Every year, the Cook County sheriff's office, which is responsible for scheduling eviction enforcement after you get a possession order from the judge, has a planned "holiday period" during which they do not do evictions, as they do not want to throw anyone out during the holidays. This year, the eviction moratorium goes into effect on December 19th, 2025, and ends on January 5th, 2026. They will also not carry out an eviction order if there are extreme weather conditions, such as a blizzard, or if temperatures drop below 15 degrees.
One key thing to understand about this Chicagoland eviction moratorium is that it slows down actual eviction enforcement during the winter months in Chicago and the surrounding Cook County suburbs. Still, it does not slow down court proceedings. We have seen many Chicago landlords stall filing eviction cases during the winter months because they think that this will affect them. The truth is, it will take anywhere from 30 to 60 days to get your first court date and anywhere from 6 to 8 months to actually get an order of possession and have the sheriff come out for the eviction enforcement.
To know if you're getting pushed back, our local sheriff's department will call you the day before they are scheduled to meet you at the property. You can also check the schedule to see how many are ahead of you on their web page: https://cookcountysheriffil.gov/evictions/eviction-schedule/. This won't give you an actual date, but it will give you an idea of whether you're closer to a week or a month away.
You've already had six to eight months of financial losses as you go through the proper eviction process, so here are some tips to up your success rate of the sheriff removing your non-paying tenant when they come out.
1. Make sure you have keys to the common areas. The sheriff will kick in the unit door, but they will not break into a common door if you cannot open it for them with your keys.
2. Make sure you have someone there to meet the sheriff and sign all paperwork for them to execute the order. Unfortunately, they give you a four hour waiting period and can come at any time during those four hours. Make sure you are there because if you do not approach the squad car as soon as they pull up, they will drive off and you will have to wait a few more weeks to be back on their schedule.
3. Warn them if you think they may be in danger. If the tenant has shown aggression or you believe they are armed, let the sheriffs know; they will go in with guns drawn and make sure they are kept safe.
4. Do not accept any partial payments, even after the order is granted. If you accept payments from the tenant, they can go back to the judge and get the eviction order thrown out or be given additional time to stay in the apartment.
5. If you believe there may be any elderly person or very young children, work with the sheriff department to have a social worker go before the enforcement date. If there is someone that the sheriffs are not comfortable throwing out onto the street, they will use their discretion to stall the enforcement.
6. Protect the paperwork from the sheriffs and keep it on hand. If someone breaks back into the apartment after the enforcement, that paperwork showing they were already removed by the sheriffs is the only way a police officer in the city of Chicago or suburban Cook County will arrest them for trespassing. Although the new squatter law is coming soon, we don't know yet how easy it will be to get anyone out without the paperwork needed.
7. Be ready to secure the property as soon as they leave. Have your team prepared with locks and possibly a door if it has to be kicked in. The sheriffs will not stop the tenant from re-entering as soon as you sign the paperwork. They walk the tenant out. It is a matter between you and local law enforcement to get anyone who breaks back into an apartment out of the apartment.
Evictions in the City of Chicago suck - there is no better way to put it. Make sure you are finding the right tenants when you get a vacancy. And if you are looking for property management in places with high eviction rates like Englewood, South Shore, Dolton, or Chicago heights, reach out to us to see how our management systems can save you time, stress, and money.
