Howell, NJ Rental Inspections: Tenant Complaint Process (2026)

Chapter 178 prints no separate tenant complaint form or hotline. It supplies two routes that start an inspection or a hearing. First, § 178-4 allows enforcement officials to enter a dwelling when an inspection is requested by the owner or occupant, so a tenant can ask for one. Under § 178-5, the owner, occupant or person in charge must give officials free access on presentation of proper identification. Second, § 178-11 lets a petition be filed with the Construction Official by a public authority or by at least five residents of the Township charging that a dwelling is unfit for human habitation as defined in the Housing Code.

The Construction Official can also act on his or her own motion. If the preliminary investigation discloses a basis for the charges, the Construction Official serves the owner and parties in interest with a complaint and a notice of a hearing held not less than seven days nor more than 30 days after service. The owner can file an answer and appear in person or otherwise, and the rules of evidence in the courts do not control. If the dwelling is found unfit, § 178-12 requires written findings and an order to repair, alter or improve the building or, at the owner's option, to vacate and close it.

Where the threatened collapse of a fire-damaged or structurally unsafe building poses an actual and immediate danger to life, § 178-16 lets the Construction Official and Fire Official make it temporarily safe, and § 178-8 allows an emergency order without notice of hearing. For rentals, § 178-31 lists unsafe or unhealthy conditions and nuisance conduct on the premises as grounds to revoke the rental certificate, with a written complaint and an appeal to the Director of Community Development and Land Use within 10 days under § 178-32.