Q: Typo in a lease regarding rent
I recently signed a 12-month lease in Evanston, IL. The beginning of the term was 7/1 but the contract said that the first month's payment of $950 is due on or before 8/15. While it seemed a little strange to me that there was nothing mentioning July rent, I signed it and planned to pay my first month's rent as stated on the lease. I recently received a statement saying I was missing July rent, so I emailed the property manager at the agency and he apologized for a typo in the dates and said it was supposed to say 6/15. Is it their fault for not catching the typo or mine for not checking verbally before signing? Should I see tenant legal counsel before paying for July?
Thank you.
A: Based on your scenario, this typo sounds that this was a “Mutual Mistake.” Based on the fact that you call this a typo, you yourself probably view this as a "Mutual Mistake." Basically, meaning that neither party noticed it was wrong, but did not intend for it to be present. In a case of Mutual Mistake the remedy is usually to reform the contract to reflect the parties true intentions. In other words, it sounds that you knew the rent stated July 1. Based on your intentions, and the fact that this is just a "Mutual Mistake" you need to pay the July rent.
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