At the expiration of a lease or a periodic tenancy Trenton permits no increase greater than 4%, and 2% for a senior citizen or disabled tenant. Chapter 222 defines a dwelling as any building rented to one or more individuals or households, so there is no unit-count threshold at all.
There is no unit-count threshold in the chapter: a single rented unit is covered. What takes a small building out is owner-occupancy, and only up to two units.
Rents were rolled back to the levels in existence on 31 December 1996, with controls retroactive to 1 January 1997. The chapter was substantially amended on 9 May 2024. Beyond the 4% there are separate routes for tax, sewer and water surcharges, hardship, capital improvements and a staged below-market catch-up — and a tenant is entitled to half of any tax reduction.
Exemptions
- Owner-occupied one- and two-family dwellings.
- Public and other federally subsidised housing.
- Motels, hotels and premises primarily serving transient guests.
- Any portion of a building rented for commercial use.
- Newly created housing units, whether by construction or conversion from non-residential use, rented for the first time — the initial rent only. This is a first-rent exemption with no term of years, unlike most New Jersey ordinances, and every subsequent change of rent is controlled.
- Annual cap
- 4%
- Vacancy decontrol
- Yes — rent resets on vacancy
- Unit counts
- 1+ units
- Owner-occupied exemption
- Yes
Sources
- City of Trenton Code Chapter 222 — Rent ControlAdopted 7 September 1967; §222-6 amended 9 May 2024 by Ord. 24-28. §222-2 is the coverage definition and the exemptions, §222-16 vacancy, §222-20 registration.
- NJ DCA — 2026 Rent Control Survey — New Jersey Department of Community Affairs, 2026 Rent Control Survey (spreadsheet, linked from the DCA Landlord-Tenant Information page; last revised 20 May 2026). The department's own caveat: the survey is only as current as the published codes, and the stated percentage may differ from the increase actually permitted.
- Trenton Rent Stabilization Board — Trenton Rent Stabilization Board, (609) 989-3507