Starr v. Gay

The central issue in this case is whether the commingling prohibition set forth in section 5—12—080(a) of the Chicago Residential Landlord and Tenant Ordinance (Ordinance) (Chicago Municipal Code § 5—12—080(a) (amended November 6, 1991)) is violated when a landlord-seller of a subject property transfers a tenant’s security deposit to a purchaser at closing by applying the amount of the deposit toward the property’s purchase price and then giving the purchaser a bookkeeping credit against the .purchase price equal to the amount of the deposit. We hold that this “credit method” of transferring…