Two competing ordinances are before the Chicago City Council Wednesday, each promising stronger protections for renters while taking sharply different approaches to enforcement, fees and which landlords should be covered. Ald. Gilbert Villegas, a lead sponsor of one of the measures, said both proposals could be deferred as negotiations continue.
The debate comes as housing costs continue to strain Chicago households. Approximately 622,000 Chicagoans rent their homes, and city officials estimate about 40% spend more than one-third of their take-home income on rent. The average Chicago rent reached $1,956 at the end of 2025, according to real estate data cited by WTTW, an increase of 9.5% from 2023.
Mayor Brandon Johnsons Protecting Renters Ordinance, known as PRO, would establish a tenant bill of rights, create a citywide rental registry and set up a Bureau of Rental Housing Services within the Department of Housing. The office would be responsible for enforcement and helping renters navigate disputes, including eviction proceedings.
The proposal would also restrict move-in and other fees and make permanent a city pilot program that provides legal assistance to tenants. An earlier version included a controversial just cause provision that would have limited when landlords could decline to renew leases and required relocation assistance in some cases, but Johnson removed those provisions before the ordinance advanced out of committee.
Johnsons opponents have advanced a separate proposal called the Fair and Accountable Illinois Rental Ordinance, or FAIR. That measure would also establish a rental registry and strengthen enforcement of existing rules, but it would place a rental services office inside the Department of Buildings rather than create a new bureau funded by landlord registration fees.
FAIR would continue allowing some move-in fees, cap security deposits and broaden exemptions for smaller landlords. Supporters argue their proposal would strengthen protections without adding costs that could eventually be passed on to renters, while supporters of the mayors ordinance contend a dedicated enforcement system is needed because renters currently have few options outside the courts when landlords violate the law.
Chicagos Residential Landlord and Tenant Ordinance was originally adopted in 1986 and has not undergone a major overhaul in years. Both sides agree the city has an affordability problem, but the fight now centers on who should pay for stronger enforcement and how far the city should go in regulating landlords.
Whatever happens Wednesday, renters should not expect the rules to change overnight. If the competing measures are deferred, the negotiations will continue while more than half a million Chicago renters wait to see what the next version of the citys rental protections will look like.