Leases

Your Lease is a Contract

The rental agreement between you and your landlord is a legally binding contract. A lease does not have to be written down. A lease can be a verbal agreement between you and your landlord. If you have a choice, it is usually better to have a written lease so both you and your landlord can know what each expects of the other.

Theoretically, you and your landlord can negotiate and change the terms of your lease before you agree to sign it. In practice, however, many tenants feel that they have no option but to agree to the lease that the landlord wants.

If you get into a legal dispute over your tenancy, the terms of your lease may determine the outcome. A judge will interpret the lease as it is written. This is why it is so important to read and understand a lease before you sign it. Seek legal advice from Prairie State Legal Services or another lawyer if you do not understand the terms of the lease your landlord wants you to sign.

Types of Leases

There are several types of leases, but the most common for renters are leases for a term and month-to-month leases.

A lease for a term has a specific beginning date and a specific ending date, usually written right in the lease.

A month-to-month lease has no specific beginning or ending dates. It renews itself every month until you or your landlord terminates it.

Illegal Terms in a Lease

In certain situations, there are parts of a lease that are considered so unfair to tenants that a judge will refuse to enforce that part of the lease, even though you technically agreed to it by signing your lease.
Examples: The following are some examples of potentially illegal lease terms:

• A term letting your landlord evict you without taking you to court first;


• A term making you pay your landlord’s attorney’s fees even if you win your case in court;


• A term letting your landlord take you to court without ever notifying you;


• A term making you pay a very large, unreasonable late fee if you are late with the rent;


• A term prohibiting you from complaining to your local government about building code violations.

Published by: Illinois Legal Aid