Issues with apartment/landlord (Arlington Heights, Arlington: leases, tenant, live)

[UnusualSuspect]

I moved to an apartment in Arlington Heights last week, and I'm already moving out on Tuesday. Luckily, I can afford to pay rent on two places at once for the length of both leases, if necessary (although I will obviously do what I can to get out of the lease and/or find a new tenant).

There are numerous issues with both the apartment and the landlord, but there's only one that I've found that I could actually possibly be against the law and the lease: My apartment is on the first floor of an old house, there is another apartment upstairs, and there's a common hallway and shared laundry room in the basement. It appears that I'm on the hook for the utility bills that cover the common areas, including the laundry room (and the upstairs tenant does more laundry than anyone I've ever lived with). I will know for certain on Tuesday - the landlord says she has to check on it, which seems ridiculous; I'm sure she would know if she's covering those bills, and if it's a tenant, she should have let the tenant know. So my question is, has anyone had this sort of thing happen? Where they're unknowingly paying utility bills for common areas? And what can I do about it?