Chicago Space / Occupancy Requirements
last updated on November 2, 2009 – 12:25 pm26 comments
In order to meet legal requirements, a unit must have at a minimum, the following amount of square feet per person:
one person – 125 sq. feet
2 people – 250 sq. feet
3 people – 350 sq. feet
4 people – 450 sq. feet
5 people – 525 sq. feet
6 people – 600 sq. ft
7 people – 675 sq. ft
8 people – 750 sq. ft
9 people – 825 sq. ft
10 people – 900 sq. ft
Can my lease be terminated if my side job requires me to care for pets in my apartment? I spoke with management about it, & I was told that I didn’t have to pay a pet fee as long as the pets weren’t living in the apartment for more than 3 months. However, my building is now under new management & I need to know how to protect myself..What should I do?
This is a good question and probably best answered on the hotline (see below). Do you have anything in writing from the previous management company stating that as long as the pets were not in the apartment for 3 months then you did not have to pay a deposit. How long have lived in the apartment was the past management aware that you kept pets in the unit. You may run into some problems regarding running a business out of your apartment.
What are the provisions for breaking a lease if the atmosphere between roommates is caustic?
This question would be best answered by call our tenants rights hotline. In general if you are going to break a lease when there are roommates involved you will have to have the agreement of all parties concerned including the landlord. In most cases each tenant will be jointly and severably liable to fulfill the lease. In these cases our first suggestion would be to try mediation. In Chicago the Center for Conflict Resolution provides free mediation services. They can be contacted at 312922-6464 or here is a link to their web page. http://www.ccrchicago.org/
What is the maximum amount a landlord can charge its tenants in late fees? Please advise. I currently pay $750 month in rent and I believe my landlord has been over charging me?!
If you live in Chicago and are covered by Chicago’s Residential Landlord and Tenant Ordinance then the maximum amount that you can be charged is $10 for the first $500 plus 5% for the remaining $250. This means the landlord can charge you $22.50.
What if I don’t want to move out? I just received a letter that I have to move out for no reason. It’s hard. I pay the rent on time and everything but my landlord has mental problem – he thinks my husband puts some chemicals in his appartement wich is crazy. My husb is a truckdriver and comes home 2 times a month and is not even close to the person my landlord thinks he is. What can I do? I don’t want to move again! I have 3 wonderful kids, don’t do anything wrong.. Paying on time! What do do?
A landlord does not have to provide a reason to evict a tenant. The Metropolitan Tenants Organization believes that landlords should have to provide some just reason to evict a tenant such as nonpayment of rent, failure to follow rules, etc. Under the current law a landlord can evict someone for wearing sunglasses because they do not like sunglasses. I would urge you to call your alderman, state legislator and ask why a landlord can evict a tenant who is paying their rent on time for a reason that is crazy. It is not fair.
The landlord is not allowed to discriminate based on the classes defined by federal, state and local laws. You did not mention any discrimination. Could there be any? Is there anything other reason that the landlord may be trying to evict other than he being crazy? Could the landlord be mad at you for complaining about something?
Do you have a lease? If you have a lease and if it is not over then the landlord should not be able to evict you as long as you pay the rent and follow the rules. There may be other other legal arguments that you many have that an attorney can help you with.
In a 3 beroom apt(11to 1200 sqr ft) is there a minimum and maximum amount of people allowed to live thre?
There are no state or city statutes regarding minimum amount of people allowed to live in a three bedroom. If you live in a subsidized building, HUD or any other agency can and often do set minimum occupancy standards for a variety of reasons. An owner can impose minimum occupancy standards as long as they do not violate fair housing policies. The City of Chicago does have maximum occupancy standards. For the most part they are quite high and are determined by the unit’s area. According to Chicago’s law more than 10 people would be allowed to live in 1100 square foot apartment.
I was wondering what the legal number of occupants are for a two bedroom apartment in Chicago, Illinois? The apartment is about 850 square feet and currently we have 3 adults and 2 small children.
According to the Chicago Building code 5 people need a minimum of 525 square feet.
please help. I am trying to rent a condo and am told that 6 people (mother, father, and 4 children) cannot move into a 2 bedroom condo (772 sqft) because it is too many people. Could you please tell me the municipal code for this so i can bring it with to my meeting with the condo association? Or whatever source or help you may have!!
Here is a link to Chicago occupancy standards, http://www.tenants-rights.org/chicago-space-occupancy-requirements/. They are very broad. The owners may be able to create more stringent occupancy guidelines than Chicago’s limits which were made a long time ago. If you think that the condo Association is discriminating against you I would contact the Chicago Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights Under the Law, http://www.clccrul.org/. They may be able to help with this issue.
I live in a condominium complex that is trying to pass a no renter ruling. Currently, one unit is about to be rented by people who have inhereited their unit from a family member.
The unit is 2 bedrooms and approx 800 sq ft. The owners are trying have signed a rental agreement with a 6 person family (2 parents, 2 teenagers and two childeren) Does this break housing code based on the 600 sq ft ruling ? Does the Home Owners Association have any rights in this situation ?
Certainly our agency is not in favor of owner only rules. In this market it may not be good for owner either should one have to move as this is not a time to sell. Also I would tend to think that an occupied unit is preferable to a vacant unit for all involved. Finally most renters are very good neighbors.
As to whether your owners association can create more stringent occupancy standards than those of the city. What you have to be careful of is not running afoul of federal state and local fair housing ordinances that prohibit discrimination based on familial status. It is illegal to say no kids. Given that you may be able to create a rules that would limit the number of people allowed to live in a unit. For instance you may be able to limit the number of people in a one bedroom to 3. In order to help you create such a rule it would be best to consult with an attorney or one of the fair housing agencies in the area. Here is a link to the Chicago Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights Under the Law, http://www.clccrul.org/. They may be able to help with this issue.
My neighbors directly above me have three very noisy small children in a one bedroom apartment. This is a condo building where many of the condos are being rented. My neighbors are renting. We have complained about the noise (that will occur as late as 2am) but the condo manager says that that unit’s owner is experiencing financial difficulties which translate that he is not paying his assessments and/or mortgage. It seems that management is having problems contacting him. Is there anything we can do. We have downsized after the last of our kids has gone away to college. We just want peace. Thanks
Noise is a particularly difficult situation to deal with. Have you visited with the neighbors above and told them about the problem and looked for ways to ameliorate the problem. The condo association may have rights to evict the renters particularly if the owner is not paying their assessments. I am not familiar with condo laws. Are other units in the building experiencing similar problems. If so you might talk with them and look for a way to pressure the condo association to take more aggressive action. Another thing to be aware of is that it is illegal to discriminate against families with children.
Hi! Please Help! Where can I find the social construct for a “single-family” in chicago. According to bylaws, my condo unit is to be “single family” however, I would like to know exactly what the city defines this as? I called and spoke to someone at the city and they said it was up to 4 unrelated people could be still considered a single family. Can you please clarify if this is correct? Also, where would I be able to find this answer? Thanks for your help!
I have not seen a definition for single family. I do not know where to find the answer if there is a definitive answer somewhere.
Here is my problem… There is a family of 7 (2 adults & 5 children) wanting to rent my 2 bedroom apartment. I am care giver for my mom that has Alzheimer’s and feel that having 5 children living above our heads would create a rather stressful situation.
Do landlords have a right to not rent to some one they feel is not ideal for the current living situation in their building?
There are many reasons that a landlord can have for not renting to a person or a family. When you say that you feel that they are not ideal for the current living situation it raises concerns. It seems that you are saying or assuming that a family with children will be too noisy. Two college students might make too much noise or an older person who is hard of hearing may make too much noise. We have had many complaints from tenants who live below noisy tenants or sometimes owners. A better way to determine if someone will be a noisy neighbor is to find out from previous landlords or neighbors. Certainly no one wants to rent to a noisy neighbor. I would suggest that you speak with an attorney to make sure that you would not be violating any discrimination laws.
What is the law for having more than 10 people in a building. I was staying in a 2 flat apartment with a basement and there were about 16 people living there. I eventually moved out of the apartment due to rats and cleanliness, but now the landlord is evicting the tenants for backed rent. And I am afraid that I am going to be held responsible for some of the rent.
Here is a link to the space occupancy laws in Chicago http://www.tenants-rights.org/chicago-space-occupancy-requirements/.
As for being held responsible, were you a lease holder? Did you inform the owner that you were leaving? In writing?
The tenancy square footage is confusing…the chart says “per person” so if that is correct, one person can live in 125 square feet, but 2 people have to have at least 500?
You may want to get the opinion of an attorney. The way that I read the law is that for one person there must be at least 125 in the unit. For 2 people there must be at 250 square feet.