Tenant rights in New Jersey: eviction, deposits, rent increases

Does the Anti-Eviction Act cover my rental?

DCA’s Truth in Renting guide says the Act applies to most residential rentals: single-family homes, apartments, mobile homes and rooming houses. It “may not apply” to an owner-occupied building with two or fewer rental units, and it does not cover hotel or motel guests rented to a transient guest or seasonal tenant. A landlord cannot end a tenancy, or refuse to renew a lease, without a statutory ground, whether the lease is written or oral.

If you are buying a two- or three-family home in Newark and plan to live in one unit, this matters: see “Buying a building with tenants” below.

How does an eviction work?

DCA describes this sequence:

1. Notice. For every ground except unpaid rent, the landlord must serve a written notice to quit describing the cause in detail. Some grounds first require a notice to cease, a warning to stop the conduct.
2. Complaint. The landlord files with the Special Civil Part clerk in the county of the rental, which for Newark is Essex County. Both sides must come to the hearing. If the tenant does not, a default judgment can be entered.
3. Judgment for possession. Only a judge can order the tenant out. The landlord can then ask for a warrant for removal, which cannot be issued until three business days after the judgment. The tenant then has three business days to leave, and a court officer carries out the eviction.
4. Possible stay. A tenant can ask the court for more time. DCA’s guide says a stay cannot exceed one year unless both sides agree, and past-due rent normally must be paid.

Under the Fair Eviction Notice Act, the warrant must be executed between 8 a.m. and 6 p.m. unless the court says otherwise, and only by a court officer.

What are the main grounds for eviction?

Other grounds cover health and safety violations, employment-based tenancies and certain criminal convictions. The 2008 bulletin lists them all. A tenant cannot be evicted for unpaid rent if the unpaid portion was used to keep electric, gas, water or sewer service on after the landlord failed to pay for it.

Currency note. DCA’s grounds bulletin and the statute reprint on its site are dated February 2008, and the state legislature’s website was not reachable when we checked. The notice periods above may have been amended since. Read the current text of N.J.S.A. 2A:18-61.1 and 2A:18-61.2 before relying on a deadline.

Can a landlord lock me out?

No. DCA says self-help evictions are illegal in New Jersey: changing locks, padlocking the door or shutting off utilities to force a tenant out. A tenant should call the police, and a landlord who persists after a police warning may be charged with a disorderly person’s offense. A tenant who is illegally evicted can sue, and the court may award possession, damages, court costs and reasonable attorney fees.

DCA also explains that a landlord cannot retaliate against a tenant who enforces lease rights or makes a good-faith complaint about a health or safety violation to a government authority: no eviction, lease change or refusal to renew (N.J.S.A. 2A:42-10.10). The reprisal law excludes owner-occupied two- or three-family buildings.

Security deposits

According to DCA’s Security Deposit Bulletin (revised July 2025):

• A landlord may not require more than 1.5 times the monthly rent, and any yearly increase of the deposit may not exceed 10% of the current deposit.
• Landlords with 10 or more units must invest the deposit in an insured money market fund or a variable-rate account in a New Jersey institution. Smaller landlords must use an interest-bearing account at an insured New Jersey bank. The interest belongs to the tenant.
• Within 30 days of receiving the deposit, the landlord must tell the tenant in writing where it is held, the account type, the interest rate and the amount. If not, the tenant may apply the deposit, plus 7% a year, toward rent after a written request.
• Within 30 days after the lease ends, the landlord must return the deposit and interest, less lawful deductions for damage beyond ordinary wear and tear and money owed under the lease, with an itemized list.
• If the landlord does not return it, a tenant who sues successfully can recover double the amount, plus costs and, at the court’s discretion, reasonable attorney’s fees. Claims up to $5,000 go to the Small Claims section of the Superior Court.

Example. On a $1,800 monthly rent, the most a landlord can require is $2,700 (1.5 times $1,800). If the landlord wrongly keeps all of it and the tenant wins, the court shall award $5,400. Deductions for damage cannot be taken from a tenant who is still living in the unit.

Rent increases and rent control

DCA’s Truth in Renting guide says New Jersey has no state law that establishes, governs or controls rents. Municipalities may pass rent control ordinances, enforced by local boards. A landlord also cannot raise the rent in the middle of a lease; the old lease must end, with proper written notice, and a new one be offered at the higher rent. An increase cannot be unconscionable, and a court looks at the size of the increase, the landlord’s expenses and profit, and comparable rents.

We could not read Newark’s rent control ordinance because the city’s website and its code host refused automated access, so we do not state what Newark’s rules say. To find out whether a unit is covered, DCA advises contacting the rent control board or the municipal clerk in the town where it sits. Newly built multiple dwellings and some subsidized units may be exempt under state law.

Buying a building with tenants

If you buy a rented two- to four-unit building in Newark, the tenants keep their rights. The seller must hand over the security deposits, with the tenants’ interest, to you within five days of delivering the deed, and you become responsible for investing and returning them. DCA says the new owner must also give a security deposit notice within 30 days. Wanting to move into a unit is a ground for eviction only for a building of three units or fewer, and with the notice and lease-end timing above. For the purchase itself, see buying a home in Newark, our guide to seller disclosure in New Jersey and the home-buying steps.