Free tool for Chicago landlords
How much security deposit interest do you owe?
In Chicago, a deposit you hold for more than six months earns interest for your tenant every year, and the deposit has to go back within 45 days of move-out. Enter the deposit and the dates to get the amount and your deadlines.
Enter the deposit and the start date to see what you owe and when.
How the calculator works
- Interest is owed on deposits (and prepaid rent) held more than six months. It runs from the start of the rental term.
- The rate is the one the City Comptroller set for the year the lease was signed. It has been 0.01% every year from 2015 through 2026, which is about 15 cents a year on a $1,500 deposit.
- Pay it within 30 days after the end of each 12-month rental period, in cash or as a credit against rent. Interest for the last partial year goes back with the deposit.
- At move-out: an itemized statement of any damage, with costs and paid receipts, within 30 days, and the balance plus interest within 45 days.
The calculator prorates the last partial year by day and rounds every amount up to the next cent. It doesn’t cover the shorter deadline after a fire makes the unit unlivable, or buildings with 25 or more units, which also have a separate Illinois interest rule.
The amounts are tiny, but the rules aren’t: a landlord who doesn’t follow the RLTO’s deposit rules can owe the tenant two times the deposit plus interest. Full rules, from the receipt to the return: Chicago security deposit rules for landlords.
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Keep every deposit on the record
Landlord's Desk keeps each tenant's deposit on its own ledger, next to rent, the lease and the move-in inspection, so move-outs start from the record. You approve every change before it goes out. Create your account by December 1, 2026 at 11:59 PM Central and you’re a founding member: 60 days free from the day you choose a plan, then 30% off your first 12 monthly payments or your first yearly payment. Claim the offer by choosing a plan by March 1, 2027 at 11:59 PM Central.
Not ready yet? Join the waitlist by December 1 to keep the founding offer.
This calculator is general information, not legal advice. It doesn’t account for leases with their own deposit terms, subsidized housing rules, or units the RLTO doesn’t cover. Rules change; check the current ordinance or talk to a local attorney. Sources: Chicago Municipal Code 5-12-080 and 5-12-081 (Residential Landlord and Tenant Ordinance); City of Chicago Department of Housing 2026 security deposit interest rate notice; Illinois Security Deposit Return Act (765 ILCS 710). Checked November 3, 2026.