New Jersey Landlord-Tenant Laws

Verified October 1, 2026 Correction October 2, 2026

Check your municipality. New Jersey does not preempt local rent regulation — city or county ordinances may impose rent caps, notice periods, and fee limits that are stricter than the state law on this page. Verify your municipality's ordinances before relying on any figure below. Verified local pages: Atlantic City, Bayonne, East Orange, Elizabeth, Fort Lee, Hoboken, Jersey City, Newark, Passaic, Paterson.

What the state record says

New Jersey has no statewide rent control statute for apartments and houses, but more than 100 municipalities — the Department of Community Affairs' 2026 survey lists 120, including Newark, Jersey City, Elizabeth, Paterson, and Fort Lee — maintain rent control or rent leveling ordinances with their own caps, notice rules, and boards. Since March 1, 2026 one state limit applies: lot rent at a manufactured home park may not rise by more than 3.5% over any 12-month period unless the Commissioner of Community Affairs approves a larger increase on the landlord's petition (N.J.S.A. 52:27D-287.13). New Jersey does not preempt local rent control: municipalities have had confirmed authority to enact rent control since Inganamort v. Borough of Fort Lee, 62 N.J. 521 (1973). State law also polices increases through the Anti-Eviction Act's unconscionability standard.

Enacted but not yet in force. This page reflects the law in force today. The following measure has been signed and takes effect on the date shown:

Assembly Committee Substitute for A3497 (2026) — P.L.2026, c.43, the Forbidding the Algorithmic Inflation of Rent (FAIR) Act — Signed but not yet in force. It makes it a violation of the New Jersey Antitrust Act to use, or to supply, algorithmic revenue management software that sets or recommends rents, lease terms or occupancy levels from the nonpublic information of two or more rental property owners, and to take part in parallel pricing coordination. Research and statistical use, a free public rent estimate, an equal-terms listing database that does not set or recommend prices, and government affordability programs are outside it. Municipalities may not adopt an ordinance that conflicts with it. Status: Passed the Assembly and the Senate on June 30, 2026; approved July 20, 2026 as P.L.2026, c.43. Section 9 sets the effective date at the first day of the twelfth month after enactment. (checked October 1, 2026).

New Jersey at a glance

Rule	New Jersey	Cited to
Max security deposit	1.5 months' rent	N.J.S.A. 46:8-21.1 (return of the deposit; deadlines, itemization, double damages) +3 more
Deposit return deadline	30 days	N.J.S.A. 46:8-21.1 (return of the deposit; deadlines, itemization, double damages) +3 more
Rent-increase notice (month-to-month)	No statute — derived from termination notice	N.J.S.A. 2A:18-56 (proof of notice to quit; one month for a month-to-month tenancy) +1 more
Statewide rent control / rent cap	No	N.J.S.A. 2A:18-56 (proof of notice to quit; one month for a month-to-month tenancy) +1 more
Late-fee cap	No statutory cap	N.J.S.A. 2A:42-6.1 (five-business-day grace period) +4 more
Entry notice	No fixed statutory period	N.J.A.C. 5:10-5.1 (duties of occupants; access to the unit on reasonable notification), as published by the Department of Community Affairs +1 more
Eviction notice (nonpayment)	No fixed period — see state page	N.J.S.A. 2A:18-61.1 +11 more
Application fee cap	$50 is the most a landlord or their agent may charge to apply for a residential rental, counting every fee charged for the same application.	N.J.S.A. 46:8-18.1 +24 more
Interest owed on deposits	Yes — required by statute	N.J.S.A. 46:8-19 through 46:8-26 (Rent Security Deposit Act as published by the Department of Community Affairs' Landlord-Tenant Information Service, updated May 2010; section 46:8-21.1 has been amended since) +3 more
Repair deadline after tenant notice	No statutory count	N.J.S.A. 2A:42-10.10 to 2A:42-10.14 (reprisal act; full statutory text with credit lines as published by the Department of Community Affairs' Landlord-Tenant Information Service) +10 more
Repair and deduct	Yes — by court decision	N.J.S.A. 2A:42-10.10 to 2A:42-10.14 (reprisal act; full statutory text with credit lines as published by the Department of Community Affairs' Landlord-Tenant Information Service) +10 more
Landlord notice to end a month-to-month tenancy	Depends on the ground; no single figure	N.J.S.A. 2A:18-61.1 +22 more
Owner and agent identity disclosure	Required — in a separate writing or by public registration	N.J.S.A. § 25:1-12 (statute of frauds; leases) +27 more
In-force state hazard disclosures beyond the federal lead-paint rule	3	N.J.S.A. § 25:1-12 (statute of frauds; leases) +27 more
Pet deposit	Counts inside the general deposit cap	N.J.S.A. 46:8-21.2 +16 more
Assistance animals: the state instrument	Fair-housing act only	N.J.S.A. 46:8-21.2 +16 more

Cite this page: "Landlord Atlas, New Jersey Landlord-Tenant Laws (verified October 1, 2026), landlordatlas.com/laws/new-jersey/" — free to cite and quote with a link (how these records are verified). Every figure above is cited to the New Jersey statute it comes from on the linked topic page.

Local rent regulation in New Jersey

New Jersey permits local rent control — more than one hundred municipalities have rent-control or rent-leveling ordinances, adopted under general municipal police powers upheld by the New Jersey Supreme Court — while state law expressly authorizes rent regulation of substandard multiple dwellings and exempts newly constructed multiple dwellings from local rent-increase limits for up to 30 years. Since March 1, 2026 a state law also caps lot-rent increases at manufactured home parks at 3.5% over any 12-month period, unless the Commissioner of Community Affairs approves a larger increase on the landlord's petition, and preempts a local park-lot limit that is higher or tied to a price index (N.J.S.A. 52:27D-287.13 and 52:27D-287.14).

More than one hundred New Jersey municipalities have rent control or rent leveling ordinances of their own. The records above cover ten of the largest regimes, not the full list — a landlord anywhere else in New Jersey should check the municipal code directly.

Cited to N.J.S.A. 2A:42-84.1 to -84.6 (new-construction exemption from local rent control; official DCA statute text) , N.J.S.A. 2A:42-74 et seq. (substandard multiple-dwelling rent control authorization; official DCA compilation) , P.L.2025, c.85 (C.52:27D-287.12 to -287.14; lot-rent limit at manufactured home parks and its effect on local ordinances) , New Jersey Department of Community Affairs, 2026 Rent Control Survey (municipalities with a rent control ordinance) · Verified October 1, 2026 · Full New Jersey rent-increase rules →

New Jersey landlord-tenant laws by topic

New Jersey security deposits

New Jersey caps security deposits at one and a half months' rent — and the cap counts every dollar of prepaid money however it's labeled, so a landlord cannot stack 'last month's rent' on top of a full deposit.

New Jersey rent increase notice

New Jersey has no single rent-increase-notice statute; instead, to raise the rent on a month-to-month tenant the landlord must serve a written notice to quit terminating the existing tenancy — one month's notice under N.J.S.A. 2A:18-56 — paired with an offer of a new tenancy at the higher rent.

New Jersey late fees

New Jersey sets no statewide cap on residential late fees and no general grace period — a late charge is enforceable if the lease clearly provides for it and the amount is reasonable.

New Jersey entry notice

New Jersey has no statute fixing how many hours of notice a landlord must give before entering a rental unit.

New Jersey eviction process

New Jersey eviction runs on two ideas that surprise landlords from other states: almost every tenant can only be evicted for statutory good cause, and yet simple nonpayment of rent needs NO advance notice at all — the landlord can file the summary dispossess action in the Special Civil Part the moment rent is due and owing.

New Jersey application & screening fees

New Jersey caps what it costs to apply for a rental: since May 1, 2026 a landlord or their agent may not charge more than $50 in application and similar fees for one application, and before taking any application fee a housing provider must say in writing whether it will look at criminal history and that the applicant may answer with corrections or evidence of rehabilitation.

New Jersey deposit interest

New Jersey requires landlords to pay tenants the interest their security deposits actually earn, once a year.

New Jersey habitability & repairs

New Jersey has no habitability statute, and a residential landlord's duty to keep a rented home fit to live in comes from the state's courts rather than from the Legislature.

New Jersey lease termination

New Jersey is a state where a landlord needs a reason: for most rental homes the Anti-Eviction Act bars ending or refusing to renew a tenancy except on one of eighteen statutory grounds, and the notice period is set by the ground, running from three days to three years.

New Jersey lease disclosures

A New Jersey lease need not be in writing and no statute makes the landlord give the tenant a copy, but a covered landlord must hand every tenant a copy of the filed registration certificate, distribute and post the state's Truth in Renting statement, and give a flood-risk notice before signing or renewal.

New Jersey pets & assistance animals

New Jersey has no pet deposit and no pet fee law, so a pet deposit is ordinary security that counts inside the cap of one and a half months' rent.

New Jersey mobile home park laws

New Jersey's park law sits in three places: the mobile home park law (N.J.S.A. 46:8C-2 to 46:8C-9) requires a written lease offer of at least 12 months and protects the sale of a home in place, the Manufactured Home Park Protection Act (N.J.S.A. 46:8C-10 to 46:8C-21) gives residents a right of first refusal when the community is sold, and the Anti-Eviction Act allows a lot tenancy to end only for cause.

The New Jersey FAIR Act: rent-pricing software is now regulated

Signed July 20, 2026, effective July 1, 2027 — what P.L.2026, c.43 bans, who it covers (every NJ landlord, from one unit up), and what stays legal.

New Jersey Fair Market Rents (FY 2027) — HUD's benchmark rents for every New Jersey metro area and county.

Editable New Jersey deposit kit · Editable New Jersey disclosure packet — editable documents built on the verified New Jersey rules on this page, in Word, fillable PDF and Excel.

Changes since last full verification

The Verified date above (October 1, 2026) marks the last time every figure on this page was verified end-to-end against official sources. The changes below were published since then, each verified against the official source it names (what these dates mean).

Correction, October 2, 2026 — City and county pages. San Diego: a sentence said the city has never limited the amount a landlord may charge; the city has capped utility pass-through fees since August 17, 2025, and the sentence now says only that the Residential Tenant Protections Ordinance does not limit rent. Jersey City: a note now says that Ordinances 25-099 and 25-105 of 2025 are law but not yet printed in the published code, which still shows the earlier section 260-6(C) and has no section 260-21. Montgomery County, Maryland: Bill 8-26 on rent-setting algorithms is listed for a committee worksession on October 5, 2026 and expires December 7, 2026 if not enacted. District of Columbia (pets): the emergency act that applies the rental rules expires November 11, 2026, and the Council's legislative record projects that the permanent act becomes law on November 20, 2026; the page states both dates and what happens between them if the Council does not act.
Updated, October 2, 2026 — Newark, New Jersey: two adopted ordinances not yet in the published code are added. An ordinance adopted June 17, 2026 and approved by the mayor June 24, 2026, effective on passage and publication, makes two additions to the certificate of habitability: the owner must disclose every person or entity with a direct or indirect ownership interest of 10% or more and anyone who controls the property or its rental operations, and must certify code compliance with no outstanding violations affecting habitability; the city may deny or withhold the certificate, and may require additional verification from an owner it finds non-compliant on its records. An ordinance adopted September 23, 2026 and approved September 25, 2026 takes effect twenty days after passage and publication and was not yet in effect on October 2, 2026: neither a landlord nor a brokerage firm may charge a tenant or applicant for brokerage services, every listing must disclose all fees the tenant will pay, the landlord must give an itemized written fee disclosure that the tenant signs before the lease and keep it three years, and the rental application must carry a bold-type statement of the bar; each prohibited fee is a separate violation with a fine of up to $1,250.

How this record was verified: Direct read of statute text of N.J.S.A. 46:8-21.1 (full text via the 2025 code mirror, corroborated by a 2025 NJ Appellate Division opinion on njcourts.gov construing 46:8-19 and 46:8-21.1), cross-checked against the New Jersey Department of Community Affairs' official 'Truth in Renting' guide (the state's authoritative landlord-tenant publication) for the 46:8-21.2 cap, prepaid-rent rule, 10% annual increase cap, pet-deposit rule, late-charge rules, and the 2A:42-6.1 protected-tenant grace period. September 12, 2026 addendum: N.J.S.A. 46:8-19 was re-read on the Legislature's statute viewer and its plain-text export, N.J.S.A. 55:13A-3 and 55:13A-7 on the statute viewer, and N.J.A.C. 5:10-5.1, 5:10-10.2 and 5:10-27.1 on the Department of Community Affairs compilation; the two remaining citations to a municipal copy of the Truth in Renting booklet were replaced with the Department's own current copy and the statutes themselves. October 1, 2026: every section the security deposit, rent increase, late fee, entry and eviction answers rest on was read again in the Legislature's own statutes database (lis.njleg.state.nj.us) and in its published statutes text, both updated through P.L.2026, c.30; each later 2026 chapter law through c.97 was opened, and none amends them. The sections: N.J.S.A. 46:8-19 to 46:8-26, 46:8-48 to 46:8-49.3, 2A:18-53 to 2A:18-61.3, 2A:39-1 and 2A:39-8, 2A:42-6.1 to 2A:42-6.3, 2A:42-9 and 2A:42-10.6 to 2A:42-10.16a, with P.L.2025, c.85. The Special Civil Part rules (R. 6:2-1 and R. 6:7-1) were read on the Judiciary's website, and the Department of Community Affairs' Truth in Renting guide and 2026 Rent Control Survey on nj.gov.