Rent Control Meeting Wednesday May Set Precedent In Hudson County

HUDSON COUNTY, NJ — Hudson County is undergoing a painful moment of reckoning in which officials in towns like Hoboken and Jersey City are seeing rents skyrocket and trying to figure out which units are subject to state and local rent controls —and what they can actually do if landlords skirt existing rules.

[UPDATE: A livestream of the meeting can be viewed here.]

Rent control laws in both Hoboken and Jersey City limit many apartment buildings to an increase of around 5 percent a year, but also allow for tax and water surcharges, and other givebacks to make sure landlords can maintain their investment. However, with rents rising past $4,000 per month and apartments in the area high in demand, some tenants are being told their rents will rise 15-30 percent anyway.

A new wrinkle for leaders to grapple with is the fact that some of the newer luxury buildings — previously thought to be too new to be subject to rent control — have been determined to fall under the law because they didn't file on time for a 30-year exemption that New Jersey began allowing in 1987.

While some luxury buildings can still rent out units at $4,000 or more, the amount of the increase must stay to a few percent until a current tenant moves out. In practice, new owners of some luxury buildings, such as the Rivington in Hoboken, initially said they didn't believe their buildings were included in municipal rent control — until city officials told them they were. READ MORE: Rivington Rent Hikes Reduced; Hoboken Says They're An 'Injustice'

A precedent set at Willow Ridge apartments in Union City in July 2022 determined the standard of what Jersey City tenant activists have referred to as "No filing, no exemption." If a newer building didn't file for an exemption with their town or city in New Jersey on time, the building is said to be under local rent control.

All buildings in New Jersey are also subject to a state law prohibiting rent increases that are "unreasonable or unconscionable," but the law remains nebulous about what that amount would be, leaving tenants to have to fight in court. Both Hoboken and Jersey City have tenant advocates and officials to help, and nonprofits like the Waterfront Project and others can also help.

Meeting On Wednesday

In Jersey City, tenants in a pair of luxury towers built on the Jersey City waterfront in the 1990s — Portside Towers — were able to show last year that Portside West was under rent control, but are still fighting to get a ruling they can accept regarding Portside East. And they have said they believe the city is not following its own rent laws.

Tenants have also cited problems with elevators getting stuck and other issues in the buildings.

This coming Wednesday night, the tenants will attend a long-awaited special meeting of the city's Rent Leveling Board to determine their rents.

They noted that this ruling may set a precedent in Jersey City, and also show whether mayor and New Jersey gubernatorial hopeful Steven Fulop will weigh in.

Kevin Weller, a leader of the Portside East and West Tenants' Association, told Patch on Tuesday that he has heard from low-income and struggling tenants of other Jersey City buildings in similar situations who are being told their rent will spike, but they can't fight alone.

Thus, Weller said, the outcome of Wednesday's meeting could help or hurt tenants in Jersey City besides those in Portside.

Weller said in a statement on Tuesday, "This special session will address two cases at Portside Towers (100 Warren St. and 155 Washington St.) that could set the stage for rent control enforcement throughout Jersey City. The hearing will involve appeals to previous rent control determinations made by former administrator Dinah Hendon. The outcome of this hearing has far-reaching consequences as it tests not only the administration but also our mayor, Steven Fulop, who is currently running for governor.

"The tenants of Portside Towers (Jersey City) will be represented by the Attorney for the Union City Rent Leveling Board. This is significant because it was a Union City case, Willow Ridge Apartments LLC v. Union City Rent Leveling Board which established the fact that without a filing by the original owner of a multiple dwelling, it is not possible to have access to an exemption to rent control in NJ. In just March of 2023, The Supreme Court of NJ denied Certiori, upholding the Appellate court decision in favor of the tenants."

The special meeting will be held at 6 p.m. Wednesday, May 31 at 39 Kearney Ave. in Jersey City, in the Board Room of the Holloway Building.

Portside advocates have asked those attending to arrive between 5:30 and 5:45. See the public notice of the meeting here.

Both State And Local Laws May Apply

In Hoboken recently, tenants of luxury buildings, such as those owned by Avalon Bay, have found out from the city that their units are, in fact, subject to subject rent control. Other luxury buildings in Hudson County, attempting to raise rents 25 percent or more, may be subject to a state law saying rents can't be "unconscionable."

The mayor of Hoboken has written letters to at least four landlords in that city, telling them to comply with the above city or state laws, but according to tenants, some landlords have resisted.

Sources have said that Hoboken may file an injunction in court as a result, as a "test case" to determine the standard for unconscionability.

Patch has written more than 10 articles over the past year on these issues. Find them here:

• Hoboken Delays One-Time Rent Rise, Considers Injunction
• Tenants Fight Back As Rents Soar In Jersey City And Hoboken
• Hoboken Tenants Facing New Fears Of Displacement