Hamilton, NJ Rental Property Rules: Rent Control (2026)

The Rent Leveling Commission, established under Article XXIX of Chapter 5, administers rent control for residential multiple-family dwellings in Hamilton Township. Section 5-162A sets the core formula: at lease expiration or termination of a periodic tenancy, a landlord who furnishes heat cannot request or receive a percentage rent increase greater than the average of the percentage increases in the Consumer Price Index and the Residential Renters Consumer Price Index released the preceding July. A landlord who does not furnish heat is capped at 60% of that same average. Section 5-162B bars increasing any one tenant's rent more than once in a twelve-month period, though if an increase is skipped for a full 12 months the landlord may apply a prorated makeup increase, a mechanism that stops applying once 24 months pass without an increase. Allowable increases round to the nearest dollar under § 5-162C, and § 5-162D bars any increase until the landlord certifies to the Township that it has paid the tenant's most recent rebate under the Tenants' Property Tax Rebate Act, N.J.S.A. 54:4-6.2.

Landlords may seek additional hardship increases for a fair rate of return or for major capital improvements under § 5-163, but must post notice in the building lobby at least 15 days before filing that appeal, and capital-improvement surcharges require certified-mail notice to each tenant with the improvement's total cost, useful life and per-unit calculation. Units renting for the first time are exempt from the cap under § 5-170, and a vacated unit may reset to market rate once the sitting tenant leaves or is evicted under § 5-164. Any waiver of these tenant protections is void as against public policy under § 5-168.