In court-decided eviction outcomes for Sycamore, IL, tenants prevail in roughly 44.9% of contested cases. A higher number means landlords face stronger tenant defenses, longer calendars, and more required documentation, and landlord-friendliness drops as this rises.
Timeline
128d
filing → judgment
From the moment an unlawful-detainer notice is filed in Sycamore, IL until a money judgment is entered, a contested eviction takes about 128 days on average. Longer timelines mean more lost rent and higher carry costs for landlords.
Cost range
$5.7–12.9k
legal + lost rent
A typical eviction in Sycamore, IL costs landlords $5,714 to $12,895 all-in, covering court filing fees, process-server costs, attorney time, and lost rent during the calendar between filing and possession.
Average rent
$1,140
27% stretched on rent
Average gross rent in Sycamore, IL is $1,140 per month per the U.S. Census American Community Survey (5-year 2023). 27% of renter households here spend more than 30% of pre-tax income on rent, the federal cost-burden threshold.
Renters
28.4%
of households
28.4% of occupied housing units in Sycamore, IL are renter-occupied (vs owner-occupied). A higher renter share usually correlates with more eviction filings, more turnover, and a more active rental market.
Poverty
9.5%
3.7% unemp.
9.5% of Sycamore, IL residents live below the federal poverty line, and unemployment runs at 3.7%. Both feed into the economic-stress sub-score in our Eviction Risk Score model because rent payment problems track poverty + joblessness more reliably than any other single signal.
Time machine
Scrub 50 years
197619861996200620162026
2026
● LIVE · today◀ REPLAY · historical
Nine-axis profile
9-axis profile · today
Shape of the risk surface
1 landlord · 10 tenant
Sub-scores · with sparkline
Where the score comes from
1 → 10 scale
Local political climate
Dem margin +2.0% (2024)
5.8
Regional political climate
County-weighted neighbor mix
5.8
State political climate
Illinois legislature & governorship
5.2
Economic stress
9.5% poverty · 3.7% unemp.
5.3
Supply constraint
$1,140 average · 28.4% renters
6.4
Rent Control risk
26.9% of income on rent
4.9
Eviction process difficulty
128 days filing → judgment
4.8
Tenant organizing strength
28.4% renters
6.4
Housing court bias
County bench composition
5.0
Geographic context
Risk heat across Sycamore and the region
Click any city to see its score
How Sycamore compares
Risk score vs. peers, county, state, and the U.S.
Rank in DeKalb County
Low
#12of 17 cities
#12 of 17 cities in DeKalb County for landlord eviction risk.
Rank in Illinois
Elevated
#505of 1,456 cities
#505 of 1,456 cities in Illinois for landlord eviction risk.
vs. county · state · U.S.
Score story
Six-stop tour of the risk profile
4.3
/ 10 · MODERATE
The verdict
A Moderate-tier market.
Composite 4.3/10. Mid-range market; standard documentation usually wins. The 50-year curve shows a sharp climb.
50-yr trend+2.3 over 50 yr
197620012026
Steepening since 2010 · COVID inflection visible
128d
Typical timeline
The money
What renting (and evicting) looks like.
Rent published at $1,140/mo. A contested eviction takes 128 days and costs $5,714–$12,895 per case.
50-yr trendCalendar drag rising since '15
197620012026
Court-clerk data lands in the next release.
28.4%
Renters
The renters
Who you'll be renting to.
Out of 18,559 residents, 28.4% rent. 27% are spending 30%+ income on rent, 9.5% below the poverty line.
50-yr trendRenter share rising
197620012026
ACS 1970-present · once the migration overlay is in.
5.8
Local + regional
The politics
Mid-range climate. Not a coastal market.
Local & regional political climate score 5.8 and 5.8 (Dem margin +2.0% (2024)). State climate at 5.2, a mid-range statehouse.
50-yr trendTracks county vote margin
197620012026
Built on 50-yr presidential margins back to 1976.
5.2
State politics
The process
Moderate calendar, moderate friction.
State political climate 5.2/10 sets the legislative ceiling for landlord remedies, and it shows up in the process. Eviction process difficulty reads 4.8, housing court bias 5, rent-control risk 4.9. Standard process speed for the state.
50-yr trendProcess difficulty +-0.2 since '00
197620012026
Court-clerk data lands in the next release.
5.3
Economic stress
The stress
Economic pressure is the background risk.
Economic stress: 5.3. Supply constraint: 6.4. The numbers behind those: 9.5% poverty, 3.7% unemployment, 27% of income on rent.
50-yr trendTwo visible dips · '08 + COVID
197620012026
Mirrors BLS unemployment series.
US eviction landscape · timeline × all-in cost
Sycamore sits in the slow & expensive quadrant
Bubble size = population · color = risk score
Sycamore · 128d · ~$9.3k all-in ($73/day) · score 4.3National average: 58d · $4.6k all-inHover any bubble for stats · click to openColor: 0–4 4–7 7–10
Landlording in Sycamore, Illinois, presents a manageable operating environment for documented landlords. The Eviction Risk Score is 4.3/10 (MODERATE tier), drawn from the nine sub-axes shown above, covering rent-control exposure, eviction-process difficulty, housing-court bias, tenant-organizing strength, supply constraint, economic stress, and local, regional, and state political climate. This is not a quick-fix market: it's a Mid-tier market where lease drafting, screening discipline, and well-documented notices materially change outcomes.
Sycamore is a city of 18,559 residents where 28.4% of occupied units are renter-occupied, and the typical renter spends 26.9% of income on rent. At an average rent of $1,140/month, the typical renter household here spends more than the federal 30% threshold on housing, a leading indicator of payment volatility and a precondition for the kinds of tenant defenses that show up most often in housing court.
01Process
How Sycamore eviction process actually works
Eviction process difficulty here reads 4.8/10, a number that combines statutory complexity (notice categories, just-cause rules, mandatory pre-filing disclosures) with operational realities (court calendar length and clerk responsiveness). The typical contested filing in Sycamore closes 128 days after the initial notice. For non-payment of rent the first step is a properly-formatted, properly-served pay-or-quit notice; for material lease breaches it's a cure-or-quit; for tenancies under just-cause protection an at-fault grounds notice (or a no-fault notice with statutory relocation assistance) is required.
The slow part of Sycamore's timeline is usually the calendar, not the motion practice. Housing court bias scores 5/10 here, meaning judges read borderline procedural defects in the tenant's favor more often than the national norm. The practical implication: every notice and every proof of service needs to be airtight before it gets filed.
02Cost
What it costs (and how long it takes)
An all-in eviction in Sycamore runs $5,714 to $12,895 per case once you account for filing fees, attorney time, lost rent during pendency, sheriff lockout, and unit turnover. That range is wide because the upper bound assumes a tenant answer plus motion practice, common when housing court bias is high. The lower bound assumes a default judgment after proper service.
For landlords running the numbers on holding costs vs. cash-for-keys: if your projected timeline times your monthly rent already exceeds the high-end cost number, cash-for-keys at 1–2 months' rent is typically the economically rational choice. With 128 days of typical timeline and $1,140/month in lost rent, that crossover happens fast here.
03Operations
Security deposits, screening, and lease terms
Tenant organizing strength scores 6.4/10 in Sycamore, and the city has limited rent control exposure (4.9/10). Operations practice that survives audit in this environment looks like:
Screening discipline. Document income (verified at 2.5 to 3x rent), credit (with a clear minimum), and prior-tenancy reference checks, but do not screen on protected categories or source-of-income where banned. Keep a written, consistent screening criteria document for every applicant.
Lease specificity. Use a state-specific lease that names every term clearly: rent due date, late fees within statutory caps, deposit handling, smoke and CO disclosure, lead paint disclosure (pre-1978 stock), and a clean attorney's-fees clause.
Security deposit handling. Itemize deductions within the statutory window. Photograph move-in/move-out condition. In Illinois, deposit cap and refund window are statute, so exceed them at your own risk.
Mid-tenancy documentation. Keep date-stamped records of every rent receipt, every habitability request, every notice served. The day you need them in court is too late to start.
04Strategy
What an everyday landlord should actually do here
If you own one to four units in Sycamore: hire a property manager who knows the local court. The pricing differential between self-managing and hiring out is small relative to the cost of one botched eviction in a MODERATE tier market. If you own five or more: build relationships with a local landlord-side attorney before you need one, since retainer fees are negligible compared to emergency-rate billing when an eviction is already moving.
The avoidable mistakes here are all upstream of the filing: weak screening, an informal lease, sloppy rent receipts, and notice templates pulled off the internet that don't match Illinois's statutory language. Fix those four, and most cases settle or default. Skip them, and a $12,895 all-in fight is the realistic worst case.
04bPractical traps
Local traps to avoid in Sycamore
Trap · 9.5%
Local poverty rate is 9.5%, and the rent-burden distribution skews the eviction-filings curve toward moderate volume in DeKalb County. Rent-control-risk sub-score: 4.9/10. Tenant organizing is most active in the rental concentration corridors.
05FAQ
Frequently asked questions
Q1
Can I evict a tenant in Sycamore for breaking lease rules?
Yes, if the lease violation is serious and not cured. For non-payment, it's a 5-day notice. For other lease violations, you typically need to provide a 10-day notice to cure the violation or move out, as per Illinois law. If they don't fix it, then you can file for eviction.
Q2
Is there rent control in Sycamore, IL?
No, Illinois has a statewide ban on rent control. This means you are generally free to set your rents and raise them as the market allows, provided you give proper notice for increases. For more details, see our Illinois rent control rules page.
Q3
What if my tenant claims I retaliated against them for a complaint?
Illinois law prohibits landlord retaliation. If a tenant reports you for code violations or exercises other tenant rights, and you then try to evict them or raise their rent, they can claim retaliation. This is a common defense in eviction cases. Always have a legitimate, well-documented reason for any action you take.
Q4
How long does it take the sheriff to remove a tenant after a court order?
Once you have an order of possession from the court, the sheriff's office in DeKalb County will typically schedule the lockout within a few days to a few weeks, depending on their workload. It's not immediate. You cannot remove the tenant yourself; only the sheriff can enforce the order.
Q5
Do I have to accept Section 8 or other housing vouchers in Sycamore?
Yes, Illinois has statewide source-of-income protection. This means you cannot refuse to rent to an applicant solely because they use a Section 8 voucher or other lawful source of income. You can still screen them based on other criteria like credit, rental history, and criminal background, but not on the source of their income. This is a crucial Illinois tenant protection to understand.
A 4.3/10 places Sycamore in the 74th percentile of Illinois cities on the Eviction Risk Score index. The score is the average of the nine sub-axes, all calibrated on a national 1 to 10 scale where 1 is most landlord-friendly and 10 is most tenant-protective. The 50-year reconstruction shows this score has risen sharply since 1976, a structural drift driven by court-calendar growth, rent-control adoption, and the rise of tenant-side legal aid. The trajectory matters more than the snapshot: the score is the climate, not the weather.
Cities with similar eviction risk to Sycamore (4.3/10)
Same risk band nationally · click any city for its full breakdown.
