u/Low_birding_3984

I live in an apartment complex with identical units. I’m moving out in late July, and informed my landlord on 3/25. Since then, he has shown my apartment 13 separate times, often with barely 24 hours notice.

I have an aggressive dog, so I have to make sure I’m home for every showing. I take my dog outside and walk him around while they show the place, which is usually ~30 minutes. He has been accommodating of my availability thus far and has understood that I haven’t been able to host showings certain days due to work conflicts.

However, at around showing #10, I began to wonder why my place hadn’t been rented yet. I googled my address and saw that it was actually listed as “off market”. I also have pet cameras in my house that run 24/7, so I scrolled back through the footage and found a clip of my landlord telling prospective tenants that “this unit is rented, but every other available unit is identical”! Obviously I can’t use this recording as proof of anything legally, but it showed me that he is using my unit as a “model unit” even though it has already been rented. This feels extremely unfair, especially given that I have to rearrange my day in order for them to show my unit.

I recently had a big shift in my work schedule, and told my landlord that I won’t be available to host showings for two full weeks in July. I also told him that it was “my understanding that my unit has been rented based on a google search, so I’d prefer if they showed available units instead”. He responded that my unit has definitely not been rented, and has proceeded to schedule several future showings during the weeks I told him I will explicitly not be available. He has shifted his attitude to not being accommodating of my schedule at all, stating that he has a right to enter the property at all times with reasonable notice. Which is true, but I feel this is unfair since my unit is not for rent anymore.

I simply cannot have him enter my home while I’m not there, as my dog poses a bite risk, and I’m not leaving him crated for 8+ hours a day. He is insisting on showing my house anyways anytime he gives me 24 hours notice, and will not respect my boundaries.

Am I being unreasonable by asking for him to work with my schedule? I’ve already allowed them to show the unit 13 times. I even told him that I’m moving out two weeks early and that he can have free range of the unit once I’m gone. I feel like I’m backed into a corner. I’ve never had to endure more than 5-6 showings for a rental unit before, and this feels so excessive and rude, especially knowing that he’s blatantly lying to and using me. Thanks for listening, any advice would be appreciated.

I signed a lease in advance that doesn’t start until July. I put down a deposit but haven’t paid rent yet or occupied the space.

I have recently been harassed by the employee of a local gym that is right near my new house, and also found out that this man lives less than a mile from the new house. He knows my new address. It’s a complicated situation and I’m not taking legal action, so I won’t have any documentation. But I desperately want to back out of this lease. I found a new place that I can rent on the other side of town that I’d feel a lot safer in. But I can’t afford to lose the deposit I put down on this place.

Do I need legal documentation or a restraining order in order to file a lease break under the Illinois safe homes act? Is there anything else I can do? The lease was signed through a property management company, not private landlord. Thank you so much.