Almost got evicted because of a shady 'lease amendment' trick

I was at a diner in Lincoln Park last month and this guy at the counter told me his landlord slipped a paper into his renewal that changed the rent by $200 and the late fee from $50 to $150. He signed it without reading because it was mixed in with the regular stuff. Has anyone else dealt with a landlord sneaking in changes like that?

3 comments

3 Comments

wood.uma26d ago

That diner story reminds me of when my old landlord in Rogers Park tacked a "pet fee addendum" onto my renewal and circled a line about "caged animals" in red pen. I don't have any pets, so I asked her about it and she got all defensive, said it was just a standard form. Turned out the form also had a clause that let her enter my unit with 12 hours notice instead of 24. She "accidentally" left that part in from a previous tenant's lease. Real piece of work that woman.

nelson.wren26d ago

Couldn't believe a landlord would try to slip the 12 hour entry thing past you.

abbyp6125d ago

Used to think landlords were just doing their job, but hearing stuff like this totally changed my mind. The way she circled "caged animals" is such a weird power move, like trying to make you feel dumb for asking lol. And 12 hours notice is basically no notice at all if you work weird hours or have a kid sleeping. Glad you caught it before signing, that's shady as hell.

-1