Fairview rent control: maximum rent increase (2026)
Bergen County — Chapter 12, Rent Leveling. Full ordinance text ↗
Summary
- Cap formula
- A flat 10% annual increase on the anniversary date for standard tenancies; a reduced 7% cap applies for qualified senior citizens or disabled persons meeting the Borough's income test.
- Frequency
- once per 12 months, on the lease/tenancy anniversary date
- Notice required
- 30 days — Rent-increase notices must be given at least 30 days before implementation, filed with the Rent Leveling Commission on prescribed forms and delivered to tenants.
- Who's covered
- Buildings with 3 or more rental units
- Exemptions
- Hospitals, nursing homes, public dormitories, and other charitable, educational, or nonprofit institutions
- Motels, hotels, and similar establishments
- Public housing (building-level, not individual apartments)
- Condominiums and cooperative developments (unless tenant was previously subject to controlled rent)
- Buildings with 2 or fewer units (not counting owner-occupied units)
- Newly constructed units (2-year exemption)
- Units with Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher recipients
- new construction (30 yrs from certificate of occupancy, N.J.S.A. 2A:42-84.2)
- Vacancy decontrol
- Units that become vacant qualify for vacancy decontrol: landlord and tenant may agree and fix the rent for the vacant dwelling unit as they deem appropriate; once re-rented, the unit again becomes subject to the rent-leveling provisions. DCA notes decontrol lasts until re-rented.
- Registration
- Annual landlord registration required by January 1, providing property address, owner/landlord information, current rent (base + surcharges), room counts, lease terms, facilities provided, and vacancy history for the prior 12 months. A landlord who has not properly registered a unit may not increase rents for it until registration is complete.
- Surcharges
- Capital improvement surcharge requires Board approval for major improvements materially increasing rental value, limited to 5% of yearly HUD base rent, one application per calendar year. Hardship surcharge available when net operating income falls below 40% of gross rents (requires CPA documentation), limited to one application annually, expiring after 30 months. Tax surcharge based on municipal property tax increases divided by total rooms, paid in 12 monthly installments, no filing fee.
- Penalties
- Violations constitute separate offenses per leasehold, penalized under Chapter 1, §1-5 of the Municipal Code; the Commission chairman refers willful violations to the Borough Prosecutor for municipal court action.
- Status
- active
- Confidence
- medium
- Last verified
- 2026-09-23
Calculate your maximum increase
Ordinance text
Upon the anniversary date, a landlord shall be entitled to increase the rent to a tenant in an amount equal to 10% of the then rental subject to Subsection f of this section. [...] The maximum allowable annual rent increase that a landlord may charge a qualified senior citizen or disabled person shall be a 7%.Chapter 12, Rent Leveling — https://ecode360.com/35208877
State survey entry
- Increase limit
- 7% not less than $20.00 not more than $35.00. 3% for qualified seniors or disabled persons.
- Units covered
- 3+
- Exceptions
- Exception(s) - Hospitals, nursing homes, public dormitory, other charitable, educational, or nonprofit institutions, motels, hotels, public housing (building, not individual apartments), condos and cooperative developments (unless tenant was previously subject to controlled rent), buildings with 2 or less units (not counting owner-occupied units), newly constructed units (for 2 years), and units with Section 8 voucher recipients.
Vacancy decontrol (until re-rented)
Source: NJ Department of Community Affairs, 2026 Rent Control Survey — nj.gov
Open questions
- The DCA 2026 Rent Control Survey lists a 7% cap (bounded between $20 and $35) with a 3% senior/disabled rate, but the ordinance text retrieved directly from ecode360 (Chapter 12, as last amended July 19, 2022 by Ord. No. 22-07A, which the source describes as modifying the maximum rent increase provisions) states a flat 10% general cap and a 7% senior/disabled cap, with no $20/$35 dollar-bound language found. Per instructions the ordinance text is treated as authoritative, but the DCA survey may not yet reflect the 2022 amendment (or vice versa) — recommend confirming current in-force numbers directly with the Fairview Rent Leveling Board before relying on this figure.
- The $20.00/$35.00 dollar floor/ceiling mentioned only in the DCA survey could not be located in the retrieved ordinance excerpt; it may apply to a different provision (e.g., a minimum/maximum dollar increase amount) not captured in this record.
Rent board
Rent Leveling Board · (201) 943-3300, Ext. 280 · https://fairviewborough.com/boards/rent
Generate a rent increase notice
Fill in the tenant, unit, and rent details and get a printable, ordinance-cited rent increase notice for Fairview — $9, pay by card.
Generate notice — $9