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Short-Term Rentals in Jersey City, NJ (2026)

11 verified short-term rentals rules for Jersey City, New Jersey, sourced directly from the municipal code and official government pages.

Verified from official government sources

Short-Term Rental Permits

No one may operate or advertise a short-term rental in Jersey City without first obtaining a short-term rental permit from the Division of Housing Preservation. The permit costs $250 to apply for, is valid one year, and renews annually for $200, under the city's 2019 Short-Term Rentals ordinance.

Jersey City Short-Term Rental Permit Rule

Significant Restrictions

Jersey City Code § 255-3(A), (B)

In addition to any land use requirement(s) set forth in the City of Jersey City land use regulations, the owner/operator of a short-term rental property shall obtain a short-term rental permit from the City of Jersey City Division of Housing Preservation, before renting or advertising for rent any short-term rental. ...No person or entity shall operate a STRP, or advertise a residential propert...
Full ordinance details →Official source ↗

Noise Rules

Jersey City requires every short-term rental permit holder to keep transient occupants compliant with the city's noise and nuisance ordinances. A guest's noise violation exposes the guest, the owner, the responsible party and the listed rental agent to fines and can trigger revocation or suspension of the STR permit itself.

Jersey City STR Guests Must Follow Noise Rules

Some Restrictions

Jersey City Code § 255-6.D

Transient occupants of the STRP shall comply with all ordinances of the City of Jersey City including, but not limited to those ordinances regulating noise and nuisance conduct. Failure of transient occupants to comply shall subject the transient occupants, the owner of the STRP, the responsible party, and the short-term rental agent listed in the short-term rental permit application, to the is...
Full ordinance details →Official source ↗

Taxes & Fees

Jersey City charges a non-refundable $250 initial registration fee to apply for a short-term rental permit and a $200 annual renewal fee. Both fees go to the Division of Housing Preservation with the permit application and are kept even if the application is denied.

Jersey City STR Permit Fees: $250 Initial, $200 Renewal

Some Restrictions

Jersey City Code § 255-3.C, § 255-3.E

An owner of property, intended to serve as a STRP, or any agent acting on behalf of the owner, shall submit to the City of Jersey City Division of House Preservation, a STR permit application provided by the City, along with an initial registration fee of two hundred fifty dollars ($250.00). Said fee shall be non-refundable, including in the event that the application is denied. ... A short-ter...
Full ordinance details →Official source ↗

Short-Term Rental Parking Rules

Jersey City short-term rental applications must disclose every off-street and on-street parking space near the property, and owners must agree renters are limited to one vehicle per two occupants. Two substantiated complaints about excess STR vehicles can get the permit revoked.

Jersey City STR Parking: Disclosure + 1 Car per 2 Guests

Some Restrictions

Jersey City Code § 255-4.A(9)-(10)

The number and location of all parking spaces available to the premises, which shall include the number of legal off-street parking spaces and on-street parking spaces directly adjacent to the premises. The owner shall certify that every effort will be made to avoid and/or mitigate issues with on-street parking in the neighborhood... (10) The owner's agreement that all renters of the STRP shall...
Full ordinance details →Official source ↗

Occupancy Limits

Jersey City bars renting a short-term rental to anyone under 21 and requires the person who signs the rental agreement to be a supervising adult over 21. No one under 18 may be on the premises unless accompanied by a legal guardian, and a unit can carry no more than three STR contracts at once.

Jersey City STR Occupants Must Be 21, or Supervised

Some Restrictions

Jersey City Code § 255-6.H

In no event shall a STRP be rented to anyone younger than twenty-one (21) years of age. The primary occupant of all short-term rentals executing the agreement between the owner and the occupant must be over the age of twenty-one (21), and must be the party who will actually occupy the property during the term of the short-term rental. ... No one under eighteen (18) years of age shall be permitt...
Full ordinance details →Official source ↗

Insurance Requirements

Jersey City requires every short-term rental permit application to include proof of general liability insurance of at least $500,000. The requirement is filed alongside proof of ownership and signed agent/responsible-party certifications as part of the same application packet.

Jersey City STR Owners Need $500,000 Liability Coverage

Some Restrictions

Jersey City Code § 255-4.E(2)

Attached to and concurrent with submission of the permit application described in this section, the owner shall provide: (1) Proof of the owner's current ownership of the short-term rental unit; (2) Proof of general liability insurance in a minimum amount of five hundred thousand dollars ($500,000.00); and (3) Written certifications from the short-term rental property agent and responsible part...
Full ordinance details →Official source ↗

Night Caps

Jersey City caps unhosted short-term rentals, where the owner or operator is not present, at 60 total nights per calendar year. Every night booked beyond that limit is treated as a separate violation, giving code enforcement a night-by-night basis for fines under the city's 2019 Short-Term Rentals ordinance.

Jersey City 60-Night STR Cap

Some Restrictions

Jersey City Code § 255-2(E)

Except as provide in subsection H of this section, rentals of any dwelling unit where the owner/operator of the short-term rental property is not present shall be conducted no more than sixty (60) total nights per calendar year. Each night in excess of this limit shall be considered a separate violation.
Full ordinance details →Official source ↗

Host Presence Rule

Jersey City bars short-term rentals where the owner or operator is not present if the unit sits in a multiple dwelling of more than four units. Whether the host is on-site determines which properties can legally list at all: larger buildings can only host STRs when the owner or operator is actually present.

Jersey City STR Unhosted-Rental Building Cap

Significant Restrictions

Jersey City Code § 255-2(F)

Rentals of any dwelling unit where the owner/operator of the short-term rental property is not present shall be prohibited in dwelling units located in any multiple dwellings that contain more than four separate dwelling units. It shall be a violation to rent or to advertise such properties.
Full ordinance details →Official source ↗

Primary-Residence-Only Rule

Jersey City limits most short-term rentals to properties that are the owner's principal residence. The code's definitions tie 'owner-occupied' directly to where the owner actually lives, and § 255-2(B) restricts permitted STR categories, like condo units and single-family homes, to owners who identify that address as their principal residence.

Jersey City STR Owner-Occupancy Rule

Significant Restrictions

Jersey City Code § 255-1 (definitions); § 255-2(B)(1)-(2)

"Owner-occupied" shall mean the owner of the property who resides in the short-term rental property, or in the principal residential unit with which the short-term rental property is associated on the same lot, and identifies same as his or her principal residence as that term is defined in this section. ..."Principal residence" shall mean the address: (1) where at least one of the property own...
Full ordinance details →Official source ↗

Extended Home Share

Jersey City permits a bed-and-breakfast style extended home share: an owner-occupant can rent out up to three rooms in a single-family home while living in and claiming the rest as their principal residence, with no room housing more than two adults plus their minor children at a time.

Jersey City Bed-and-Breakfast STR Rule

Some Restrictions

Jersey City Code § 255-2(B)(6)

No more than three rooms within a single-family residential dwelling unit operating as a bed and breakfast as defined in this chapter, and the remainder of the single-family dwelling unit is owner-occupied and is identified by the owner as his or her principal residence, as that term is defined in this section, except that no room shall be occupied by any more than two adults and their minor ch...
Full ordinance details →Official source ↗

Repeat Violator Strikes

Jersey City automatically revokes a short-term rental permit once a property racks up three or more substantiated complaints, and locks the property out of the program for a full year. Even a single serious complaint involving a dangerous condition can trigger immediate suspension at the City's discretion.

Jersey City STR Permit Revoked After 3 Complaints

Significant Restrictions

Jersey City Code § 255-6.I

If the STRP is the subject of three or more substantiated complaints, the Director of the Division of Housing Preservation or his/her designee or the Business Administrator or his/her designee shall revoke the short-term rental permit issued for the STRP, in which case, the STRP may not be the subject of a new STRP permit application for one year following the date of revocation of the permit. ...
Full ordinance details →Official source ↗