Overview of Landlord-Tenant Laws in New Jersey

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.

Rental Application and Tenant Screening Laws

New Jersey law regulates a good deal of the tenant application and screening process.

Application Fees

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:

• whether they will be considering applicants' criminal history, and
• a statement that the applicant can provide evidence demonstrating inaccuracies within the applicant's criminal record, evidence of rehabilitation, or other mitigating factors.

(N.J. Stat. § 46:8-55 (2024).)

Tenant Screening Reports

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.

New Jersey Fair Chance in Housing Act

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:

• has ever been convicted of drug-related criminal activity for the manufacture or production of methamphetamine on the premises of federally assisted housing, and
• is subject to a lifetime registration requirement under any state's sex offender registration program.

(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:

• arrests or charges that didn't result in a criminal conviction
• expunged convictions
• convictions erased through executive pardon
• vacated or otherwise legally nullified convictions
• juvenile offenses, and
• sealed 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).)

Fair Housing Laws

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:

• race or color
• religion
• national origin
• familial status or age (includes families with children under the age of 18 and pregnant women)
• disability or handicap, and
• sex (includes gender identity and sexual orientation).

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.

Security Deposit Laws

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).)

How Landlords Must Hold Security Deposits

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).)

Security Deposit Return

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).)

Small Claims Lawsuits in New Jersey

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.

Required Landlord Disclosures in New Jersey

In many states, landlords must disclose specific information to tenants and potential tenants. In New Jersey, landlords must disclose information about:

• Flood zones: Before signing or renewing a lease, landlords must notify tenants in writing whether the property is in a 100-year or 500-year floodplain. The landlord must also disclose if the rental or any part of the parking area has flooded in the past. The notice must be signed by the tenant. (N.J. Stat. § 46:8-50 (2024).)
• Flood insurance: Leases must contain the following notice: "Flood insurance may be available to renters through FEMA's National Flood Insurance Program to cover your personal property and contents in the event of a flood. A standard renter's insurance policy does not typically cover flood damage. You are encouraged to examine your policy to determine whether you are covered." (N.J. Stat. § 46:8-50 (2024).)
• Landlord identity/certificate of registration: At the beginning of a tenancy, landlords must provide to each occupant a copy of the certificate of registration that contains information required by the Commissioner of Community Affairs. The certificate contains information such as how to contact the owner and anyone responsible for maintenance. The certificate must also be filed with the appropriate governmental entity as proscribed in the statute. (N.J. Stat. §§ 46:8-29 through 46:8-29 (2024).)
• Notification of emergency information: At the beginning of a tenancy, landlords must provide each tenant with a notice that the clerk of the municipality maintains a list containing the names and addresses of residents who identify themselves as needing special assistance in the event of an emergency, and who request that this information be maintained on their behalf, for public safety purposes. The notice must include information as to how a tenant can be added to the list. (N.J. Stat. § 46:8-29.1 (2024).)
• Truth in Renting Act: Except in buildings of two or fewer units and owner-occupied premises of three or fewer units, landlords must distribute to new tenants at or before move-in the Department of Community Affairs' statement of legal rights and responsibilities of tenants and landlords of rental dwelling units. (N.J. Stat. §§ 46:8-44, 46:8-45, 46:8-46 (2024).)
• Child protection window guards: Landlords of multi-family properties must include information in the lease about tenants' rights to request window guards, and some landlords must offer a window guard orientation program. (N.J. Stat. § 55:13A-7.14; N.J. Admin. Code §§ 5:10-27.1, 5:10-27 App. 27A (2024).)
• Water quality: Owners of multifamily properties who must prepare a Consumer Confidence Report, or who receive such a report from a public community water system, must post the report in every routinely used common area (if the property has no such area, owners must give copies to each rental unit). Owners of multifamily properties who supply water, who are not required to prepare a Consumer Confidence Report, but who must test its water, must post a chart containing the results of the tests. Charts must be posted in every routinely used common area (if the property has no such area, owners must give copies to each rental unit). (N.J. Stat. § 55:13A-7.18 (2024).)
• Application fee: Landlords can't collect application fees without first disclosing in writing to the applicant whether the landlord will review and consider criminal history and a statement that the applicant may provide evidence demonstrating inaccuracies within the applicant's criminal record, evidence of rehabilitation, or other mitigating factors. (N.J. Stat. § 46:8-55 (2024).)
• Postings in multiple dwellings: Landlords of multiple dwellings must post in a conspicuous area likely to be seen by tenants the following information in both English and Spanish: (1) emergency contact info for the owner or managing agent, and (2) instructions on how to access and use the comprehensive social services information toll-free telephone hotline. The information must also be posted on the website of any management company that manages a tenant-occupied multiple dwelling. (N.J. Stat. § 55:13A-7.19(1)(a) 2024).)
• Multiple dwellings lease disclosure: Every lease offered to a tenant in a multiple dwelling must include in both English and Spanish: (1) the website address of the management company, and (2) instructions on how to access and use the comprehensive social services information toll-free telephone hotline. (N.J. Stat. § 55:13A-7.19(1)(b) (2024).)

In addition, landlords in all states must follow federal lead-based paint disclosure rules.

New Jersey Late Fees and Other Rent Rules

In New Jersey, rent is due on whatever day the landlord and tenant agree to.

Grace Period and Late Fees

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.

Rent Increases

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.

New Jersey Landlords Must Provide Habitable Rentals

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).)

Tenant Remedies

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.

Small Claims Lawsuits in New Jersey

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 Termination and Eviction Rules

New Jersey landlords must follow very specific rules and procedures to terminate a tenancy and then, if necessary, file an eviction lawsuit.

Notice of Termination for Cause

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.

• 3-Day Notice to Quit. The landlord can give the tenant a 3-day notice to quit without giving the tenant the right to correct any violations or behavior in the following situations:
  • disorderly conduct
  • destruction of the landlord's property
  • conviction for certain offenses
  • conviction for use, possession, or manufacture of an illegal drug; or
  • assaults or threats against the landlord.
• 1-Month Notice to Quit. The landlord can give the tenant a 1-month notice to quit if the tenant continues to violate the lease or rental agreement, despite repeated warnings, or if the tenant habitually pays rent late.

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.

Notice of Termination Without Cause

The process for ending a tenancy without cause depends on the type of tenancy.

Ending a Long-Term Lease Without Cause

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).)

Ending a Month-to-Month Tenancy Without Cause

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.

Tenant Defenses to Eviction

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:

• trying to enforce the terms of the lease or rental agreement
• reporting violations of health and safety codes, or
• organizing or being a member of any lawful organization.

(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).)

Illegal Evictions

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).)

New Jersey Rules About Landlords' Access to Property

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).)

Where to Find New Jersey Landlord-Tenant Laws

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.

Federal Landlord-Tenant Laws and Regulations

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.

Nolo Resources on Legal Research and Landlord-Tenant Law

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.

For landlords:

• Every Landlord's Legal Guide
• Leases & Rental Agreements
• Every Landlord's Tax Deduction Guide
• First-Time Landlord
• Every Landlord's Guide to Managing Property

For tenants:

• Renters' Rights
• Every Tenant's Legal Guide