[HISTORY: Adopted by the City Council of the City of Orange Township 12-16-86 by Ord. No. 71-86. Amendments noted where applicable.]
Editor's Note: Ord. No. 71-86 superseded former Ch. 166, Rent Control, adopted 11-15-76 as Ord. No. 27-76, as amended.
[Amended 5-3-1994 by Ord. No. 17-94; 11-1-2005 by Ord. No. 32-2005; 10-16-2018 by Ord. No. 43-2018]
As used in this chapter, the following terms shall have the meanings indicated:
AVAILABLE FOR RENT TO TENANTS
Fit for habitation as defined by the statutes, codes and ordinances in full force and effect in the State of New Jersey, County of Essex and the City of Orange Township and occupied and offered for rent.
CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT
A permanent improvement not already required by law or by lease that is reasonably expected to last more than one year. Normal upkeep, maintenance and repair are not "capital improvements." The actual cost of the "capital improvement" may be recovered by the landlord up to the useful life in equal monthly installments. (See Appendix attached to this chapter as representative sample of improvements and their useful life.[1]) The conversion of one heating system for another is not to be deemed a "capital improvement."
DWELLING
Any building or structure rented or offered for rent to one or more tenants or family units. Exempt from this chapter are hotels, motels and housing units of three units or fewer and four-family houses where the owner is an occupant of one of the living units. A dwelling unit detached but on the same block and lot as other housing units, whether owner-occupied or rented, shall be included as a dwelling unit for the purpose of this definition. Units where rent is determined as a factor of income and units receiving state or federal subsidies directly to the owner are likewise exempt. Also exempted are those units which have been rehabilitated under the Home Rental Rehabilitation Program as administered by the City of Orange Township Division of Housing and units receiving Section 8 rent subsidies or federal housing vouchers. In these units, rents will be allowed to be raised to, but will not exceed, the allowable affordable rents as established by the Home Rental Rehabilitation Program. These units will be exempt only during the unit's tenure in the Home Rental Rehabilitation Program.
EQUITY IN REAL PROPERTY INVESTMENT
The actual cash contribution of the purchaser at the time of closing of title and any principal payments to outstanding mortgages. Equity will also include capital improvements made by the record owner of title prior to the effective date of this chapter and for which no capital improvement rent increase has been granted.
HOUSING SPACE
Includes that portion of a dwelling rented or offered for rent for living and dwelling purposes with all privileges, services, furnishings, furniture, equipment, facilities and improvements connected with the use or occupancy of such portion of the real property.
JUST CAUSE FOR EVICTION
The landlord recovered possession of the housing space or dwelling for one of the reasons outlined in the New Jersey Statutes, N.J.S.A. 2A:18-53 and 2A:18-61.1 et seq., its amendments and supplements thereto.
LIVING AREA
The amount of total rentable space applicable to any given housing space, measured either in terms of rooms or square footage.
PARKING SPACES
Includes all spaces used for the parking of motor vehicles, whether indoor or outdoor, when rented by a tenant from his landlord, or its agent, located separate and apart from the rented housing space.
PERIODIC TENANT
Any tenancy for less than a year, whether evidenced by writing or oral, including, but not limited to, a month-to-month tenant, a week-to-week tenant or a tenant-at-will.
PRECONVERSION RIGHTS OF TENANTS (CONDOMINIUM UNITS)
Those tenants whose occupancies have commenced prior to the conversion of any building, structure or unit to condominium ownership, whether or not the building or structure consists of two housing units or less, or whether the ownership is by one or more individuals or persons or entities, and the fixing of rents shall be subject to the provisions of this chapter and those rights afforded tenants pursuant to N.J.S.A. 2A:18-61.1 et seq.
QUALIFIED SENIOR TENANT
One shall be deemed a qualified senior tenant if they are 65 years of age or older.
RENT
Any price for the use of housing space. It includes any charge, no matter how it is set forth, paid by the tenant for the use of any service in connection with the housing space. Security deposits and charges for accessories, such as boats, mobile homes and automobiles not used in connection with the housing space, shall not be construed as "rent." The definition of "rent" shall not be considered violated for the purpose of collecting late fees, legal fees, court costs or damages which are outlined in a landlord's written lease.
RENTAL STATEMENT
A statement that the landlord or its authorized agent is required to execute and certify and submit to the Office of Rent Leveling as of March 1 of each year, or upon commencement of a new tenancy, which shall provide an accurate list of rents charged as of the date of said tenant filing, the name and apartment number of each tenant, and whether said tenant is on a lease term or is a periodic tenant, and whether the tenancy is created under a written or oral lease or agreement, and the annual renewal date for said unit and the commencement date of the tenancy. The Rent Leveling Board is authorized to promulgate such rules, regulations and forms necessary to carry out the provisions of this requirement.
REPRISAL
Any action of a landlord, its agents or representatives as defined in N.J.S.A. 2A:42-10.10, its amendments and supplements thereto.
SERVICE
The provision of light, heat, hot water, maintenance, painting, elevator service, air conditioning, storm windows, screens, superintendent service and any other benefit, privilege or facility connected with the use or occupancy of any dwelling or housing space.
SERVICE SURCHARGE
Refers to an additional charge or surcharge over and above the rental which is due to new or additional services. Existing services may be subject to a surcharge under extenuating circumstances as may be determined pursuant to procedures set forth in this chapter.
SUBSTANTIAL COMPLIANCE
That the housing space and dwelling are free from all heat, hot-water, elevator and all health, safety and fire hazards as well as 90% qualitatively free of all other violations of the Orange Property Maintenance Code[2] and the Regulations for Construction and Maintenance of Hotels and Multiple Dwellings promulgated by the State Department of Community Affairs, N.J.S.A. 5:10-1.1 et seq., and other applicable ordinances of the City of Orange Township.
SUBSTANTIAL REHABILITATION
That new base rents may be established for substantially rehabilitated dwellings or housing space which has been determined to be uninhabitable for reasons such as, but not limited to, substantial destruction, damage, vandalism, Fire or Housing Code violations affecting the health, welfare, safety and sanitary conditions for which extensive renovation and repairs are required. In addition thereto, for dwellings or housing space or units which are vacant, or as a result of the need for repairs and renovation may become vacant, no application for exemption of the annual percentage increase and the establishment of a base rent may be approved unless the landlord spends an amount equal to 50% of the dwelling (building) or housing space (unit) assessed value multiplied by the average ratio of assessed to true value of real property (N.J.S.A. 54:3-17 to 54:3-19), commonly known as "Section 123." Both the assessment and the Section 123 ratio shall be those figures promulgated and fixed according to the law as of the date of the landlord's application. Debt service finance charges and interest shall be excluded in calculating and determining the expenditures made by the applicant. Regular maintenance, painting and cosmetic repairs or normal wear and tear resulting in appliance replacement shall not be considered a "substantial rehabilitation," except as otherwise provided for in this chapter.
TAX APPEAL REFUNDS
That in the event a tax appeal is taken by the landlord as of and continuing from the effective date of this chapter, in which a landlord is successful in said appeal and the taxes/assessment is reduced, the tenant shall, within 90 days of the final adjudication, receive 50% of said reduction after deducting all reasonable expenses incurred by the landlord in prosecuting the appeal. The reduction may be paid directly to the tenant or as a credit off of future rent and shall be calculated based upon the tenant's percentage of housing space within the building or structure in which the reduction is applied. The landlord shall provide documentation of said refund to the Office of Rent Leveling within 120 days of the final adjudication. The documentation can either be a copy of the check issued to the tenant or a notarized affidavit by the landlord articulating the amount and date of the direct payment or credit issued to the tenant.
[1]
Editor's Note: The Appendix is on file in the City offices.
[2]
Editor's Note: See Ch. 156, Property Maintenance.
A. 
There is hereby created a Rent Leveling Board within the City of Orange Township, which shall be constituted of seven (7) members who shall serve without compensation, and at least two (2) members shall be landlords owning multi-dwelling property of four (4) units or more which is located within the city; two (2) members must be tenants living within the city; and three (3) members shall be homeowners living within and owning property located within the city, which property shall not be the subject of the provisions of this chapter. The Chairperson of the Board shall be selected by a majority of the members.
B. 
The City Council shall appoint each of the members constituting the Rent Leveling Board for a term of two (2) years. Three (3) alternates, one (1) from each of the above categories, shall be appointed to the Board by the Mayor, each for a two-year term. Said alternates shall serve in rotation during the absence or disqualification of any regular member or members. An alternate member shall be entitled to sit with and participate as a member in any meeting of or hearing before the Board. An alternate member who has attended the full hearing or hearings and all pertinent meetings may participate in the Board's determination during the absence or disqualification of any regular member.
C. 
No member or alternate member of the Board shall be permitted to act on any matter in which he or she has, either directly or indirectly, any personal or financial interest. Members and alternate members may be removed for inefficiency, neglect of duty or malfeasance in office by the City Council, and any Board member who is absent, without excuse, from three (3) or more conference meetings or public hearings during the course of a calendar year may be subject to removal from the Board by the City Council.
D. 
Nothing in this chapter shall abrogate, dissolve or affect any of the powers, rent restrictions, authority or actions heretofore held or taken by the Rent Leveling Board as established in Article XIV, § 4-60, as further amended by Ordinance No. 2776, and Ordinance No. 16-78, and Ordinance No. 42-79 and any ordinances which the above ordinances amended or supplemented; and all actions and opinions heretofore taken or made shall remain in full force and effect. The fixing of rents and judgments, findings and conclusions with respect to the control of rents within the City of Orange Township shall remain unimpaired under this chapter and shall be subject to this chapter in future determinations.
A. 
The Rent Leveling Board is hereby granted and shall have and exercise, in addition to other powers herein granted, all the powers necessary and appropriate to carry out and execute the purposes of this chapter, including but not limited to the following:
(1) 
To issue and promulgate such rules and regulations as it deems necessary to implement the purposes of this act, which rules and regulations shall have the force of law until revised, repealed or amended from time to time by the Board in the exercise of its discretion, provided that such rules are filed with the City Clerk. The City Council may reject any rule of the Board within thirty (30) days of the filing of such rule with the City Clerk, and such rejected rule shall be deemed null and void and of no force. This provision shall not limit the right of the City Council to promulgate and issue procedural rules and regulations as it may deem necessary to implement the purposes of this chapter.
(2) 
To supply information and assistance to landlords and tenants to help them comply with the provisions of this chapter.
(3) 
To hold hearings and adjudicate applications not otherwise resolved between the landlord and tenant pertaining to rollback of rent due to diminution of services, deterioration of housing space or failure to perform ordinary repairs, replacements and maintenance, and excessive rental increases, all in accordance with the provisions of this chapter.
B. 
The Board shall give both landlord and tenant reasonable opportunity to be heard before making any determination. All determinations of the Board must be approved as to law and form by legal counsel, and all determinations must be in writing in the form of a resolution.
It is hereby established pursuant to § 4-82.1 and as further implemented by this chapter in the administration herein an Office of Rent Leveling. The Office of Rent Leveling shall come within the jurisdiction of the Department of Community and Economic Development and shall consist of the position of Rent Leveling Administrator, in the unclassified position, and a Secretary, a Housing Inspector and such other staff members, in classified positions, as may be required or as otherwise provided for by ordinance. The Office of Rent Leveling shall have the following powers and functions:
A. 
To obtain, keep and maintain all relevant records and other data and information.
B. 
To supply information and assistance to landlords and tenants and to bring together tenants and landlords in informal conferences and suggest resolutions of conflicts between them in order to assist them in complying with the provision of this chapter. These informal conferences and resolutions that may be achieved shall refer only to matters regarding rent decontrol and rent rollback as a result of diminution of services and maintenance. Any resolution hereafter determined by the parties with the assistance of the Office of Rent Leveling shall be in the form of a written agreement and referred to the Rent Leveling Board as the basis of a legal and binding resolution. No disposition of any conflict, however, shall be violative of the provisions of this chapter as it pertains to rent increases.
C. 
To notify landlords that there is no record of compliance by the landlord of the annual recording and registering of a rent roll or any periodic modification of the rent roll.
D. 
To accept and process complaints from tenants concerning illegal rent increases, diminution of services or excessive rental increases and to investigate, when applicable, the complaints prior to forwarding them for a hearing before the Rent Leveling Board.
E. 
To accept complaints or applications from tenants and landlords, provided that all claims are sworn to and acknowledged by a person authorized by law to administer oaths, or certified in lieu of oath, pursuant to the Rules of Court.
F. 
To accept, process, review and investigate, where applicable, applications from landlords for rental increases pursuant to a hardship or capital improvement and surcharges for increased services or exemption from rent control or any other applications with respect to the adjustment and modification of rent as to a unit or as to a multiresidential dwelling.
G. 
To accept and forward to the Hearing Officer applications for hardship rental increases, capital improvement, service surcharge increases or petition to be exempt from the provisions of this chapter.
H. 
To maintain an up-to-date public directory of all controlled units, with maximum allowable rents for each unit.
I. 
To schedule all appeals before the Hearing Officer and Rent Leveling Board and coordinate operations of the Rent Leveling Board with other involved city departments or offices.
J. 
To record and list all building violations on the Rent Roll Registration List for each dwelling and/or housing unit covered by ordinance and make them available for public inspection.
K. 
To provide a yearly report to the Mayor, City Council and Rent Leveling Board detailing the number of complaints received, the name of the complaining party, the dwelling or housing unit owner against whom said complaint was initiated, the listing of applications received and processed and determination made with respect to rental decontrol, hardship application, capital improvement and surcharge or exemption, and rollback, and to set forth the address of the dwelling or housing unit in which said complaints or applications were received and processed and the ultimate determination, either by the Rent Leveling Office, Hearing Officer or Rent Leveling Board. This report shall include the determination resulting from a disposition of a conflict between landlord and tenant which was disposed of by the Office of Rent Leveling.
L. 
To bring appropriate legal charges against a violating party as provided by this chapter.
M. 
To secure the execution of the Chairperson of the Rent Leveling Board and/or the Hearing Officer, where applicable, upon resolutions or orders, and to submit the original of said documents to the City Clerk and retain a confirmed copy of such documents in the Office of Rent Leveling and to submit a confirmed copy of such documents to both tenant, tenant's representative, landlord, its agent or representatives and, where applicable, to the Tax Assessor and Department of Community and Economic Development, Division of Licensing and Inspections.
N. 
To perform such other duties and to carry out such other functions as are consistent with this chapter in maintaining the effective and efficient operation of the Office of Rent Leveling.
A. 
Upon appointment by the Mayor, a Secretary shall be established for and on behalf of the Rent Leveling Board to perform in a secretarial capacity at its conference meetings and public hearings in the taking of minutes and transcribing them in typewritten form, including the determinations and decisions of the Board. The Secretary to the Office of Rent Leveling shall also perform in a secretarial capacity at the public hearings held by the Hearing Officer in the taking of minutes and transcribing in typewritten form the determination and decisions of the Hearing Officer.
B. 
The typewritten minutes of the meetings, determinations and decisions of the Rent Leveling Board and the Hearing Officer shall be submitted to the Office of Rent Leveling, where they shall remain on file.
C. 
The Mayor shall have the right to appoint an Attorney, licensed in the State of New Jersey, to the Rent Leveling Board, who shall act as its legal counsel, rendering advise when called upon and offering recommendations at the conference and public meetings and who shall be responsible for the preparation and drafting of all Rent Leveling Board resolutions or orders.
There shall be established within the jurisdiction of the Office of Rent Leveling, by appointment of the Mayor, upon advice and consent of the City Council, a Hearing Officer, who shall be assigned and delegated by the Office of Rent Leveling to hear and adjudicate applications or petitions for the increase in rent due to increased services or increased services based upon nonmaintenance replacement improvements to property mandated by state statute, ordinance or regulation, as well as all petitions seeking to be exempt from the provisions of this chapter.
A. 
Duties of the Hearing Officer shall include, in conjunction with the Office of Rent Leveling, a review of all applications to assure that they are completed and that all relevant information has been provided and the affected and interested parties have been properly notified of the proposed application and hearing date. The Hearing Officer shall conduct, within the discretion of the Hearing Officer, a preliminary pretrial documentation and/or mediation meeting upon review of the completed reports and supportive documentation in an attempt to clarify and define the issues and/or to resolve any disputed issues between the landlord and tenants and, if agreed by the parties, prepare a voluntary settlement statement consistent with the regulations of the Office of Rent Leveling and the provisions of this chapter.
B. 
The Hearing Officer shall conduct a public administrative hearing upon proper notice to all parties and to render a decision according to the guidelines and regulations established by the Office of Rent Leveling and the provisions of this chapter.
C. 
The Hearing Officer assigned to a particular case shall, within thirty (30) days after conclusion of the public hearing, file a written decision with the Office of Rent Leveling. The decision shall contain the name and address of the applicant, the address of the unit(s) or building which was the subject of the hearing, the names and addresses of all witnesses who testified at the hearing and findings of fact based upon all the relevant, pertinent and credible evidence, both testimonial and documentation produced at the hearing, and a conclusion or decision and the basis for that decision as it pertains to the findings of fact. Attached to the decision shall be all documents and papers received in evidence and a tape recording, transcript or minutes of the proceedings. In lieu of attachment of documents or items received in evidence, the decision should identify the document or items received in evidence and a description, and if said evidence is not attached to the decision it shall be available for inspection at the Office of Rent Leveling. The application of the landlord shall be attached to the decision. A copy of the decision only shall be sent or personally served upon the applicant or any interested or affected party. The Office of Rent Leveling shall review the decision of the Hearing Officer only as to form and content and shall make arrangements that the applicant and interested or affected parties are notified of the decision.
D. 
The Hearing Officer, having been delegated those duties set forth in this section, may, within his or her discretion, call witnesses for the purpose of clarifying issues or call upon their expertise in areas not limited to but including accounting, real estate appraisal, real estate management, building maintenance and property management. The Hearing Officer may call as witnesses subcode officials of the municipality and building tradesmen and banking and financial consultants.
E. 
The Hearing Officer may be retained on a part-time basis and shall be paid within the discretion of the Administration, either on an hourly basis, per diem or per case fee. The Hearing Officer should be familiar and have a background either in law, accounting or business and including therein a general knowledge of financing and real estate. The Hearing Officer may be either a tenant or landlord subject to the limitations as set forth in this chapter.
F. 
The Hearing Officer will not be permitted to act on any matter in which he or she has, either directly or indirectly, any personal or financial interest or has a personal bias or prejudice concerning a party, or personal knowledge of disputed evidentiary facts concerning the proceeding, or when the Hearing Officer is individually or a spouse or a minor child is residing in his or her household, has a financial interest in the subject matter in controversy or any other interest that could be affected by the outcome of the proceeding when a spouse, or a person within the third degree or relationship to either of them, is a party to the proceeding or is in the employ of or is associated with either applicant or any interested or affected party.
The right of appeal from a decision of the Rent Leveling Board or the Hearing Officer, by either the landlord or tenant, or both, to an appropriate court of law shall be reserved as a matter of right. The appeal shall be filed within the time limitations for appealing municipal administrative rulings as established by the rules governing the courts of the State of New Jersey.
[Amended 9-6-1994 by Ord. No. 32-94; 10-16-2018 by Ord. No. 43-2018]
Establishment of rents between a landlord and a tenant to whom this chapter is applicable shall hereafter be determined by the provisions of this chapter. Except for properties rented to qualified senior tenants, at the expiration of a lease or at the termination of a lease of a periodic tenant (for less than one year), no landlord may request or receive an increase in rent that is greater than 5% per annum; except that, for those tenants who supply their own heat, the increase shall be 4% per annum. For a qualified senior tenant, said landlord shall not seek or demand an increase in rent which exceeds 2% of the rent charged during the preceding twelve-month period. In an apartment that contains multiple persons, the 2% cap shall only apply if a qualified senior tenant is identified on the lease as a tenant in the subject apartment.
A. 
For a year-to-year tenant or for a tenant under a lease term in excess of one year, the landlord, owner or agent shall not seek or demand an increase in rent which exceeds the percentage of the prior rent for each twelve-month period the existing lease has been in effect.
B. 
No more than one such rental increase in any one twelve-month period shall be permitted, irrespective of the number of different tenants occupying the housing unit during a twelve-month period, except as otherwise provided by this chapter. Any renewal increase at any other time, unless otherwise provided herein, shall be voided.
C. 
The landlord shall supply and deliver to either a new tenant or to one from whom it seeks an increase information, in writing, which shall state the rent paid by all tenants who occupied the apartment unit during the prior twelve-month period, that the landlord has complied with the provisions of § 166-17 (Recording and registering rents), the annual percentage for which an increase is sought and the calculation reflecting the new rent. No rental increase of any amount or percentage shall be demanded, received or accepted unless the landlord has complied fully with the provisions of § 166-17 (Recording and registering rents). In the event that a landlord, at the time he demands a rental increase from a tenant, fails to have a current rent roll on file, he shall be precluded from obtaining any increase from the tenant until such time as the current rents are registered and filed with the Office of Rent Leveling.
D. 
The landlord shall include in the notice as referred to in Subsection C above a certification that the dwelling and housing unit is in substantial compliance with the applicable Property Maintenance Code of the City of Orange Township (Chapter 156), its amendments and supplements thereto.
E. 
A complaint of a tenant challenging the propriety of any increase based upon a violation of this section shall be filed within six weeks from the date when the proposed increase is to take effect. The Rent Leveling Board, for good cause shown, such as, but not limited to, the disability of the tenant, a physical or mental impairment, harassment, intimidation or coercion by the landlord, its agents or representatives, or if the landlord does not inform or misinforms a tenant concerning the previous rent paid and/or the proper calculation of the rental increase or an unusual hardship, may waive the six-week period and accept, hear and adjudicate a complaint of an illegal increase.
F. 
The limitations of rental increases in this section shall be applied to any rent increase to become effective on or after January 1, 1987, and any renewal or new leases or tenancies as of that date shall reflect a monthly rent consistent with this section.
G. 
Rents increased, paid or collected on or after the effective date of this chapter shall reflect an increase of no more than that allowed under this section. Those rents paid over and above the allowable rent for any apartment unit shall be credited to the tenant as a reduction in rent in the following month following the effective date of this chapter; or, in the case of a tenant who has moved, the excess moneys paid shall be sent to the former tenant within 30 days of enactment by law of this section.
H. 
All limitations on rental increases as applied to housing space under the above subsections also apply as limitations on rental increases for parking spaces. All notice requirements, time limitations and other applicable duties or obligations of the landlord as set forth in this chapter are hereby made applicable to increases in rent for parking spaces. The aggregate amount of rent and parking charges for new and existing tenants in rent-controlled units shall not exceed the allowable annual increase under this chapter. New tenants in decontrolled units may be charged a separate fee for one or more parking spaces. Once under rent control, the aggregate amount of rent and parking charges may not exceed the allowable annual increase under this chapter.
I. 
It shall be unlawful for any landlord to charge a tenant for the use of a washing machine, refrigerator, cooking stove, air conditioner or any other privileges or amenities, including, but not limited to, parking spaces, when and wherever such appliances, privileges or amenities were previously provided, permitted and allowed to that tenant by the landlord without extra charge, either by lease, use or custom. The use of such appliances, privileges or amenities in connection with the use or occupancy of the dwelling unit shall be considered as included in the rent. Any extra charge in such a situation shall be considered as an unauthorized increase in rent and shall be unlawful, unless, upon good cause, it is approved by the Rent Leveling Board.
J. 
In the event that a landlord voluntarily determines to reduce the rent charge for a housing space or unit or otherwise determines not to increase the rent by the maximum amount set forth in this section, such landlord shall not be deemed to have waived the right to reinstate the rent charge immediately prior to such reduction and to add on whatever annual permissible increase he would have been entitled to; provided, however, that the landlord, within 30 days after such determination, shall notify the affected tenant and the Office of Rent Leveling, in writing, of such rent reduction and/or permissible rent increase not previously charged; provided further, however, that notwithstanding anything to the contrary herein, the landlord shall not be permitted to increase the rent on account of a voluntary rent reduction or the forbearance of any otherwise permissible rent increase that occurred more than two years earlier.
K. 
No landlord of a dwelling or housing space subject to this chapter shall serve a notice to quit upon any tenant or institute any action against a tenant to recover the possession of a dwelling unit or housing space in reprisal for the tenant's efforts to secure or enforce any rights granted under this chapter or any other ordinance, law or regulation of the City or State of New Jersey or the United States of America or on account of the landlord's failure to obtain the approval of any application or petition for a rent increase, surcharge or exemption. The institution of any proceeding by a landlord, its agent or representative against a tenant or the receipt by the tenant of a notice to quit or any substantial alteration of the terms of the tenancy without cause after the tenant attempts to secure or enforce its rights, or if the landlord has failed to obtain approval of any application, shall create a rebuttable presumption that the landlord's action is a reprisal against the tenant.
L. 
A violation of Subsection K shall be punishable as prescribed in § 166-25 but in no way shall be limited to the tenant's rights set forth in N.J.S.A. 2A:42-10.10 or any other cause of action authorized by statute.
M. 
No capital improvement surcharge pursuant to § 166-10 or any other allowable increase, except for the annual percentage increase and a hardship increase, shall be deemed to constitute rent for the purposes of computing the permissible annual rent increase pursuant to § 166-8 hereof.
A rental increase which exceeds that allowed by this chapter may be voided in its entirety by the Rent Leveling Board and shall be adjusted by the Rent Leveling Board to conform to the amount allowed by this chapter. Such adjustment may be made prior to a hearing before the Rent Leveling Board by the Office of Rent Leveling in the form of an informal conference and upon notice to all parties. Any adjustment by the Office of Rent Leveling shall be reduced to writing and confirmed by the Rent Leveling Board. Any rental increases in excess of that allowed by this chapter and paid by the tenant may be returned to the tenant or credited off of future months rent.
A landlord shall submit an application to the Office of Rent Leveling for an additional surcharge due to capital improvements to the housing space or dwelling unit or for improved or increased services or nonmaintenance or replacement improvements to property mandated by state statute or regulation or ordinance.
A. 
Preliminary hearing. A landlord may, prior to undertaking an expenditure for a capital improvement or improved or increased services, or services mandated by statute, regulation or ordinance, seek preliminary approval by filing an application with the Office of Rent Leveling. The application shall be forwarded to the Hearing Officer, who shall conduct a preliminary review hearing as to whether and to what extent and benefit the proposed expenditure would be covered by this section. No expenditure as to dollar amount shall increase the rent of any tenant until the capital improvement or surcharge which received preliminary approval is supported by documentation, including canceled checks, receipts, bills, vouchers and/or estimates. No capital improvement surcharge or other surcharges shall be effective until the improvement or increased services are completed and subject to a final hearing before the Hearing Officer.
B. 
The Hearing Officer shall hold a public hearing on the landlord's application either for preliminary approval or final approval. At least ten (10) days prior to the public hearing, the landlord shall notify each tenant by certified mail or by personal service (return receipt requested forms are not required) as to the date, time and place of the hearing. Certified mail receipts must bear the name of each tenant so served and be hand canceled by the post office with a postmark date clearly visible. This notice shall also state, for capital improvements and nonmaintenance or replacement improvements or increased or improved services, the projected or final cost of the improvement(s), the number of years of useful life thereof as claimed by the landlord for purposes of depreciation for federal income tax purposes, the cost of the improvement, the total number of rooms contained for all housing space for which such rental increase is sought, the total number of rooms occupied by the tenant(s) and the monthly surcharge the landlord is seeking from the tenant.
C. 
Such expenditures may include the fair market value of materials and services that are furnished by or without charge to the landlord. The landlord shall propose to apportion the annual cost of the completed improvement or service per year of useful life among the tenants and the dwelling in accordance with one (1) of the following methods:
(1) 
If the capital improvement benefits certain housing spaces only, then the cost of those improvements shall be surcharged to only those units.
(2) 
If the capital improvement benefits all housing spaces but in varying degrees according to the amount of rooms in each individual housing space, then the cost of the improvement shall be charged according to the number of rooms in each individual dwelling unit in proportion to the total rentable rooms in the building or buildings.
(3) 
If the capital improvement is equally beneficial to all housing spaces regardless of the living area within any housing space, then the cost of the improvement shall be distributed equally among all dwelling units.
D. 
No application for preliminary or final approval shall be accepted for processing by the Office of Rent Leveling until the required fee has been paid and the landlord obtains a certificate of substantial compliance and provides the same as an attachment to its application. In the event that the landlord's application is to remedy a violation which has prevented the landlord from obtaining a certificate of substantial compliance, then the Hearing Officer, within his or her discretion, may proceed to either preliminary or final approval, as the case may be, and set forth in his or her decision that any expenditure of funds in accordance with the application shall be expended primarily to remedy and correct violations of the Housing Code of the City of Orange Township. A decision allowing a conditional surcharge based upon the utilization of funds to remedy an outstanding violation may, if violated, subject the landlord to a rebate of surcharges collected and to forfeit future surcharges during the remaining useful life of the improvement or increased or improved service.
E. 
Total surcharges shall not exceed at any one time five percent (5%) of the tenant's monthly rent in effect at the time of approval of the surcharge. Annual capital improvement or other surcharges shall be payable monthly in equal installments, commencing the first day of the second month following approval of the application or upon completion of the improvement or increased service, whichever event occurs last. In the case of a surcharge imposed at the expiration of a lease term or at the termination of a periodic tenancy, it shall be imposed on the date the new tenancy begins, provided that the landlord shall give notice to all affected tenants as to the amount of surcharge and the period for which the surcharge shall be applied. This notice shall be given at least thirty (30) days prior to the date in which the landlord seeks to collect the surcharge. All surcharges granted shall be cumulative with all other surcharges. The monthly surcharge paid by the tenant shall be one-twelfth (1/12) of the tenant's surcharge. Payment shall be made during the useful life of the capital improvement or nonmaintenance replacement improvement mandated by state statute, regulation or ordinance (not to exceed the total cost thereof) or for the period during which the landlord shall continue to furnish the increased service.
F. 
An application for a surcharge shall be filed within and not later than one (1) year after the capital improvement or replacement improvements to property are completed or not later than one (1) year after the commencement of providing increased or improved services.
G. 
The decision of the Hearing Officer, either preliminary or final approval, shall be in writing and shall set forth the name and address of the applicant, the address of the housing space or dwelling unit which is the subject of the hearing, the names and addresses of the parties to the hearing and of all witnesses and of all parties who testified at the hearing, a finding of fact and a conclusion based thereon. The determination shall incorporate all pertinent and relevant evidence and the basis of an extent to which the Hearing Officer determines the application meets the standards and guidelines of a capital improvement or that services have been increased and/or improved.
A. 
The rent charged or increased with respect to new and substantially rehabilitated dwellings or housing space shall be exempt from the provisions of this chapter upon the following conditions, except as set forth below.
B. 
Despite any exemption for any housing space or dwelling unit pursuant to this section, landlords, prior to notifying a tenant of an increase in rent, shall certify that the dwelling and housing space is in substantial compliance pursuant to the Code of the City of Orange Township, § 156-1 et seq.
C. 
A landlord or managing agent offering rental for the first time and thereafter to any subsequent tenant of a newly constructed dwelling or housing space or a substantially rehabilitated dwelling unit shall advise and inform prospective tenants, either in its lease application, lease or in other written form pursuant to the section set forth above, that the housing space or dwelling unit is in substantial compliance and that the initial rent shall not be restricted and that any subsequent rental increases thereafter shall be subject to the Rent Control Ordinance of the City of Orange Township, § 166-1 et seq., and that verification of the rental status may be obtained by contacting the Office of Rent Leveling of the City of Orange Township.
D. 
Notwithstanding the provisions of § 166-17 (Recording and registering rents), any building or units subject to this section shall be required to comply with the requirements of filing a rent roll and shall be subject to the payment of the registration fees set forth in this chapter and Chapter 88 of the Code of the City of Orange Township. No rental increase shall be demanded, received or accepted by the landlord unless it has complied fully with the provisions of § 166-17 (Recording and registering rents), and failure to comply will preclude the landlord from obtaining any increase from a tenant until such time as the current rents are registered and filed with the Office of Rent Leveling.
E. 
Rents established for substantially rehabilitated dwellings which are occupied or housing space or units which the units or individual housing space has been determined to be uninhabitable for reasons such as but not limited to substantial destruction, damage, vandalism, Fire or Housing Code violations affecting the health, welfare, safety and sanitary conditions for which extensive, material and permanent renovation and repairs are required may be exempt from the limitation of the annual rent increase (§ 166-8) by the Hearing Officer or as otherwise by the Rent Leveling Board for a period of one (1) year.
F. 
Upon the completion of any new construction or substantial rehabilitation to any unoccupied multifamily buildings or particular or specific housing space or units thereafter rented for the first time shall be exempt from the limitations of the annual rent increase (§ 166-8) for a period of three (3) years.
G. 
Any newly constructed addition to a preexisting dwelling which is rented for the first time shall be exempt from the provisions of the limitation of the annual rent increase (§ 166-8) for a period of three (3) years.
H. 
The landlord or owner of housing space or a building which seeks to substantially renovate and rehabilitate the unit or building shall apply to the Office of Rent Leveling for an exemption under this section. Applications must be filed with that Office, and the Division of Licensing and Inspections and/ or the Housing Division shall inspect the dwelling or housing space for which the application pertains. No application shall be processed unless accompanied by the appropriate fee as contained in Chapter 88.
I. 
Upon the filing of an application, the landlord shall submit a plan of rehabilitation, including a description of the project, housing units involved, projected or anticipated costs and supportive data, such as appraisals or estimates and the projected completion schedule and apartment numbers and names of tenants and family members who will be affected by any relocation during the renovation period. The application shall be filed with the Office of Rent Leveling and forwarded to the Hearing Officer, who shall conduct a preliminary review hearing as to whether and to what extent and benefit the proposed project falls within the purview of this section. Preliminary approval may be granted by the Hearing Officer, whose decision may be conditioned upon the receipt of further information or documentation. Such decision and approval, however, shall be contingent upon final hearing and upon completion of the projected rehabilitation and renovation. Any landlord seeking a substantial rehabilitation exemption shall file the application, either preliminary or final, with the Office of Rent Leveling on such forms as shall be prepared by the Office of Rent Leveling consistent with the subsections set forth herein, or any additional information as may be required by the Rent Leveling Board.
J. 
Prior to the date of hearing, the landlord or managing agent shall serve, within ten (10) days of the hearing, by certified mail or personal delivery, upon those tenants who reside in the dwelling and who resided in the affected housing unit, a notice of the petition, setting forth the basis for the same and attaching a copy of the application. In the event that a tenant cannot be located or his or her address is unknown, the landlord shall certify, in writing, that efforts have been made to determine the whereabouts of the tenant.
K. 
With reference to the requirements as set forth in Subsection J above, the definition of a tenant who resided in the affected unit is one who has temporarily relocated within or without the dwelling or occupied unit next preceding the commencement of rehabilitation, reconstruction and renovation of the dwelling and housing unit which is the subject matter of the exemption application.
L. 
Permits, as required by law are to be secured from all agencies for improvements and alterations, and the work must adhere to appropriate code standards and must be inspected and approved by all agencies having control and jurisdiction to issue licenses and permits. A certificate of habitability or a certificate of occupancy must be obtained as required by law.
M. 
The landlord, upon approval of its application after final hearing, shall be obligated upon the rerenting or commencement of a new tenancy of the affected unit or building to register the rents with the Office of Rent Leveling and shall be obligated to comply with all terms and conditions of § 166-16 (Recording and registering rents) during the exemption period and thereafter.
N. 
Any tenant temporarily relocated or displaced as a result of the landlord rehabilitating, repairing or renovating a specific housing unit shall be given the right of first refusal to enter into or continue its occupancy at a rental charge established by the Hearing Officer. The landlord shall certify in writing, either affidavit form or by certification, that is has notified the tenant of the new rental charge and his right to exercise first preference in occupying the affected housing unit.
O. 
Landlords or applicants are required to comply with those provisions of the Anti-Eviction Law, N.J.S.A. 2A:18-61.1 et seq., in situations which require the landlord's removal of a tenant in order to comply with local or state inspections which have cited the landlord for substantial violations affecting the health and safety of occupants; and without such removal, it is unfeasible to comply with the rehabilitation and renovation of the dwelling or housing space. The applicant shall, pursuant to this chapter and in accordance with law, provide in its application or at the time of hearing the notice that is required pursuant to regulations of the Department of Community Affairs, including, without limitation, N.J.A.C. 5:11-7.1 et seq. In those situations where substantial rehabilitation undertaken by the landlord realizes the relocation of a tenant, the landlord shall comply with and provide evidence at or prior to the hearing of the pertinent provisions of N.J.S.A. 52:31B-1.
P. 
A determination made by the Hearing Officer or Rent Leveling Board, as the case may be, approving an exemption from the limitation of the annual rent increase shall thereafter become known as the revised base rent for such dwelling or housing space or unit, and all rent increases subsequent to the exemption period shall again be subject in all respects to the provisions of § 166-1 et seq.
Q. 
In those cases where the dollar amount expended does not meet the criteria as set forth in the formula provision for substantial rehabilitation (see § 166-1), the applicant will not be precluded from filing an application and having the matter determined at a preliminary hearing by the Hearing Officer. The Hearing Officer may recommend preliminary approval subject to a final review. The basis for any determination by the Hearing Officer in which the applicant seeks an exception from the criteria shall take into consideration but shall not be limited to the following:
(1) 
The age of the building.
(2) 
Reasons for the repair, renovation and rehabilitation of the affected unit or building.
(3) 
The size or square footage of the units to be affected for which the applicant seeks an exemption.
(4) 
The extent to which the nature of the rehabilitation upgrades the habitability of the unit or building.
(5) 
The level of rent(s) charged or collected for the units(s) as of the date of the application.
(6) 
The market value rent charged for similar units or housing space in an unrestricted rental market.
(7) 
Expenses incurred or to be incurred, including therein evidence of bills, invoices, vouchers, canceled checks and contracts evidencing proof of labor, material or services rendered in the rehabilitation and renovation of the affected unit, housing space or dwelling.
(8) 
The degree to which the anticipated or completed renovation, repair and rehabilitation benefits the living accommodations of those occupants residing in the unit or building and the nature and degree of enhancement and availability of housing stock within the City of Orange Township.
R. 
Notwithstanding the provisions as set forth above, the applicant shall be denied an exemption from the limitations of the percentage increase if it shall be determined by the Hearing Officer that a tenant who occupied a unit immediately prior to the landlord's application or subsequent to preliminary approval shall have vacated the apartment due to harassment, duress or unreasonable pressures from the landlord, its agents or representatives. In these circumstances, the landlord shall file a certificate provided by the Office of Rent Leveling indicating the name of the vacating tenant, the existing rental and the circumstances under which the tenant vacated the particular unit. The landlord shall not be denied an exemption solely under those circumstances in which the tenant vacates the apartment voluntarily and there is no unreasonable pressure from the landlord or its agents, or where the tenant vacates the apartment as a result of a court order from a court of competent jurisdiction. This ground shall not be available to a landlord who receives a court order to dispossess a tenant based upon the tenant holding over and continuing in possession of the unit after the expiration of its lease term. Circumstances concerning the vacating of a unit by a tenant and issues raised either by the tenant, the applicant or the Hearing Officer shall be reviewable at the time of the hearing. In the event that any factors become known to the Office of Rent Leveling which are contrary to the applicant's certification as to the reasons and circumstances surrounding the vacating of a unit or housing space, the Hearing Officer may, upon application by the Office of Rent Leveling, the tenant or interested party, seek to rescind the exemption, in which event the rent shall revert to that rental on the unit or housing space prior to approval of the exemption, and prosecute the landlord for violation of this chapter.
S. 
Landlords of units, housing space or buildings which are being or have been renovated and rehabilitated within six (6) months prior to the effective date of this chapter, and which, as of said date, remain unoccupied, shall not be precluded from filing an application for either preliminary or final approval from exemption of the limitation of the annual increase(s) and shall, where applicable, be governed by the provisions of this section.
[Added 10-16-2018 by Ord. No. 43-2018]
Housing developments owned or subsidized by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, as well as unsubsidized developments with HUD-insured mortgages, shall be exempt from the requirements of this chapter.
Any complaint of an illegal increase or claim to lower rentals must be filed with the Office of Rent Leveling no later than six (6) weeks after the effective date of the disputed increase. For good cause shown and as otherwise set forth in § 166-8E, the Rent Leveling Board may waive the time limitations set forth above.
A. 
Rent reductions. Rents charged by the landlord may be rolled back for any one (1) of the following reasons, if so found by the Rent Leveling Board:
(1) 
Decrease in housing space, service, furnishings or equipment.
(2) 
Deterioration of housing space other than normal wear and tear.
(3) 
Failure to perform ordinary repairs, replacements and maintenance.
B. 
Any claim for rent reduction for the items enumerated above shall take into account where there has been a diminution or decrease that substantially affects the habitability of the housing unit and common areas of the building. The Rent Leveling Board shall consider during its hearing and for the purpose of its decision the duration of the diminution, decrease or interruption of services; the inconvenience of any interrupted services; the time period and manner in which the tenant or tenants gave notice to the landlord or its agent to remedy or restore the matter(s) set forth in the complaint; and the nature and extent of action taken by the landlord or its agent in response to these complaints and the overall effect that the diminution, decrease, interruption or lack of repairs has had upon the general tenant population of the dwelling. The Rent Leveling Board shall consider whether any of the complaints are minor and inconsequential as they affect the habitability of the tenant or tenants residing in the dwelling, as well as the multidwelling standards promulgated by the Commissioner of the New Jersey Department of Community Affairs, Division of Housing. The Rent Leveling Board shall take into consideration whether any of the repairs or deterioration is attributable to the negligence, omission or acts of the tenant or tenants.
C. 
Any complaints initiated by a tenant or tenants shall relate to a condition not in excess of three (3) months prior to the filing of a complaint with the Office of Rent Leveling. A rent rollback may be both retroactive, but for no longer than a period of three (3) months, and prospective until such time as the conditions which gave rise to the complaint are remedied or restored.
Applications to the Office of Rent Leveling for any form of rental increase, such as but not limited to hardship, capital improvement or surcharges, substantial rehabilitation of a dwelling or housing space or any other increase pursuant to a previous resolution, order or the provisions of this chapter, shall be in the form of an affidavit or certification, as provided by the Rules of Court, which the applicant or its authorized agent shall attest to the truth of all information submitted in support of the application. Any false information contained in the application or any false data submitted to the Office of Rent Leveling shall be a violation of this chapter, and the applicant and/or its agent may be subject to the penalties provided for in this chapter. Any false information, misrepresentation or incorrect information contained in the application or submitted to the Office of Rent Leveling, the Rent Leveling Board or a Hearing Officer may result in a denial of the landlord's application for rental increase or exemption.
The Office of the Rent Leveling or members of the Rent Leveling Board and Hearing Officer, in reviewing applications for rent increases, shall be guided by but not limited solely to the following guidelines:
A. 
An application for a rent increase shall include the amount of the total rents which could be derived for the building if the building were fully occupied. There may be deducted from this total rental figure the amount of the rental allocated to actual vacancies in the building; provided, however, that said vacancy deduction cannot exceed four percent (4%) of the total rentals which could be derived from the building if fully occupied. Included in such total rentals shall be the amount of the rental allocated to any apartment occupied by the landlord or its agent or superintendent on the premises.
B. 
In the event that any vacancies in the building are deliberately caused by the landlord or if the landlord does not intend to rent the apartment and desires to keep that apartment vacant, then in such cases the amount of the rental of such vacancy shall not be deducted from the gross rentals.
C. 
Actual taxes to be paid shall be considered as a tax expense. However, there shall be deducted from the actual taxes any rebate which the landlord has or shall receive or any refund received or which shall be received as a result of a tax appeal.
D. 
The actual amount of the water and sewage bills shall be considered if the same can be ascertained: however, any rebate or adjustment of such charges shall be deducted from said amount.
E. 
The amount of the expense for insurance shall include the actual amount paid for the year.
F. 
The expense for fuel shall be computed by multiplying the actual amount consumed for the last twelve (12) months prior to the date of application by the actual price per unit of fuel at the date of filing the application for the rent increase or at the date of the hearing, whichever is the greater. However, the reviewing authority shall take into consideration present market trends and the estimate of future fuel/gas expense.
G. 
In the event that the landlord resides in the building and actually performs the services of superintendent or janitor, a reasonable amount shall be credited to the landlord as salary for such services. In the event that the landlord does not perform such services or does not perform all the services required for a particular building or if said services encompass more than one (1) residential building, then the amount of salary shall be adjusted accordingly and credit be given only for such services actually performed for the building or housing unit for which an increase is sought.
H. 
In the event that the landlord does not employ someone to manage the building but actually manages the building himself, such landlord may be given credit for a management fee not to exceed four percent (4%) of the gross rentals actually derived for the building. However, this percentage may be increased or decreased based upon information supplied by any of the parties to the hearing reflecting charges for present market value of management services within the City of Orange Township.
I. 
Any expense shall be substantiated with bills and other documentation sufficient to prove the authenticity and the correctness of the billing, invoice or voucher. Such proof may be established by canceled checks and paid bills. The landlord or its agent may be required to provide the Hearing Officer and/or Rent Leveling Board, as the case may be, with the last two (2) years' federal income tax return or corporate tax return or an income/expense or loss statement prepared and certified by a public accountant of the State of New Jersey.
J. 
At the time of the hearing, the applicant shall have the right to produce evidence to show reasons for bills that are owed. That evidence can be accepted and used to evaluate the application and received as an amendment to those facts as stated in the application.
A. 
In the event that the landlord cannot meet its mortgage payments, operating expenses or does not make a fair return on his property, an appeal may be taken to the Office of Rent Leveling for increased rentals.
(1) 
Notice procedure. Prior to the date fixed for a hearing under this section and subsequent to the filing of an application with the Office of Rent Leveling, the landlord shall serve upon each tenant, by registered or certified mail or personal service, a notice of its intent to seek a hardship increase and set forth therein the basis for the increase, the amount of rental increase applied for with respect to the tenants and the calculation per unit involved. The landlord shall further post in a lobby of each affected building or, if no lobby, in a conspicuous place in or about the building or structure a copy of the hardship application on the forms prescribed by the Office of Rent Leveling. The application must be posted for at least ten (10) consecutive days prior to the proposed hearing date. Notices to the tenant shall be served at least ten (10) days prior to the proposed hearing date. The time period shall include Saturdays, Sundays and holidays. In computing any period of time, the day of the service upon the tenant shall not be included as the day of the act or event from which the period of time begins to run. The affected tenant(s) shall have the right to challenge the basis or facts for the hardship increase on the hearing date. The Hearing Officer shall have the right, after notice and hearing, to grant or deny a hardship increase with regard to the rental restrictions and guidelines set forth in this chapter.
(2) 
Fair return on invested capital. The landlord may apply to the Office of Rent Leveling for an increase upon and to the extent that its return on invested capital is less than a fair return. For purposes of this formula, a landlord's invested capital shall be the total of his initial cash investment, or downpayment, and the total amount of amortization of the mortgage(s) covering the property. Mortgages on properties other than but in addition to the premises for which the application is brought shall be allowable on a proportionate basis to be fixed by the Hearing Officer. The invested capital shall be reduced by any amounts realized from recasting or refinancing mortgages in excess of the mortgage being paid off.
(a) 
For the purposes of this section, a fair return on invested capital shall be that percentage of invested capital equal to 10% above the maximum passbook demand deposit savings account interest rate available in the municipality.
(b) 
In order to establish the calculation to determine the fair return increase, it shall be based upon deducting the landlord's annual residential operating expenses, including mortgage interest and amortization, but excluding depreciation, and further including reasonable, necessary and valid annual expenses for supplies, administrative costs, management fees, heating fuel, electricity, water supplied, waste disposal, building services, security, law and exterior maintenance, repairs, painting and decorating, real estate taxes and other taxes, fees and permits, insurance, payroll and wages, from the landlord's gross annual residential income, derived directly or indirectly from the operation of the landlord's property, including, but not limited to, all residential rents received, all earnings from commissions, vending machines, laundry equipment and supplies, deductions from security deposits, late fees, parking fees, garage and pool fees, key charges, finder's fees and amounts received from successful real estate tax appeals, income from rebates and landlord's share of interest earned on tenants' security deposits and hardship surcharges.
(c) 
The deduction from the expenses as set forth above shall then be divided by the invested capital to arrive at the landlord's return. Any adjustment under this application shall be in such amount as is necessary to bring the return of the invested capital to the level of the fair return as defined above.
(d) 
In order to determine the actual dollar amount of the hardship rental increase per dwelling unit, the total dollar amount of the hardship increase granted is to be divided by the total number of rooms of the landlord's residential rented units. That figure is then multiplied by the total number of rooms in each individual dwelling unit to arrive at the increase per dwelling unit.
(e) 
The annual percentage increase as set forth in § 166-8 of this chapter shall be calculated upon the base rent as established prior to any allowance of a hardship rental increase.
(3) 
Standards for review and documentation to be presented. Any expense for which a landlord seeks credit shall be substantiated with bills and other documentation sufficient to prove the authenticity and the correctness of the billing, invoice or voucher. Such proof may be established by canceled checks and paid bills. The landlord or its agent is required to provide the Office of Rent Leveling with the last two years' federal income tax return or corporate tax return. The time period may be waived by the Office of Rent Leveling in the event that the applicant (landlord) acquired the building less than 24 months prior to the application. In no event may the applicant provide documentation referred to above for a period less than 12 months, except that, in its discretion, the Office of Rent Leveling may allow a certified income/expense or profit/loss statement prepared by a certified public accountant of the State of New Jersey if the federal income tax return(s) and/or corporate tax return(s) of the predecessor in title cannot be obtained. At the time of the hearing, the applicant shall have the right to produce evidence to show reasons for bills that are owed. That evidence may be accepted and used to evaluate the application and received as an amendment to those facts as stated in the application.
(4) 
Determination by the Hearing Officer. The Hearing Officer may make any of the following determinations pursuant to an application for a hardship rent increase: approve the amount of increase as requested, deny the application for the requested increase, or modify the request by approving an increase more or less than requested. Any increase granted shall be prospective, and the effective date shall be determined according to New Jersey Statutes governing timely notice for rent increases, but in no event shall the increase be charged or collected, with respect to a tenant during a term of a lease or a periodic tenant, less than one full calendar month subsequent to his receipt of notification of the increase. Once a decision has been rendered and the landlord notified, it shall have the responsibility and obligation, or that of its agent, to serve proper notice upon all those tenants affected by the decision.
(5) 
The Hearing Officer shall make a determination within 60 days of the filing of a completed hardship application. Any application that does not set forth information and documentation which is required in § 166-14 and any other information set forth in the application form as prescribed by the Office of Rent Leveling shall be returned to applicant, and the sixty-day period shall not commence until after the application has been corrected and resubmitted to the Office of Rent Leveling. For good cause shown, either the Office of Rent Leveling or the Hearing Officer may extend the time period for a hearing on the merits of the application, with or without the consent of the parties to the hearing, but said time period shall not extend beyond 15 days, exclusive of Saturdays, Sundays and legal holidays.
(6) 
An application for a hardship rental increase must be filed not later than one year following the year in which the hardship allegedly exists.
B. 
Fees. There shall be a fee assessed for the processing of each hardship application, which shall be nonrefundable, in accordance with Chapter 88, Fees, and such fee shall be paid simultaneously with the filing of the application.
[Amended 12-3-2019 by Ord. No. 53-2019]
Upon the voluntary, uncoerced vacation of any apartment or housing unit for which rent increases are controlled by this chapter, the landlord shall have the right to fix the rent for such vacated apartment or housing unit as appropriate in accordance with the Housing and Urban Development Fair Market Rental (HUD FMR) guidelines in effect for the year in which the increase is to occur. The proposed increase is further subject to the following provisions:
A. 
In order for the landlord to qualify for the vacancy decontrol rent increase, the landlord shall first be required to file, within 30 days, a written statement with the Office of Rent Leveling, signed by the vacating tenant, certifying to that Office that the landlord has not in any way harassed, intimidated or pressured the tenant into vacating the housing unit and that the vacation of such unit was a voluntary act on the part of the tenant. For the purpose of this chapter, a vacation caused or necessitated by substandard, unsafe or unsanitary conditions of the rental premises shall be deemed a voluntary vacation only if the referenced conditions were caused by the tenant. In the event substandard, unsafe or unsanitary conditions are caused by the landlord, the conditions shall be abated by the landlord, and the tenant shall be given the opportunity to return to the unit at the rental price charged to the tenant when the condition(s) were discovered. At that time, should the tenant not wish to return to the unit, the landlord may then apply for vacancy decontrol, subject to the additional provisions of this chapter.
B. 
Such noncoercion certification shall not be required in order for the landlord to qualify for a vacancy decontrol increase if:
(1) 
The tenant has moved from the unit without notice to the landlord;
(2) 
The unit has been vacated pursuant to a judicially mandated eviction, unless the court-ordered eviction shall have been the result of a dispute brought about by changes in the terms of the lease; or
(3) 
The tenant has refused to sign such certification and, upon appeal by the landlord or its agent, the Rent Leveling Board has found that such refusal was unwarranted and that there was in fact no coercion of any kind exerted by the landlord, its agent or representatives upon the vacating tenant.
C. 
Upon vacation of any apartment or housing unit hereafter, the landlord shall file a statement with the Office of Rent Leveling, certifying to that Office:
(1) 
The apartment and building number of such vacated dwelling unit;
(2) 
The rent paid by the vacating tenant;
(3) 
The maximum rent increase mandated by the HUD Fair Market Rental and the rent the landlord proposes to charge if less than the HUD Fair Market Rental rate;
(4) 
A copy of the lease showing the rent agreed to by the new tenant for the apartment; and
(5) 
The original letter, signed by the vacating tenant, stating that the vacation of such apartment was the voluntary act of the vacating tenant and that such vacation was not the result of harassment or pressure upon such vacating tenant by the landlord or its agents.
D. 
A copy of the letter sent by the landlord, its agents or representatives shall notify a tenant, either in a lease or written notice at the inception of a lease or notice by mailed or personal service within 30 days from the passage of this chapter, of the tenant's rights under the decontrol provisions herein. The aforesaid notice shall reasonably advise the tenant that if he or she alleges harassment or pressure resulted in his or her vacation of an apartment or housing unit, he or she should notify the Office of Rent Leveling, and a hearing will be held on the allegation. A hearing pursuant to this section shall be held before the Rent Leveling Board upon at least 10 days' written notice to the tenant and landlord.
E. 
The provisions of this section shall only apply to an apartment or housing unit if the new tenant is a tenant other than one presently residing in the same apartment or housing unit. The "new" tenant may not be a family member allowing the previous tenant to reside in the unit.
F. 
Upon vacation of any apartment hereafter, the landlord shall file a statement with the Office of Rent Leveling certifying to that Office:
(1) 
The apartment and building numbers of such dwelling units;
(2) 
The rent paid by the vacating tenant;
(3) 
The maximum rent increase that would be permissible were it not for the vacancy decontrol provisions of this chapter;
(4) 
The number of days such apartment remains vacant;
(5) 
The rent agreed to by the tenant;
(6) 
That the vacation of such dwelling unit was the voluntary act of the vacating tenant and not the result of harassment, intimidation or pressure by the landlord or its agents; and
(7) 
That no existing tenant within the dwelling unit is determined to remain in the vacated housing unit.
The landlord shall annex thereto a current certificate of habitability and certify that the decontrolled housing unit is in substantial compliance pursuant to the provisions of § 166-1 et seq. and the Property Maintenance Code of the City of Orange Township.
G. 
In the event the Board determines that a landlord is seeking to decontrol or has decontrolled an apartment or housing unit under circumstances other than those set forth herein, the Board may:
(1) 
Rescind the decontrol of the apartment or housing unit, and the rent shall revert to that rental on said unit prior to vacation of the unit.
(2) 
Prosecute the landlord for violation of this chapter consistent with the penalty provisions of § 166-1 et seq.
H. 
All of the documents listed in this section must be provided to the Office of Rent Leveling before the unit can be rented at the higher "decontrolled" rate. Failure to provide the information before the unit is rented at the higher "decontrolled" rate is cause for the Rent Leveling Office to reject the decontrol application in its entirety.
Within 60 days of adoption of this chapter, all owners of property within the City of Orange Township whose rents are subject to and controlled by this chapter shall file with the Office of Rent Leveling, on the forms prescribed by the Office of Rent Leveling, a list of all rental units, including those occupied by the agent or employee of the landlord, which list shall contain a sworn affidavit or certification as to the accuracy of the rents therein listed. The list of rents shall set forth the dwelling unit number or other form of designation; the number of rooms in each dwelling unit; whether rented or vacant; the name of the tenants(s) occupying rented units; whether the tenancy is by a written or oral agreement; and the anniversary or commencement date (day and month) of the next annual increase. There shall be a separate listing for any capital improvement or other surcharge previously or hereinafter granted and the expiration date of same and the dwelling units covered under such charges. Prior to but no later than March 1 of each year hereafter, the landlord or its agent shall file with the Office of Rent Leveling a complete and accurate list of the rents charged as of the date of said filing, which shall be completed on the forms prescribed by the Office of Rent Leveling.
A. 
Complaints based on the failure of a landlord to file a rent roll (§ 166-17, Recording and registering rents) may not be filed more than twelve (12) months after the effective date of any rental increase sought to be charged or collected by the landlord.
B. 
All rental increases shall be paid by the tenant to the landlord until such time as the complaint has been adjudicated. If it shall be deemed that the landlord was not or is not entitled to the rental increase, any moneys that have been overpaid shall be refunded to the tenant or credit off of future months rent.
C. 
Notwithstanding the time period set forth in Subsection A, the Rent Leveling Board may make a determination establishing the annual rental increase and fixing the base rent despite a disallowance of any refund or credit to the tenants who initiated the complaint. The Rent Leveling Board may, on its own motion, upon notice to all parties, establish and fix the correct base rent which shall be chargeable to the tenant and direct the landlord to recertify its rent roll and file the same with the Office of Rent Leveling.
Except as otherwise provided in this chapter, fees for the filing of an application for rent increase and recording and registering of rental units shall be as set forth in Chapter 88, Fees, and shall be nonrefundable and paid upon the filing of the application with the Office of Rent Leveling. The fees shall be added to any increase awarded and shall be equally shared by the tenants residing at the subject premises or whose units are affected therein. The fees assessed for the annual rent roll registration form shall be paid upon the filing of the rent roll registration form. One-half (1/2) of the yearly registration fee may be chargeable by the landlord to the tenant either in March of each year or upon the commencement of any new lease term for a year-to-year tenant or for a periodic tenant whose lease term is less than one (1) year. The landlord shall not collect nor charge a tenant unless the rent roll registration form and fee(s) for the particular year in which the tenant is to be charged have been filed with the Office of Rent Leveling.
A. 
Except as otherwise provided in this chapter, any complaints or applications filed by a tenant or landlord, whether directly heard by the Hearing Officer or the Rent Leveling Board, shall be resolved and decision rendered within sixty (60) days from the filing of a completed complaint or application.
B. 
On those occasions where a complaint or application takes the format of mediation and an attempt by the Office of Rent Leveling or Hearing Officer to resolve the dispute, the time period set forth above shall not commence to run until such time as the Office of Rent Leveling or Hearing Officer determines that no amicable resolution has or may be achieved.
In computing rental increases and surcharges provided under this chapter, all amounts so computed may be rounded off to the nearest dollar in accordance with generally accepted accounting principals.
During the term of this chapter, the landlord shall maintain the same standards of service, maintenance, furniture, furnishings and equipment in the housing space and dwelling as was provided or was required by law or lease agreement.
A. 
In the case where municipal property taxes are decreased in a given year due to either a decrease in the property tax rate or a lowering of the assessed evaluation of the property by the municipality, the tenants are entitled to a tax rebate equal to the amount of the reduction.
[Amended 8-3-1994 by Ord. No. 28-94]
B. 
The rebate amount is the difference between the current year's taxes and the base year. The base year is any year, after 1990, in which property taxes exceed the amount paid in 1990. This amount is to be prorated, by unit, based on the percentage of the total annual rent roll (of all units), divided into the decreased amount. That percentage times each unit's monthly rent for the number of months that tenant resided in that unit that year equals the amount of the rebate. Rebates may be a one-time cash payment or used as a credit towards future months' rent as determined by the landlord to be completed by December 31 or not later than July 1 of the following year for notices received after November 1.
[Amended 8-3-1994 by Ord. No. 28-94; 9-6-1994 by Ord. No. 30-94]
C. 
Excluded from that percentage due the tenant shall be any interest paid by the municipality to the landlord (taxpayer) pursuant to N.J.S.A. 54:3-27.2. The landlord shall not deduct from that percentage due to the tenant any amount of taxes, interest or both which may be applied against delinquencies pursuant to N.J.S.A. 54:4-134.
D. 
In the case of any tenant who has moved, the landlord shall make a diligent effort to forward the refund to such tenant; and if the landlord is not successful in effecting such a refund, then and in that event the landlord shall pay or apply such refund on a pro rata basis to or for the benefit of those remaining tenant(s) who occupied the dwelling and housing space during the time period for which the taxes and/or assessment were the subject matter of the successful appeal.
E. 
Any landlord who does not, within thirty (30) days after receiving notice, notify the Office of Rent Leveling of the amounts calculated to be rebated to tenants as required above shall be put on notice by the Rent Regulation Officer that said landlord is in violation of Chapter 166, Rent Control, of the Code of the City of Orange Township and will be prohibited from asking, seeking or demanding any rent increase from said tenants and shall be denied eligibility for approval of vacancy decontrol, hardship, capital improvement or substantial rehabilitation applications until such time as they have complied with Subsections A and B above.
[Added 8-3-1994 by Ord. No. 28-94]
F. 
Any complaint of failure to comply with the terms of this section shall be filed with the Office of Rent Leveling. For good cause shown, the Rent Leveling Board may grant a rent credit in an amount sufficient for the tenant to recover a rebate amount.
[Added 8-3-1994 by Ord. No. 28-94; amended 9-6-1994 by Ord. No. 30-94]
A. 
If a building is no longer under the tenure of the Federal Rental Rehabilitation Program and there are remaining financial obligations under the deferred loan program established by the Rental Rehabilitation Program, then the costs of the deferred loan program, including interest and principal, shall not be passed on to the tenants and shall not be considered as an allowable expense for the landlord in a hardship appeal or capital improvement application.
B. 
During the term of this chapter and its predecessor, the landlord shall maintain the same standards of service, maintenance, furniture, furnishings and equipment in the housing space and dwelling as he provided or was required to by law or lease at the date the lease was entered into.
A. 
A violation of any provision of this chapter, including but not limited to the filing with the Office of Rent Leveling, the Hearing Officer or the Rent Leveling Board of any material or relevant misstatement of fact, may be punishable, upon conviction, by a fine of not more than five hundred dollars ($500.) or imprisonment for not more than ninety (90) days, or both. A violation affecting more than one (1) tenant may be considered a separate violation as to each tenant.
B. 
Whenever the Rent Leveling Board has reason to believe that any person is liable to punishment under this chapter, the Rent Leveling Board shall certify its respective findings to the Rent Leveling Board's Attorney, who shall cause appropriate proceedings to be brought.
If any provision of this chapter or the applications of such provision to any person or circumstances is declared invalid, such invalidity shall not affect other provisions or application of this act which can be given effect, and, to this end, the provisions of this act are declared to be severable.
This amendatory and supplementary act shall apply to any action initiated on or after the effective date of this amendatory and supplementary act and any action pending before the Rent Leveling Board on or after that date.
A. 
This chapter shall remain in effect until the City Council determines, by ordinance, that rent control is no longer necessary in the City of Orange Township and that it is in the public interest to permit the unrestrained operation of the competitive rental market.
B. 
All provisions of Chapter 156 (Property Maintenance Code) of the Code of the City of Orange Township, as amended and supplemented by this chapter, be and they are hereby readopted.
C. 
All ordinances and parts of ordinances contrary hereto are hereby repealed, but only to the extent of such conflict or inconsistency.
D. 
This chapter shall take effect upon final passage and publication as required by law but shall not be operational until the expiration of thirty (30) days following final approval and publication according to law.
[HISTORY: Adopted by the City Council of the City of Orange Township 8-4-2021 by Ord. No. 40-2021. Amendments noted where applicable.]
[Added 8-4-2021 by Ord. No. 40-2021]
It is hereby found by the Municipal Council of the City of Orange Township that a significant number of landlords rent residential units to unrelated persons who frequently engage in conduct which constitutes breaches of the peace. Such conduct has a negative effect upon occupants of other rental units and nearby structures, impacts the quality of life of the neighborhood and tends to depress the value of surrounding property. As landlords control both the selection of tenants and their eviction for cause, only landlords can effectively remedy the condition.
[Added 8-4-2021 by Ord. No. 40-2021]
It is the purpose of this article to create a single-point uniform system for the registration of single-family rental properties and multifamily rental properties by amending and supplementing the requirements of registration for rent control (Chapter 166, Section 17, of the Code of the City of Orange Township), N.J.S.A. 46:8-27 et seq., and licensing pursuant to this section. While registration and licensing of rental units is authorized pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40:48-2.12c and 40:52-1d, revocation of licenses and the penalties provided for herein are necessary due to the conditions set forth in the findings herein. Due to the absence of adequate remedies in state law, it is the purpose of this article to exercise the municipal police power implicit in the New Jersey Constitution and granted pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40:48-2 and, inter alia, to promote the welfare of the municipality and its inhabitants.
[Added 8-4-2021 by Ord. No. 40-2021]
LICENSE
Collectively, the licenses issued to the owner of either a single-family rental property or multi-family rental property pursuant to this article. Each dwelling unit in a multi-family property shall be separately licensed pursuant to the provisions of this article.
MULTI-FAMILY RENTAL PROPERTY
Any structure containing two or more units available for rent, whether occupied or not, also referred to as a covered property.
OWNER
The fee owner of any single-family rental property or multi-family rental property whether individual, corporation, partnership, trust, limited liability company, or other business entity. For the purpose of this article, owner shall also include all corporate officers, partners, trustees, trust beneficiaries, members of LLCs or others with a control interest in an owner no matter the form.
POST/POSTING
The requirement to permanently affix information required to be made known to tenants at rental properties regulated by this article. Posting shall be at eye level near the primary entrance to the property, at a place where it is most likely to be seen. The Department of Planning and Development, Division of Code Enforcement shall provide forms that shall be used for posting.
QUALITY OF LIFE VIOLATION
Conviction for disorderly, indecent, tumultuous or riotous conduct, including, by way of example, but not limited to, simple assault, assault, terroristic threats, harassment, urinating or defecating in public, lewdness, criminal mischief, crimes against property or excessive noise, by a tenant or a tenant's guest on or in the vicinity of any single-family rental property or multi-family rental property wherein such tenant resides. A violation shall be deemed to have occurred in the vicinity of a covered property if such violation occurred in the adjacent public right of way in front of the covered property or on any property adjacent to the covered property.
SINGLE-FAMILY RENTAL PROPERTY
Any single-family structure held out for rental, whether occupied or not, also referred to as a covered property.
[Added 8-4-2021 by Ord. No. 40-2021]
A. 
Registration of multi-family rental properties pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40:52-1d, commencing September 1, 2021, and annually on September 1 of each succeeding year, owners of all multi-family rental properties shall register same with the Department of Planning and Development, Code Enforcement Division. Annually, at the time of registration, a $100 registration fee shall be paid to the Department of Planning and Development Code Enforcement Division. Such registration shall be on forms provided by the Department of Planning and Development, Code Enforcement Division, or by electronic means at such time as a computerized system becomes available. Required information shall generally include the following, information which will be required in greater detail on forms issued by the Department of Planning and Development, Code Enforcement Division:
(1) 
Premises address, and tax block and lot number.
(2) 
Owner contact information.
(3) 
If owner is a corporation, officer contact information.
(4) 
If owner is a limited liability company, member contact information.
(5) 
If owner is a partnership, partner contact information.
(6) 
Resident Management Agent contact information.
(7) 
Rental Agent and other agent contact information.
(8) 
Number of persons permitted to occupy each unit pursuant to the Code of the City of Orange Township.
(9) 
Unit descriptions, including room sizes, number of bathrooms and the like.
(10) 
Summary information regarding leases and tenants, including lease terms, names of tenants and the like.
(11) 
Name and address of all mortgagees of record.
(12) 
Contact information for any on-site superintendent.
(13) 
Emergency contact information.
(14) 
If heated by fuel oil, contact information for oil supplier.
B. 
Owners shall amend the filing required by this section within seven days of an occurrence affecting the required information and shall annually, on July 1 of each year, update the information required by this section. Compliance with this section shall also constitute compliance with the requirements of N.J.S.A. 46:8-27 and registration for the purposes of Chapter 166 of the Code of the City of Orange Township, titled "Rent Control".
[Added 8-4-2021 by Ord. No. 40-2021]
A. 
Registration of single-family rental properties pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40:52-1d, commencing September 1, 2021, and annually on September 1 of each succeeding year, owners of single-family rental properties shall register same with the Department of Planning and Development, Division of Code Enforcement. Annually, at the time of registration, a $50 registration fee shall be paid to the Department of Planning and Development, Division of Code Enforcement. Such registration shall be on forms provided by the Department of Planning and Development, Division of Code Enforcement, or by electronic means at such time as a computerized system becomes available.
B. 
Required information shall include:
(1) 
Premises address, and tax block and lot number.
(2) 
Owner contact information.
(3) 
If owner is a corporation, officer contact information.
(4) 
If owner is a limited liability company, member contact information.
(5) 
If owner is a partnership, partner contact information.
(6) 
Number of persons permitted to occupy each unit pursuant to the Code of the City of Orange Township.
(7) 
Unit descriptions, including room sizes, number of bedrooms and bathrooms.
(8) 
Summary information regarding leases and tenants, including lease terms, and names of tenants and permanent addresses.
(9) 
Emergency contact information.
(10) 
If heated by fuel oil, contact information for oil supplier.
C. 
Owners shall amend the filing required by this section within seven days of an occurrence affecting the required information and shall annually, on July 1 of each year, update the information required by this section. Compliance with this section shall also constitute registration as may be required for the purposes of Chapter 166 of the Code of the City of Orange Township - Rent Control.
[Added 8-4-2021 by Ord. No. 40-2021]
Upon filing of a completed registration form and the payment of the registration fee, the Department of Planning and Development, Division of Code Enforcement, shall issue a license or renewal to the owner. In the case of a multi-family rental property, the Department of Planning and Development, Division of Code Enforcement shall issue a single license certificate whereon shall be listed all dwelling units contained in that property. Each dwelling unit so listed shall be deemed separately licensed.
[Added 8-4-2021 by Ord. No. 40-2021]
Failure to register, to amend a registration when so required, to permit occupancy in violation of Chapter 156, Article V of the Code of the City of Orange Township, or to permit repeated violations pursuant to § 166-39, shall be a violation of this article. Each such violation shall constitute a separate offense, each punishable by a fine of not less than $500. Continued rental of a dwelling unit, after revocation or suspension of a license, shall constitute a separate offense punishable upon conviction in the Municipal Court by a fine not less than $500 for each day such unit was rented without a license.
[Added 8-4-2021 by Ord. No. 40-2021]
No owner shall knowingly permit a tenant to remain in occupancy of a dwelling unit who, or whose guests, commit repeated quality of life violations.
[Added 8-4-2021 by Ord. No. 40-2021]
On each occasion that a tenant in a multi-family rental property or a single-family rental property, or such tenant's guest, commits a quality of life violation, the Department of Planning and Development, Division of Code Enforcement shall cause notice of such violation to be sent to the owner via certified mail. Upon the occurrence and notice of two quality of life violations by one or more tenants or their guests, with respect to any dwelling unit within any twelve-month period, the Department of Planning and Development, Division of Code Enforcement may cause a complaint to be filed in the Municipal Court and/or to conduct a public hearing, on notice to the owner, why the license to operate a rental property should not be revoked or suspended. In a multi-family rental property, license revocation may only be imposed upon the dwelling unit associated with the subject quality of life violation. Whether the Department of Planning and Development, Division of Code Enforcement seeks to proceed in the Municipal Court or to seek to revoke or suspend the license, proof that the owner unsuccessfully attempted in good faith to evict the offending tenant(s), after commission of two quality of life violations, shall constitute an absolute defense.
[Added 8-4-2021 by Ord. No. 40-2021]
A. 
Pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40:48-2.12c, every owner of a multi-family rental property who does not reside in the City of Orange Township shall designate an agent with authority to act in the absence of the owner with respect to such property, and which agent shall be a resident of the City of Orange Township. Owners of two-family residences are exempt from the requirement of this subsection.
B. 
Owners shall post both a copy of the most current license and the names, addresses, telephone numbers and e-mail addresses of all persons available in the event of an emergency. Owners of multi-family rental properties shall also include such information for resident agents.