On a previously occupied unit being vacated the landlord may set the new tenant's rent without applying to the Board — but where it exceeds the last rent by more than 25% the new tenant has the right to seek a reduction, which the Board must grant unless the landlord can justify the increase under the chapter or show the previous tenancy was not at arm's length.
Not a clean reset: above 25% the increase stands only until the incoming tenant challenges it, and the burden then sits with the landlord. A pro-forma marking a unit far above the previous rent is underwriting a figure the tenant can undo.
- Vacancy decontrol
- Yes — rent resets on vacancy
Sources
- City of Trenton Code §222-16B — Vacancy
- 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.