Rent control in Union City, NJ

2 rules apply — the local one first, then the county and state rules that bind alongside it.

Research, not legal advice

These summaries are compiled from ordinance text and public sources and are dated at the point they were last checked. Rules change between checks — Newark replaced its whole registration regime in a single month — so confirm anything you are about to underwrite against the primary source or the municipal office named in the citation.

Four or more units, capped at the lesser of CPI or 3%

Union Cityhigh confidence

Verified on 2026-08-18 — 44 days ago.

Union City's Chapter 334 permits the lesser of 3.0% or the increase in the CPI for the New York–Northern New Jersey metropolitan area over the twelve months before the notice of increase, and 2.0% for a qualified senior tenant. It does not apply to premises with fewer than four units.

Premises with fewer than four units are outside the chapter. Above that, owner occupancy matters and the conditions are unusually specific — see the exemptions.

A rented condominium or co-operative unit is not exempt, and neither the owner's residence elsewhere nor the number of units they own creates an exemption beyond the unit the owner occupies. Base rents run from those established on 1 March 1973. Hardship requires operating expenses of at least 75% of gross income, management fees capped at 6%, and eighteen months' ownership — so a new buyer cannot apply. Union City is in Hudson County and is not Union County: two different places whose names collide, and confusing them applies the wrong ordinance entirely. The current chapter has been read through its 2019 rewrite and subsequent amendments.

Exemptions

Units on premises with fewer than four units.
Owner-occupied four-family buildings — but only on an affidavit of residency filed with the registration, with the burden on the owner, effective only once a tenant who lived in a non-owner-occupied unit before the owner moved in has vacated, and with written notice of the exemption given to prospective tenants and recited in every lease.
Five- and six-unit buildings owner-occupied as at the date of the ordinance — a closed, non-transferable class that ends when the owner leaves the building.
First-time rentals, as to the initial rent only.
Dwellings constructed after 25 June 1987 and not for senior citizens, per N.J.S.A. 2A:42-84.1, for the amortisation period of the initial mortgage or 30 years, whichever is less, conditioned on the statutory filings.

Annual cap: 3%
Unit counts: 4+ units
Owner-occupied exemption: Yes

Sources

Union City Code Chapter 334 — Rent StabilizationCurrent codified chapter, amended in its entirety 6 November 2019 by Ord. 2019-26, with subsequent amendments through the current code.
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.
Union City Rent Control Office — Union City Rent Control Office, (201) 348-5734

Rent control is municipal, and roughly 100 towns have it

New Jerseymedium confidence

Verified on 2026-08-01 — 61 days ago.

New Jersey has no statewide rent control. Roughly 100 municipalities impose their own, with caps, exemptions and vacancy rules that differ town by town.

This municipality has not been researched. Read the municipal code — or call the clerk — before assuming rents can be reset on purchase or turnover.

Sources

NJ Department of Community Affairs — Landlord/Tenant InformationRent control ordinances are published by each municipality, not by the state.

Every rule for Union City, NJ