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

Township Code § 472-1, last amended March 9, 2026 by Ord. No. MC 3934 within a chapter rewritten in its entirety on January 23, 2023 by Ord. No. MC 3811, bars landlords from charging rent above what they charged as of the chapter's effective date except for increases the chapter itself allows. At lease expiration or termination of a periodic tenancy, a landlord cannot demand, charge or receive more than the permitted increase, and no tenant can be made to pay more than one increase in any twelve-month period.

The caps: 4% of the prior year's rent where the landlord supplies heat, 3% where the landlord does not, and just 2% annually, regardless of who supplies heat, for a sole tenant aged 65 or older or a unit occupied only by tenants 65 and up. The increase is calculated on the base rent alone, not on the base rent plus any hardship or capital surcharge collected under § 472-4, and landlords are barred from tacking on a separate tax surcharge for higher municipal property taxes under § 472-1(C).

Tenants can agree by majority petition to a specific rent surcharge for a defined purpose, subject to the Rent Leveling Officer's approval and a two-year cap on the surcharge under § 472-1(D). The chapter also bars "unbundling", meaning a landlord cannot start charging separately for something like parking, or inflate a security deposit beyond the original lease terms, simply to get around the rent cap.