You probably do not want to have to evict a tenant. The eviction process is rarely quick or simple. Generally, formal eviction proceedings are a last resort when a problem tenant refuses to leave on their own. As a landlord, you may face situations where you have little choice but to evict a tenant who is refusing to pay, destroying your property, or engaging in criminal activity. When these situations arise, it can be tremendously helpful to have an attorney who is experienced with eviction proceedings representing you. Renters have a lot of legal protections in Illinois, but there are still valid reasons for evicting a tenant that the courts will typically honor.

What Are Some Legal Reasons for Evicting a Tenant?

The most common reason people get evicted is for nonpayment. However, there are good legal reasons to evict even a tenant who is up to date on rent. Grounds for eviction in Illinois include:

• Damages - Destructive tenants can create extremely costly damages very quickly. Whether they are intentionally causing damages, such as by punching holes in the wall, or passively allowing damages, such as by failing to clean up after a pet, a tenant can be evicted for damaging the rental property.
• Illegal use - If your tenant is using your property for an illegal purpose, you can most likely have them evicted. Common illegal uses of rental housing include prostitution and selling or manufacturing drugs.
• Nuisance - For those who own multi-family buildings, situations may arise where one tenant is a nuisance to the others. Repeated noise violations, harassment, or intimidating behavior by one renter can create an environment that is unsafe or otherwise difficult for others to live in. The disruptive tenant may need to be evicted.
• Nonpayment - You may not want to evict a tenant who is struggling financially and unable to pay rent, but at a certain point, it may become necessary. If your tenant is merely irresponsible or refusing to pay for a nonsense reason, evicting them may come as a relief.

There are also reasons for which you explicitly cannot evict someone. For example, you cannot evict a tenant for making a valid complaint about the property or based on their familial status or membership in a protected class. Victims of domestic violence may have additional protections in some cases, even if nonpayment or noise complaints were a problem. It is best to speak with a qualified attorney before attempting to evict a tenant.

Contrary to popular belief, filing for Chapter 7 bankruptcy does not mean that all your debts are wiped. The possibility of discharging a debt depends on its nature.

Dischargeable debts are those that you are not legally responsible for after filing for bankruptcy. They include most consumer debt such as medical bills or credit card debt.

If you are going into retirement, something that you might be considering is eliminating any of your outstanding debts. Part of the issue that people run into during retirement is that they may not have as much income as they had in the past. As a result, paying the debts that accrued earlier in life may not be as easy as it was before.

If you find that you've fallen behind, then one option may be to file for bankruptcy to get a fresh start. If you can pass the Chapter 7 bankruptcy means test, then you may be able to have your unsecured debts discharged after going through the liquidation process.

If you start looking into your estate planning, you know that it begins with dividing assets, but you may quickly realize that you have a lot of debt, as well. You plan to pay this off before you die or to declare bankruptcy or take care of it in some other fashion, but there's no guarantee.

If you pass away and still have debt, does that have to become part of your estate plan? Do your heirs need to pay your debt, and will they inherit it just like they would inherit your assets?

If you have a substantial amount of money to leave your family in your estate plan, it's often wise not to leave it to them in a lump sum. This can have significant tax implications for them. If you have more than one child, they may each benefit from having a different type of trust, so it's a good idea to learn about the various types.

So-called “spendthrift trusts” are often used for people who need some supervision when it comes to money. A spendthrift trust is managed by a trustee who disburses money based on your instructions or (if you designate) at their own discretion. This kind of trust also protects a beneficiary's inheritance from being taken by creditors, plaintiffs in a lawsuit or a spouse in a divorce. That's because they don't legally have any control over the money.