New Jersey rental housing laws

What it would do: Requires the seller, real estate broker, or seller's attorney to notify the buyer in writing of any rent control or rent leveling ordinances affecting the property, with violations constituting unlawful consumer fraud practices subject to penalties up to $10,000 for first offense and $20,000 for subsequent offenses.

What it would do: Voids and makes unenforceable any class action waiver in residential rental agreements for claims arising from rent control law violations. Establishes tenant remedies including declaratory judgment, injunction, actual damages, and attorney's fees, and imposes landlord penalties of $1,000 per dwelling unit plus up to $2,500 per day after notice of violation.

What it would do: Establishes protections against deed theft by requiring courts to stay proceedings on residential property when criminal complaints or government investigations involve title fraud, creating rebuttable presumptions of fraudulent deeds upon conviction, and authorizing law enforcement to void fraudulent instruments.

What it would do: Allows courts to hold members, managers, directors, and officers of commercial entities jointly and severally liable for unpaid housing, building, health code, and Hotel and Multiple Dwelling Law charges when at least three charges remain unpaid thirteen months after the first charge's due date, subject to notice requirements and affirmative defenses.

What it would do: Establishes eligibility criteria for the Homelessness Prevention Program and imposes a $75 filing fee on eviction actions, with proceeds directed to the Office of Eviction Prevention for homelessness prevention services; prohibits tenants from being charged this fee.

What it would do: Prohibits two or more persons from engaging in parallel pricing coordination for rental properties and makes it unlawful under the New Jersey Antitrust Act to receive services facilitating such coordination or perform coordinating functions. Takes effect twelve months after enactment.

What it would do: Prohibits landlords from threatening to disclose, disclosing, or basing eviction on a tenant's immigration or citizenship status, and allows tenants to sue for damages up to $2,000 per violation, attorney's fees, and equitable relief. Codifies implied warranty of habitability for all residential tenants regardless of immigration status.

What it would do: Requires residential landlords to accept rent payments by cash, certified check, money order, third parties, or rental assistance programs, and increases the penalty for violating rent acceptance requirements from prior law to $2,000 per offense, with tenants able to sue separately for $2,000 plus attorney's fees.

What it would do: Prohibits using credit scores or risk assessments to evaluate creditworthiness of affordable housing applicants. Requires individualized assessments based on ability to pay rent, employment history, and payment history, with specific rebuttable presumptions of creditworthiness and mandatory adverse action notices.

What it would do: Establishes seven factors courts must consider when determining if a rent increase is unconscionable, placing burden of proof on landlords to show increases are not unconscionable. Excludes from public access eviction records with no judgment for possession or judgments entered seven or more years ago.

What it would do: Prohibits landlords from threatening to disclose or disclosing tenant immigration status to influence vacating, or basing eviction on immigration status. Allows tenants to sue for damages up to $2,000 per violation, attorney fees, and equitable relief.

What it would do: Extends protected tenancy for senior citizens at least 62 years old and disabled tenants from 40 years to their full lifetime when rental housing converts to condominiums or cooperatives, preventing eviction and rent increases during conversion.

What it would do: Prohibits rental property owners from using coordinator software or services that collect nonpublic pricing data and recommend rental prices, and prohibits consciously parallel pricing coordination among rental property owners, making violations subject to New Jersey Antitrust Act penalties.

What it would do: Limits residential rental property application fees to $50 maximum and establishes penalties of up to $500 for first offense, $750 for second offense, and $1,000 for subsequent offenses, with annual fee adjustments based on Consumer Price Index.

What it would do: Prohibits landlords or their agents from charging application or similar fees exceeding $50 for residential rental property leases, excluding one-family and two-family dwellings. Establishes a $1,500 penalty per violation, with $250 remitted to the applicant or prospective tenant.

What it would do: Requires the Department of Community Affairs to establish a standard initial period of at least 180 calendar days for households receiving federal Housing Choice Voucher Program assistance to locate new housing when required to vacate due to landlord sale or property transfer.

What it would do: Establishes confidentiality protections for landlord-tenant court records and prohibits landlords from considering dismissed cases or old judgments when evaluating rental applications. Requires landlords to provide screening criteria and written adverse action notices to rejected applicants.

What it would do: Establishes a Habitability Enforcement and Affirmative Litigation Program to enforce tenant protections for habitability violations; requires landlords to designate principal agents; creates private cause of action for tenants with statutory damages of $1,000 per violation or $2,000 per severe violation plus attorney's fees; appropriates $5 million.

What it would do: Requires landlords to disclose lead drinking water hazards to tenants and prohibits obstructing lead service line replacement. Requires public water systems to provide free annual lead testing to residential customers and establishes penalties for violations.

What it would do: Prohibits landlords from performing hard credit inquiries on affordable housing applicants, allowing only soft inquiries. Requires consumer reporting agencies to treat multiple hard inquiries for rental applications within one month as a single inquiry.

What it would do: Establishes seven factors courts must consider when determining if a rent increase is unconscionable, with landlords bearing the burden of proof, and excludes from public access court records in eviction actions where tenants prevail, unless the landlord obtains a judgment for possession after trial.

What it would do: Requires each county to submit monthly information to the Commissioner of Community Affairs about affordable housing and senior citizen housing units, organized by municipality with details on locations, managers, application status, and waitlists, for publication on state websites.

What it would do: Limits rent increases on covered dwelling sites in manufactured home parks to three percent per 12-month period, with exceptions for new tenancies and landlord petitions to the Commissioner of Community Affairs for increases exceeding three percent based on documented costs or capital improvements.

What it would do: Requires owners of seasonal rental units to notify prospective renters before contracting if a pet is regularly present or present within two weeks before the scheduled stay. Allows renters to cancel and receive full reimbursement if not notified and they vacate within 12 hours of occupancy.

What it would do: Extends the protected tenancy period for senior citizen tenants (age 62+) and disabled tenants in converted residential buildings from 40 years to their full lifetime, preventing eviction or rent increases resulting from conversion to condominiums or cooperatives.