21 days of move-out, with an itemized list of any deductions.

What is the maximum late fee in Evanston?

$25 if rent is $1,600 or less; otherwise $25 plus 5% of the rent above $1,600.

How much notice does my Evanston landlord need to enter?

At least two days, except in emergencies. Entry between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m. is presumed reasonable, and after an emergency entry the landlord must give written notice within two days.

Does the Cook County tenant ordinance apply in Evanston?

No. The county says Evanston, Chicago and Mount Prospect are exempt because they have their own ordinances. Evanston’s RLTO governs instead.

Where do Evanston eviction cases go?

To the Circuit Court of Cook County’s Second Municipal District at the Skokie Courthouse, 5600 Old Orchard Road.

This page is general information, not legal advice. If you’ve been served with eviction papers in Evanston, call 311 and ask for the Metropolitan Tenants Organization hotline the same day, and bring your lease and every notice to the Skokie Courthouse. Renters in the city next door can compare Chicago tenant rights.