My Lease is All Wrong

[Tinak85]

My question involves landlord-tenant law in the State of: New Jersey

I signed a one year lease beginning February, 2011. My landlord has it that I have signed a one year lease for March 1, 2011 - February 28, 2011..... Now I am not really understanding that. It should at least be March 1, 2012 that I move out. Instead he has the dates a month backward. It also says that we are to go to his store to pay him rent, we are supposed to pay cashiers check, personal check, or money order. But, he has us pay him cash! It also says in the lease that I completely paid the deposit to move on... So does this mean I do not have to pay the deposit now? When we signed the bottom of the lease, it was signed on February 22, 2011 (that is the day I signed it on), but the landlord signed it for March 22, 2011. Does this make my lease void??

[jk]

no, it does not make the lease void. It may cause some problems if there is a dispute of any sort but if there is no dispute, the errors mean little.

I suspect the term should have been:

March 1. 2011 - Feb 28, 2012; not until March 1 2012 as you suggest. Your lease should end at the end of the month, not the beginning.

anyway, that is an error that is correctable and obviously an error. If disputed, it will be allowed to be corrected.

if you are supposed to pay by cashier's check, personal check, or money order, why are you paying in cash? If you get a receipt, it is really irrelevant. The contract allows the LL to demand you pay in the terms provided but he can accept other forms of payment. Please tell me you are getting receipts though.

the deposit: does it actually state you paid $XXXX.xx as deposit? If so, then the LL will have a difficult time arguing you have not paid the deposit. Of course, if you actually haven't, the right thing to do would be to pay it.

[Mr. Knowitall]

If you are complaining that there's a clerical error in the lease, such that it ends in 2011 (before it begins) rather than in 2012, a minor clerical error or typo is unlikely to get you anywhere in court. You knew what was intended when you signed the lease.

I have no idea what you mean by "It also says in the lease that I completely paid the deposit to move on". What is a "deposit to move on" and why do you think you would have to pay it (whatever it is) twice?

In terms of enforcing the lease against you, unless the lease provides that it's not enforceable until signed by the landlord or his agent, the landlord doesn't need to sign it at all.