Rental Property Rules in Newark, NJ (2026)
10 verified rental property rules for Newark, New Jersey, sourced directly from the municipal code and official government pages.
Verified from official government sources
Rent Control
Newark caps annual rent increases in multiple dwellings at the CPI-U change or 4%, whichever is lower, enforced by a five-member Rent Control Board. Landlords must register and stay in substantial code compliance or the increase is disallowed entirely.
Newark Rent Control 4% Annual Cap
Significant RestrictionsNewark Revised General Ordinances § 19:2-3.1
At the expiration of a lease or at the termination of the lease of a periodic tenant, no landlord may request or receive an increase greater than the percentage increase in the Consumer Price Index (CPI) from the CPI 15 months prior to the month of the proposed rent increase to the CPI three months prior to the month of the proposed rent increase. In no case shall the allowable rent increase ex...
Just Cause Eviction
Newark's Rent Control Ordinance bars a landlord from bringing an eviction action against a tenant as reprisal for exercising rights under the ordinance, and separately protects senior and disabled tenants from eviction when a building converts to condominiums or co-ops.
Newark Retaliatory Eviction Protection
Some RestrictionsNewark City Code § 19:2-14
No landlord shall bring any action to recover possession of a dwelling unit as a reprisal for the tenant's efforts to secure or enforce any right under this chapter.
Rental Registration
Anyone who owns, operates or manages a Newark building designed for three or more families must register with the City Clerk before doing so, listing the owner, any lessor, and a local agent in charge of the premises. Newark briefly ran a separate, newer rental registry, but that chapter was repealed in May 2026, leaving this older registration duty as the operative rule.
Newark Multi-Family Building Registration Rule
Significant RestrictionsNewark Code § 18:7-1.1a, Registration Required; Exemption
No person shall own, operate or manage any building or structure in the City which is intended, arranged, or designed for occupancy by three or more families, whether occupied or vacant, without first registering with the City Clerk, upon forms prescribed and provided by the City Clerk.
Relocation Assistance
When Newark's Office of Inspections and Enforcement finds a rented unit substandard and traces it to a violation of the Certificate of Code Compliance rule, the landlord owes the displaced tenant real money: six months' rent, or one of three specific alternatives, under Housing Code § 18:6-10.1j.
Newark Relocation Pay for Illegal Apartments
Some RestrictionsNewark Housing Code § 18:6-10.1j, j.1(a)-(c)
j. If any landlord/owner rents an apartment in violation of this section and that unit is later found to be in substandard condition that results in violations issued by the Office of Inspections and Enforcement, that rental unit shall be deemed an illegal apartment...requires the relocation of a tenant because of the violation, then that owner/landlord shall be liable for relocation costs of s...
No-Fault Evictions
Newark runs its own protected-tenancy process for senior and disabled tenants facing a no-fault eviction triggered by a condominium or cooperative conversion. The Rent Control Board's Administrator decides eligibility under Code § 19:2-11, charges the landlord set hearing and notice fees, and lets either side appeal.
Newark Protects Seniors From Condo Eviction
Some RestrictionsNewark City Code §§ 19:2-11.1, 19:2-11.2
§ 19:2-11.1. Applications for Protected Tenancy. a. Acceptance by Administrator. The Administrator of the Office of Rent Control shall be empowered to accept applications from senior citizen tenants or disabled tenants for the purpose of determining their eligibility for protected tenancy status from eviction resulting from condominium or cooperative conversions. b. Appointment of Hearing Offic...
Pass-Through Charges
Newark's rent control law lets a landlord pass through two specific costs to tenants above the normal rent cap: a formula-based property-tax surcharge under § 19:2-5, and a capital-improvement surcharge under § 19:2-7, both petitioned through the Rent Control Board with fixed thresholds and notice periods.
Newark Rent Control Tax and Improvement Surcharges
Some RestrictionsNewark City Code §§ 19:2-5.1, 19:2-7.1
§ 19:2-5.1. Formula for Surcharge. A landlord may seek a tax surcharge from a tenant because of an increase in municipal property taxes...The landlord shall divide one-twelfth (1/12th) of the annual increase in the present property tax over the property tax of the previous year by the total monthly rent roll, and that product shall be multiplied by the monthly rent paid by each tenant to establ...
Source-of-Income Discrimination
Newark's inclusionary zoning code bars owners of income-restricted affordable rental units from rejecting an applicant or tenant based on their legal source of income for rent or mortgage payments, one of many protected classes listed in the city's Chapter 41:21 tenant eligibility standards.
Newark Bars Source-of-Income Bias in Affordable Rentals
Some RestrictionsNewark Revised General Ordinances § 41:21-18, Subsection 4 (Tenant Income Eligibility, Ch. 41:21 Inclusionary Zoning for Affordable Housing)
4. No applicant or tenant shall be discriminated against on the basis of actual or perceived race, religion, national origin, nationality, ancestry, pregnancy or breastfeeding, sex, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, familial status) defined as having care or custody of a child under age 18 or being pregnant), disability, liability for service in the Armed Forces of the United S...
Section 8 Voucher Acceptance
Newark's Neighborhood Rehabilitation Program (NRP), run through the Division of Housing Assistance under City Code Section 2:10-1.2, bars any participating property owner from refusing to lease a HOME-assisted unit to a Section 8 certificate or voucher holder. The duty attaches once an owner accepts a City-funded rehabilitation loan; it is not a citywide source-of-income law covering every landlord in Newark.
Newark HOME Program Bars Section 8 Voucher Bias
Some RestrictionsNewark, NJ Revised General Ordinances § 2:10-1.2, item 5(d)(5)
Nondiscrimination Against Rental Assistance Subsidy Holders. The owner cannot refuse to lease HOME-assisted units to a certificate or voucher holder under 24 CFR part 982-Section 8 Tenant-Based Assistance: Unified Rule for Tenant-Based Assistance under the Section 8 Rental Certificate Program and the Section 8 Rental Voucher Program or to the holder of a comparable document evidencing participa...
Rent Increase Notice
Newark landlords cannot raise rent beyond the CPI-based cap, never more than 4% a year, and must give the tenant and the Rent Regulation Officer written notice of the proposed increase at least 30 days before it takes effect. The notice must show the math behind the number.
Newark Rent Increase Notice Requirements
Some RestrictionsNewark City Code § 19:2-3.2
Any landlord seeking an increase in rent, including the rent of a period tenant, shall notify the tenant and the Rent Regulation Officer in writing of the proposed rental increase and the proposed percentage increase, the prior year's rent, the allowable rental increase amount, and allowable percentage increase under the provisions of this section. Any landlord seeking a rental increase pursuan...
Repairs & Habitability
Newark's Housing Code puts upkeep squarely on the landlord: dwellings must stay in sound, hazard-free repair, weathertight, structurally sound, and heated to at least 68°F by day and 65°F overnight from October through May. The Department of Engineering's Office of Inspections and Enforcement enforces the code, and violators face fines plus a mandatory compliance class.
Newark Rental Habitability and Repair Standards
Some RestrictionsNewark Housing Code § 18:3-1.9, Structural Soundness and Safety of Dwelling
a. Foundation walls shall be maintained in good repair and be structurally sound. b. The siding, walls, roof, stairs, porches, balconies and other structural parts of the building shall be kept in good repair, structurally sound and free from evidence of deterioration. c. All porches, landings, balconies and stairs shall be provided with banisters, railings or other protection, properly designe...
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County ordinances apply to unincorporated areas and may supplement Newark city rules.
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