Legal Question in Landlord & Tenant Law in Illinois

Hi I paid a security deposit but never signed lease. The day I gave deposit and begin moving my items in the place was broken into and all our items were stolen. Now landlord won't return security deposit. We are not going to rent the place obviously, if in less than 3 hours of moving in it was broken into. Since the lease was never signed, and the address is for wrong house doesn't he have to return deposit?


Asked on 6/18/12, 9:37 am

1 Answer from Attorneys

As miserable of a situation as this may be, a lot may depend on WHERE the premises are located; several communities have local ordinances that could affect the outcome.

However, generally speaking if the landlord gave you the keys ("possession") and you started moving your property into the place you may have ratified the lease even if you didn't sign it, and your remedies MAY be those contained in the lease, because why your property was stolen may NOT have been something under the landlord's control but may have been how you handled the move-in.

At the same time, even if your lease is not covered by any specific ordinance, this kind of event may give rise to your right to declare a "constructive eviction", but even this possible remedy requires some tight controls and monitoring.

For a full, proper and reliable opinion about what your rights are and your next steps, bring everything to an attorney in your area to review.

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Answered on 6/18/12, 10:25 am


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