Hamilton, NJ Building Safety: Building Inspections (2026)

Section 268-2 authorizes the Director of Community and Economic Development to inspect dwellings, dwelling units, hotels, motels, rooming units, boardinghouses and their premises at any time deemed necessary, to safeguard occupant and public health and safety; owners and occupants must give the Director or an agent free access at reasonable times, and an occupant must likewise let the owner in to make repairs needed for code compliance. Pool structures outside a dwelling's foundation are excluded from a housing inspection. If access is refused, the Chief Housing Inspector may apply by affidavit to the Municipal Judge for a search warrant.

Section 268-3 layers on a separate, mandatory inspection: before any change in occupancy of a house, dwelling, hotel, motel, rooming house, boardinghouse or apartment used for human occupancy, the owner or owner's agent must obtain a certificate of approval from the Office of Housing Inspections confirming the building and premises comply with Township ordinances. For an ownership transfer of a nonrental residential property, the "OTR inspection" is narrower, checking only smoke alarms (replaced every 10 years per NFPA 72), carbon monoxide alarms near sleeping areas, a required fire extinguisher in a single-family home or townhome, chimney certification if a fireplace or wood stove is over three years old, and any open, obvious threat to health or safety. "