Illinois Subletting, Lease Endings & Tenant Death
Illinois rules on subletting, lease endings & tenant death for renters and landlords, with the statute or official page behind each answer. Last verified: 2026-10-22.
Short answer: According to the Illinois Attorney General, a landlord must give written notice to end a tenancy: 30 days for a month-to-month tenancy and 60 days for a year-to-year lease, and need not give a reason. Illinois Attorney General, Landlord and Tenant Rights and Laws (fact sheet, 01/24), p. 2
The rules in Illinois
| When the lease ends | According to the Illinois Attorney General, a landlord must give written notice to end a tenancy: 30 days for a month-to-month tenancy and 60 days for a year-to-year lease, and need not give a reason. Rent cannot be raised during a fixed-term lease; for month-to-month tenancies the landlord must give 30 days' notice of a rent increase (7 days for week-to-week). |
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Illinois vs. neighboring states
| State | Subletting | When the lease ends | If a tenant dies |
|---|---|---|---|
| Illinois | Not verified yet | According to the Illinois Attorney General, a landlord must give written notice to end a tenancy: 30 days for a month-to-month tenancy and 60 days for a year-to-year lease, and need not give a reason. Rent cannot be raised during a fixed-term lease; for month-to-month tenancies the landlord must give 30 days' notice of a rent increase (7 days for week-to-week). Illinois Attorney General, Landlord and Tenant Rights and Laws (fact sheet, 01/24), p. 2 | Not verified yet |
| Indiana | Not verified yet | Indiana's Small Claims Manual notes that many leases require the tenant to give advance written notice at the end of the lease of whether the tenant is renewing, so the lease terms control. Unless the lease says otherwise, a month-to-month lease (written or oral) generally needs at least 30 days' notice for either side to end it. Indiana Office of Court Services, Small Claims Manual (2026, updated 12/23/2025), p. 31 | If a landlord knows that a tenant who was the sole occupant under a lease has died, the landlord must notify the tenant's representative, allow the representative reasonable access to remove the tenant's belongings (the landlord may require a signed inventory), and pay the representative the tenant's security deposit and any unearned rent the tenant would have been entitled to. A landlord who willfully violates these duties is liable for actual damages to the tenant's estate. A representative can be someone the tenant named in writing or in the lease, an attorney in fact, a guardian, an heir, or a person appointed by the probate court. Indiana Office of Court Services, Small Claims Manual (2026, updated 12/23/2025), pp. 38-40 |
| Iowa | Iowa has no state law that sets a rule on subletting or assigning a residential lease, such as requiring the landlord's consent. Iowa Code chs. 562A and 562 (reviewed) | Either side may end a month-to-month tenancy with written notice at least 30 days before the rental date, and a tenancy longer than month-to-month with written notice at least 30 days before the end of the term. If a tenant stays without the landlord's consent after the lease ends, the landlord may sue for possession and, if the holdover is willful and not in good faith, recover actual damages and attorney fees. If the landlord consents to the tenant staying, the tenancy becomes month-to-month. Iowa's general landlord-tenant chapter also makes a tenant who willfully holds over after the term and after notice to quit liable for double the rental value. Iowa Code §§ 562A.34, 562A.9(5), 562.2 | Not verified yet |
| Kentucky | Unless the landlord agrees in writing, a tenant at will, a tenant by sufferance, or a tenant with a lease of less than two years who assigns or transfers the lease or any part of the premises forfeits the tenancy to the landlord. After giving the occupant 10 days' written notice to quit, the landlord may re-enter or recover possession through a forcible entry and detainer case. KRS 383.180(2) | When a lease of less than a year ends and the tenant stays without an agreement, the landlord can recover possession without notice if a case is filed within 30 days; if not, no case may be brought until 60 days after the lease ended, and then the tenant either leaves or continues on the same terms for another like period (for leases of a year or more the periods are 90 days and one year) (KRS 383.160). In areas that have adopted Kentucky's landlord-tenant act, a tenancy that begins after a written lease ends can be ended by either side on 10 days' written notice, and if a tenant stays without consent willfully and not in good faith the landlord may recover up to three months' rent or three times actual damages, whichever is greater, plus attorney's fees (KRS 383.695). If the landlord agrees to the tenant staying, the tenancy is month-to-month unless a set term is agreed (KRS 383.565(3)). KRS 383.160; KRS 383.695(3)-(4); KRS 383.565(3) | Not verified yet |
| Missouri | A tenant with a term of two years or less, or a tenant at will or by sufferance, may not assign or transfer the lease or any part of it to someone else without the landlord's written consent (RSMo 441.030). If the tenant does so, the landlord may, after ten days' notice to vacate, re-enter and take possession or remove the tenant or subtenant by the procedure specified by law (RSMo 441.040). RSMo 441.030; RSMo 441.040 | No notice to quit is needed when a lease is set to end on a certain date, or when notice is waived by special agreement (RSMo 441.070). A tenant who willfully stays after the lease term ends, after a written demand for possession, must pay double the yearly value of the property for the time the owner is kept out (RSMo 441.080). A month-to-month tenancy may be ended by either party with written notice that it ends on a rent-paying date at least one month after the notice is received (RSMo 441.060.4), and a year-to-year tenancy by written notice at least 60 days before the end of the year (RSMo 441.050). RSMo 441.070; 441.080; 441.060; 441.050 | Not verified yet |
| Wisconsin | A tenant with a tenancy at will or a periodic tenancy shorter than year-to-year (such as month-to-month) may not assign or sublet without the landlord's agreement or consent. Other tenants (for example, under a fixed-term lease) may transfer their interest unless the lease expressly restricts it. Consent to one transfer is not consent to later transfers. Wis. Stat. § 704.09(1), (5) | An automatic renewal or extension clause in a residential lease cannot be enforced against the tenant unless the landlord gives separate written notice of it 15 to 30 days before the tenant's deadline to give notice. If a residential tenant holds over after the lease expires, the landlord may remove the tenant or choose to treat the tenant as month-to-month on the same terms (accepting rent counts as that choice). If the tenant stays without consent, the landlord may recover damages of at least twice the daily rental value for each day of holdover. Wis. Stat. §§ 704.15, 704.25, 704.27; Wis. Admin. Code ATCP 134.09(3) | When a residential tenant dies, the tenancy ends on the earlier of 60 days after the landlord learns of the death or the end of the lease term; a month-to-month or at-will tenancy ends 60 days after the landlord learns of the death. The tenant's estate owes no rent after that, subject to the landlord's duty to reduce its losses, and other adult tenants remain bound. The landlord may not contact the tenant's family to collect rent they do not owe. Wis. Stat. § 704.165 |
City rules that may add to state law
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Illinois Subletting, Lease Endings & Tenant Death FAQ
What happens when my lease ends in Illinois?
According to the Illinois Attorney General, a landlord must give written notice to end a tenancy: 30 days for a month-to-month tenancy and 60 days for a year-to-year lease, and need not give a reason. Rent cannot be raised during a fixed-term lease; for month-to-month tenancies the landlord must give 30 days' notice of a rent increase (7 days for week-to-week). (Illinois Attorney General, Landlord and Tenant Rights and Laws (fact sheet, 01/24), p. 2)
General legal information, not legal advice. Laws change and local rules can differ; check the linked official source or talk to a lawyer about your situation.