I reside in the state of Florida. There is a mistake in the lease document.

[desperatetenant]

I reside in the state of Florida. There is a mistake in the lease document. The lease says '12 months' but the dates show 'Jul1-Jul31' i.e a 13 month, a mismatch. There seems to be no such mismatch in the rest of the lease. I am not sure if this was deliberately done by my landlord as she was always creating problems and our mistake was we overlooked it. Now, we want to move out from this apartment on June 30, but the landlord is creating a problem stating the lease period is till Jul 31,so if we leave earlier it would be like abandoning the apartment.Please help as to what we can do in this situation. Thanks.

[Friend In Court]

If there is a conflict in the wording of the lease, if it states specifically "twelve (12) months" and yet the date is 13, the lease will be c onstrued against the landlord, the one who wrote it.

If you intend to move at the end of the 12th month, do so. And tell the landlady "sue me." For should she do so, odds are strongly in your favor that you will prevail.

[AFFA]

I wish to inform you that you can inform your landlord that mismatch of date cannot be a basis of increase in lease agreement. Further lease agreement period can be calculated from reading agreement as a whole and if agreement states 12 month duration then agreement can be held to be of 12 month. Agreement is read as one complete document and one clause cannot change whole agreement. You can inform landlord of correct legal situation.

AFF

[Friend In Court]

Originally Posted by AFFA I wish to inform you that you can inform your landlord that mismatch of date cannot be a basis of increase in lease agreement. Further lease agreement period can be calculated from reading agreement as a whole and if agreement states 12 month duration then agreement can be held to be of 12 month. Agreement is read as one complete document and one clause cannot change whole agreement. You can inform landlord of correct legal situation. AFF

AFF, apparently you did not read the post all the way through. The poster already has notified the landlord and the landlord is trying to hold him to 13 months.

[StorageGuy]

Originally Posted by Friend In Court AFF, apparently you did not read the post all the way through. The poster already has notified the landlord and the landlord is trying to hold him to 13 months.

AFFA is only upset because he was not the first person to respond to this post. Right AFFA???????????

[Maryellen]

Did you have to pay an extra month's rent when you moved in? Perhaps that is where the confusion is. If you had to pay first and last month's rent then maybe the lease term is for twelve months because you already paid the 13th. Does that make sense?

Do you have any proof that you started paying rent on June 1st of last year?

[sunlover]

Originally Posted by Friend In Court If there is a conflict in the wording of the lease, if it states specifically "twelve (12) months" and yet the date is 13, the lease will be c onstrued against the landlord, the one who wrote it. If you intend to move at the end of the 12th month, do so. And tell the landlady "sue me." For should she do so, odds are strongly in your favor that you will prevail.

Its very important OP address the first two lines in quote above. Until we know what lease actually says we cannot accurately reply

Side note if you leave and its found you breached lease all you will owe likely is that months rent and possibly small amount of damages. Be sure to leave dwelling spotlessand take pictures and video of condition of dwelling once you leave. If possible get a walkthrough with landlord

[desperatetenant]

Thank you all for replying to my query. I took action and notified the landlord through a certified mail that we will be vacating the apartment by July1. She is now threatening reporting a delinquency to credit bureau claiming abandonment. This is a picture of what the lease document actually says:
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FOR A TERM NOT TO EXCEED 1 YEAR

(Not to be used for commercial, agricultural or other residential property)

1. Terms and parties.
This is a lease ("The Lease") for a period of 12 months (The Lease term) beginning 7.1.2011 and ending 7.31.2012. between XXXXX (owner of property) and XXXX (name of tenant)

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My question is, what should I do next before vacating the apartment?
Also, how can I reduce my liabilities? Is she right that she can report me to credit bureau?

Thanks for all your help.