Requires landlord to attach certificate of inspection or occupancy to residential lease.

A1669

ASSEMBLY, No. 1669

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

222nd LEGISLATURE

�

PRE-FILED FOR INTRODUCTION IN THE 2026 SESSION

Sponsored by:

Assemblywoman VERLINA REYNOLDS-JACKSON

District 15 (Hunterdon and Mercer)

Assemblyman ANTHONY S. VERRELLI

District 15 (Hunterdon and Mercer)

Co-Sponsored by:

Assemblyman Venezia

SYNOPSIS

���� Requires landlord to attach certificate of inspection
or occupancy to residential lease.

CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT

���� Introduced Pending Technical Review by Legislative
Counsel.

��

An Act
concerning lease requirements for rental of certain
residential units and supplementing Title 40 of the Revised Statutes.

����
Be It
Enacted
by the Senate and General Assembly of
the State of New Jersey:

���� 1.��� a.� An owner of
residential rental property required to obtain a certificate of inspection or
occupancy by ordinance adopted pursuant to P.L.1979, c.476 (C.40:48-2.12m)
shall attach a copy of the certificate to the lease for the applicable dwelling
unit and deliver a copy of the certificate and lease to the tenant at the time
of execution of the lease.� The owner shall have the tenant separately
acknowledge receipt of the certificate by initialing the certificate.

���� b.��� If an owner fails to
comply with the requirements of subsection a. of this section, the owner may
cure the deficiency within 30 days after the date of execution of the lease by
delivering a copy of the certificate to the tenant and securing the tenant�s
acknowledgement of receipt of the certificate.�

���� c.���� Failure of an owner to
comply with the requirements of subsection a. or b. of this section shall
render the lease voidable at the option of the tenant.� A tenant may exercise
the option to void a lease pursuant to this subsection by providing written notice
to the owner, and may then vacate the dwelling unit with no further financial
obligation to the owner.

���� d.��� Within 30 days after a
tenant vacates a dwelling unit pursuant to subsection c. of this section, the
owner shall return to the tenant amounts deposited as security under the lease
plus interest.

���� 2.��� This act shall take
effect immediately.

STATEMENT

���� This bill would help
residential tenants know that the condition of a prospective dwelling unit has
passed a municipal inspection and is safe and habitable.

���� Under current law, N.J.S.A.40:48-2.12m,
a municipality may require the owner of residential rental property, prior to
renting a dwelling unit to a new tenant, to obtain a certificate of inspection
or occupancy for the dwelling unit.� A certificate of inspection or occupancy is
issued by a municipality after a municipal inspector has inspected the dwelling
unit and determined the condition of the unit meets the standards provided by
law.�

���� While current law allows
municipalities to require owners to have residential rental units inspected
prior to renting the units to new tenants, the law does not require an owner to
inform a tenant that a unit has been inspected and certified by the municipality.�
Because of this, and because some, but not all, municipalities have adopted ordinances
regulating the maintenance and condition of rental dwelling units, tenants
often do not know whether a prospective dwelling unit has been inspected and
certified by a municipality.

���� This bill is designed to
enhance communication of information concerning the habitability of prospective
rental dwelling units by requiring an owner of residential rental property who
is required to obtain a certificate of inspection or occupancy by ordinance to
attach a copy of the certificate to the lease for the applicable dwelling unit
and deliver a copy of the certificate and lease to the tenant at the time of
execution of the lease.� The bill would require an owner to have a tenant
separately acknowledge receipt of the certificate by initialing the
certificate.� The bill would allow an owner to cure a failure to comply with
this requirement by delivering a copy of the certificate to the tenant, and
securing the tenant�s acknowledgement of receipt of the certificate, within 30
days after the date of execution of the lease.

���� Under the bill, failure of an
owner to comply with these requirements would render a lease voidable at the
option of the tenant.� A tenant may exercise an option to void a lease by
providing written notice to the owner, and may then vacate the dwelling unit
with no further financial obligation to the owner.� The bill would require an
owner to return amounts deposited as security by a tenant within 30 days after
the tenant vacates a dwelling unit under the bill.