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Security deposits · IL
Last updated October 13, 2026
You moved out, cleaned up, handed back the keys, and the deposit still hasn't shown up. Or it did, minus a list of charges that don't add up. Here is what Illinois law says about that, in plain terms, with the statute so you can check it yourself.
30 days to send an itemized statement with receipts if anything is kept. With no proper statement, the full deposit is due within 45 days of move-out. The Act covers buildings with five or more units.
Give the landlord your new address in writing when you hand back the keys. Even where the law doesn't strictly require it, it removes the easiest excuse for a late refund.
Chicago has its own ordinance (the RLTO) with separate rules on top of state law.
A landlord who doesn't follow the Act owes twice the deposit, plus court costs and attorney's fees.
That is the part that tends to move a landlord. Plenty of them hold on to a deposit simply because nobody asks twice. A short letter that names the statute and the penalty changes the math for them: paying you now is usually cheaper than risking the penalty in small claims court.
Unpaid rent, and damage beyond normal wear and tear. Faded paint, light carpet wear and a few small nail holes after a long tenancy are the classic examples of wear and tear. A broken door or a large stain is damage. If the deductions are vague ("cleaning, $400") ask for the itemized list and receipts. Whether you're entitled to one, and how detailed it must be, depends on the statute above.
Illinois doesn't put a ceiling on how big a deposit can be. That makes the return rules the part worth knowing, because a large deposit is a lot of money to leave sitting with a former landlord.
Dear [landlord],
I moved out of [address] on [date] and returned the keys. My security deposit of $[amount] has not been returned, and I have not received an itemized list of deductions within 30 days the law allows.
765 Ill. Comp. Stat. 710/1 sets out when a landlord in Illinois must return a deposit and what happens when they don't. I'd rather settle this directly than in court.
Please pay $[amount] to me at [forwarding address] within 10 days of this letter. If I don't receive it by then, I will file a claim in small claims court and ask for everything the statute allows.
Sincerely,
[your name]
The generator fills this in with your actual numbers and dates, adjusts the tone, and gives you a PDF or an email ready to send.
Write my Illinois demand letter →30 days to send an itemized statement with receipts if anything is kept. With no proper statement, the full deposit is due within 45 days of move-out. The Act covers buildings with five or more units.
No statutory cap.
A landlord who doesn't follow the Act owes twice the deposit, plus court costs and attorney's fees.