Belleville rent control: maximum rent increase (2026)
Essex County — Chapter 12, § 12-12, Rent Leveling. Full ordinance text ↗
Summary
- Cap formula
- At the expiration of a lease, termination of a periodic tenancy, or (if the lease so provides) the annual anniversary of a lease of more than one year, a landlord may not request or receive a percentage rent increase greater than the percentage fixed in § 12-12.9: the rental for housing space may not be increased more than 5% in any consecutive 12-month period, regardless of the number of different tenants occupying it during that period.
- Frequency
- once per 12 months (per unit, aggregate cap)
- Notice required
- 30 days — 90 days' written notice required for lease tenants and 30 days' for month-to-month (periodic) tenants; notice must show the calculations used to compute the increase and be sent by certified and first-class mail.
- Who's covered
- Buildings with 4 or more rental units
- Exemptions
- Newly constructed dwelling units (exempt 36 months from first occupancy)
- Substantially rehabilitated units (4+ rental units, improvement cost ≥ 75% of assessed property value; exempt 12 months from first occupancy)
- new construction (30 yrs from certificate of occupancy, N.J.S.A. 2A:42-84.2)
- Vacancy decontrol
- Upon voluntary vacancy, landlord may set a new market rent after obtaining a $100 vacancy decontrol certificate and code-compliance verification; a non-coercion certification is generally required.
- Registration
- Annual registration with the Township Clerk (Aug. 1–Oct. 15) required, with a $15 per unit filing fee; failure to file results in a 12-month rent-increase moratorium for that property.
- Surcharges
- Major capital improvement surcharges (improvements exceeding $5,000 that add permanent value) capped at 15% of tenant's rent; hardship increases may be petitioned for where landlord cannot achieve a 'just and reasonable return,' limited to one per 12 months and to 15% without full Board review.
- Penalties
- Fines of $100 for a first violation, $300 for a second, and $350 for a third violation (per unit), or up to 90 days' imprisonment.
- Status
- active
- Confidence
- high
- Last verified
- 2026-09-23
Calculate your maximum increase
Ordinance text
At the expiration of a lease or at the termination of the lease of a periodic tenant, or at the annual anniversary of the lease for a term of more than one year (if the lease so provides), no landlord may request or receive a percentage increase in rent which is greater than the percentage set forth in subsection 12-12.9. [...] The rental for housing space shall not be increased more than 5% in any consecutive 12 month period irrespective of the number of different tenants occupying said housing space during said 12 months.Chapter 12, § 12-12, Rent Leveling — https://ecode360.com/36464722?highlight=rent,rents&searchId=21935309669576170#36464709
State survey entry
- Increase limit
- No more than 4% increase at the expiration of a lease or at the termination of the lease of a periodic tenant. The rental for housing space shall not be increased more than 5% in any consecutive 12 month period irrespective of the number of different tenant during those 12 months. Hardship or Capital Improvement increases may be approved by the Rent Leveling Board.
- Units covered
- 4+
- Exceptions
- Exception(s) - Newly constructed dwelling units exempted for 36 months from time of first occupancy, "substantially rehabilitated" units (4+ rental units and if cost of improvements are at least 75% of assessed property value) are exempted for 12 months from time of first occupancy. Vacancy Decontrol subject to requirements, non-coercion certification, and fees.
Source: NJ Department of Community Affairs, 2026 Rent Control Survey — nj.gov
Open questions
- Prior record's cap.verbatim/formula_text (and the DCA survey's dca_summary.limit) describe a '4% per lease-renewal event' sub-cap in addition to the 5%-per-12-months cap. The current ordinance text (§ 12-12.4, as amended 2-24-2026 by Ord. No. 04-26) no longer contains a distinct 4% figure anywhere in Chapter 12-12 — § 12-12.4 now ties lease-renewal increases directly to the single percentage fixed in § 12-12.9 (5% per 12 months). It appears the Feb. 2026 amendment removed the separate 4% sub-cap and the DCA survey entry (and prior record) had not been updated to reflect it; fixed_pct remains 5.0 since that figure was already correct.
Rent board
Rent Leveling Board · (973) 450-3300 · https://www.bellevillenj.org/pages/rent-leveling-board
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