New Jersey laws govern much of the landlord-tenant relationship, including security deposits, late rent, and evictions. Here's a breakdown of key laws that affect nearly all New Jersey landlords and tenants.
New Jersey law regulates a good deal of the tenant application and screening process.
There is no law in New Jersey that prohibits landlords from charging an application fee. However, landlords can't accept an application fee until they have disclosed in writing to the applicant:
(N.J. Stat. § 46:8-55 (2024).)
A tenant screening report is a credit report, criminal background report, employment history report, or rental history report that a landlord uses to determine whether an applicant would be an acceptable tenant. New Jersey landlords are free to charge for tenant screening reports.
Although landlords can use screening reports to qualify potential renters, New Jersey law (the Fair Chance in Housing Act) restricts the extent to which landlords can use criminal records in the application process.
New Jersey landlords can't ask applicants—in writing or orally—about their criminal record before offering a conditional acceptance of the potential tenant. The exceptions to this rule are that landlords can ask whether the applicant:
(N.J. Stat. § 46:8-55 (2024).)
If the landlord makes a conditional offer to rent to the applicant, the potential tenant can provide evidence of inaccuracies in the criminal record, evidence of rehabilitation, or other mitigating factors.
Landlords can never evaluate an applicant based on any of the following types of criminal records:
After the landlord makes a conditional offer to an applicant, the landlord can consider only certain serious criminal records, such as a conviction for murder, or recent less serious indictments. (N.J. Stat. § 46:8-56 (2024).)
All landlords need to follow federal and state antidiscrimination laws when screening applicants for a rental. Federal fair housing laws prohibit landlords from discriminating on the basis of:
New Jersey's fair housing adds ancestry, liability for service in the Armed Forces, and source of income being used for rental payments to the list of forms of unlawful discrimination. (N.J. Stat. § 10:5-4 (2024).)
For more information about New Jersey's fair housing laws, check out the Department of Community Affairs' website.
New Jersey law caps the amount of security deposit a landlord can collect at one and one-half month's rent. Any additional security deposit collected annually can't exceed 10% of the current security deposit. (N.J. Stat. § 46:8-21.2 (2024).)
Landlords with 10 or more units must invest deposits as specified by statute or place them in an insured money market fund account, or in another account that pays quarterly interest at a rate comparable to the money market fund. Landlords with fewer than 10 units may place the deposit in an interest-bearing account in any New Jersey financial institution insured by the FDIC. All landlords must pay tenants interest earned on the account annually or credit the interest toward payment of rent due. (N.J. Stat. § 46:8-19 (2024).)
Within 30 days of receiving the deposit—and every time the landlord pays the tenant interest—the landlord must disclose the name and address of the bank where the deposit is held, the type of account, the current rate of interest, and the amount of the deposit. (N.J. Stat. § 46:8-19 (2024).)
The landlord must return the security deposit within 30 days of the end of the tenancy. If the tenant has to move out because of fire, flood, condemnation, or evacuation, the landlord must return the deposit within five days. (N.J. Stat. § 46:8-21.1 (2024).)
If the tenancy ends because of domestic violence, the landlord must return the security deposit within 15 business days of the end of the tenancy. (N.J. Stat. § 46:8-21.1 (2024).)
If you find yourself in a battle over a security deposit or repairs, small claims court is a good place to bring your grievance. Small claims courts in New Jersey can hear cases in which the plaintiff—the person suing—isn't asking for more than $5,000.
Small claims court procedures tend to be simpler than those of regular courts, and, although New Jersey allows parties to have lawyers, many people represent themselves.
In many states, landlords must disclose specific information to tenants and potential tenants. In New Jersey, landlords must disclose information about:
In addition, landlords in all states must follow federal lead-based paint disclosure rules.
In New Jersey, rent is due on whatever day the landlord and tenant agree to.
New Jersey senior citizens are entitled to a grace period of five business days. The landlord can't charge late fees or begin eviction proceedings during this grace period. (N.J. Stat. §§ 2A:42-6.1, 2A:42-6.3 (2024).)
New Jersey landlords can charge late fees, and there is no cap on how much they can charge. Most judges won't enforce unreasonable late fees, though. In general, a late fee will be considered reasonable as long as it doesn't exceed 4%-5% of the rent and has an upper limit.
New Jersey landlords can't raise the rent during the term of a lease unless the lease specifically allows them to do so. Towards the end of a tenancy, they must give the tenant at least 30 days' notice of the rent increase, along with a notice to quit that ends the existing tenancy (the notice to quit doesn't require the tenant to move out; it just ends the existing tenancy).
For month-to-month tenancies, landlords must give 30 days' notice of a rent increase along with a notice to quit.
Cities in New Jersey can enact their own rent control laws, so landlords should become familiar with their town's or city's laws before notifying a tenant of a rent increase. The New Jersey Department of Community Affairs has a helpful bulletin explaining how to increase rent.
Like landlords in all states, New Hampshire landlords must provide rentals that are safe and fit for human habitation. Specifically, New Hampshire landlords must provide heat, running water, electricity, and adequate sewage disposal, and must maintain the rental in a condition that's fit for habitation and adheres to health codes and regulations. (N.J. Stat. § 2A:42-88 (2024).)
When a landlord fails to provide a rental that's habitable, New Jersey tenants have options. Tenants might be able to make repairs and deduct the cost from their rent, withhold rent, or pay rent to the court instead of the landlord to prompt the landlord's action. For a detailed explanation of the New Jersey warranty of habitability and tenants' remedies, see the New Jersey Department of Community Affairs' Habitability Bulletin.
If you find yourself in a battle over a security deposit or repairs, small claims court is a good place to bring your grievance. Small claims courts in New Jersey can hear cases in which the plaintiff—the person suing—isn't asking for more than $5,000.
Small claims court procedures tend to be simpler than those of regular courts, and, although New Jersey allows parties to have lawyers, many people represent themselves.
New Jersey landlords must follow very specific rules and procedures to terminate a tenancy and then, if necessary, file an eviction lawsuit.
A landlord who wants to evict a tenant in New Jersey before the lease or rental agreement has expired must have cause—in other words, a legally valid reason to terminate the tenancy. Common reasons for terminating a tenancy in New Jersey include failing to pay rent, violating the lease or rental agreement, damaging the property, or threatening the health and safety of other tenants or the landlord. A full list of reasons why landlords can evict a tenant can be found in New Jersey Statute section 2A:18-61.1.
When a landlord wants a tenant to leave for cause, the landlord must first terminate the tenancy. This is done by giving the tenant notice. The type of notice depends on the situation.
For a complete list of reasons for eviction allowed in New Jersey, along with the notice required, see New Jersey Statute sections 2A:18-61.1 and 2A:18-61.2 or the Department of Community Affairs' Grounds for an Eviction Bulletin. The New Jersey Courts website also has a detailed website giving self-help information for evictions that includes links to forms.
The process for ending a tenancy without cause depends on the type of tenancy.
When a landlord doesn't want to renew a lease, they must give the tenant a notice to quit three months before the lease expiration date. (N.J. Stat. § 2A:18-56(a) (2024).)
If the tenant has a written month-to-month rental agreement, and the landlord wants the tenant to move out but doesn't have cause to end the tenancy, the landlord must give the tenant 1 month's notice to vacate. (N.J. Stat. § 2A:18-56(b) (2024).) If the tenant doesn't move out by the deadline in the notice, the landlord can file an eviction lawsuit.
Even though a landlord might have a valid reason to evict a tenant, the tenant can still choose to fight the eviction. For example, the tenant could claim that the eviction is the result of the landlord illegally discriminating, or is in retaliation for the tenant exercising a legal right. In New Jersey, landlords can't evict a tenant for:
(N.J. Stat. § 2A:42-10.10 (2024).)
New Jersey also has a law that allows courts to stay (postpone) evictions of some people who are terminally ill. (N.J. Stat. § 2A:18-59.1 (2024).)
Under New Jersey law, landlords can't take self-help measures to evict a tenant. For example, a landlord can't remove the tenant from the rental, block or attempt to block the tenant's access, or willfully interrupt or cause to be interrupted essential services in an effort to get the tenant to move out.
Additionally, a landlord who tries to get a tenant to leave by threatening eviction for a reason that actually isn't a legal reason for eviction can be sued by the tenant for three times the tenant's damages and attorneys' fees and costs. (N.J. Stat. § 2A:18-61.6(d) (2024).)
Landlords can always enter a rental with the tenant's consent or when there's a reasonable belief that there's imminent danger to lives or property. Otherwise, in New Jersey, a landlord of a building with more than one unit must give "reasonable notification" to access the property; the law defines "reasonable" as being one day in most circumstances. (N.J. Stat. § 5:10-5.1 (2024).) For other rentals, the landlord can enter with the tenant's consent. (N.J. Stat. § 2A:39-1 (2024).)
Cities and counties often pass local ordinances, such as health and safety standards, noise and nuisance regulations, and anti-discrimination rules that affect landlords and tenants. Many municipalities have websites—just search for the name of a particular city in New Jersey and then do a search when you're on the site. If you would like to read the state statutes themselves, visit the state legislature's website.
Municode is a good source for finding local governments online. Also, your local public library or office of the city attorney, mayor, or city or county manager can provide information on local ordinances that affect landlords and tenants in New Jersey.
Congress and federal agencies, such as the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), have enacted laws and regulations that apply to the landlord-tenant relationship in New Jersey. These laws and regulations address topics such as discrimination and landlord responsibilities to disclose environmental health hazards, such as lead-based paint.
The U.S. Code is the starting place for most federal statutory research. It consists of 53 separate numbered titles, each covering a specific subject matter. Most federal regulations are published in the Code of Federal Regulations ("CFR"). To access the U.S. Code and Code of Federal Regulations online, see the federal section of the Library of Congress's legal research site.
For more information on legal research, check out Legal Research: How to Find & Understand the Law, by Attorney Cara O'Neill & Jessica Gillespie, M.S.L.I.S. (Nolo). This nontechnical book gives easy-to-use, step-by-step instructions on how to find legal information.
You'll also find a wealth of information in Nolo's landlord-tenant books.
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