Chapter 9 Contents:
The Causes for Eviction
Eviction only for cause
EVICTION FOR CAUSE IS a basic rule of landlord-tenant law in New Jersey. This means that tenants can be evicted only under one of the causes or grounds for eviction listed in the Anti-Eviction Act. Cite: N.J.S.A. 2A:18-61.1. There are 18 different causes for eviction under the Anti-Eviction Act. No tenant can be evicted unless the landlord can establish one of these grounds. The law covers tenants in all types of rental property: a single-family house, an apartment building or complex, or a mobile home. The causes for eviction in the Anti-Eviction Act are listed below.
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Exceptions to eviction for cause
Almost all tenants are covered by the Anti-Eviction Act. However, the law does not apply to tenants residing in buildings or houses with three or fewer apartments where the owner lives in one of the apartments. This is known as the “owner-occupied” exception. Tenants subject to the owner-occupied exception may be evicted at the end of the lease term for any reason. If you are a month-to-month tenant living in a building with three or fewer apartments and your landlord lives in one of those apartments, the landlord needs only to give you a month’s notice to quit before taking you to court. Cite: N.J.S.A. 2A:18-53.
Other exceptions involve tenants with developmental disabilities who permanently occupy a unit. The Anti-Eviction Act does not protect tenants in these situations. The aim of this provision is to enable the eviction without cause of co-tenants living with the developmentally disabled tenant.
As explained in Chapter 8, The Nuts and Bolts of Fighting Evictions, hotel and motel guests are not covered by the Anti-Eviction Act, unless they have no other home and live there on a continual basis. The Anti-Eviction Act does cover people who are living in rooming and boarding homes. Chapter 8 discusses protections for rooming and boarding house residents.
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Tenants in foreclosed property. Your right to eviction for cause continues even when a bank or mortgage lender files an action to foreclose on your rented property because your landlord has not paid the mortgage. This means that the foreclosing bank or mortgage lender must follow the law and can only evict you for one of the causes under the law. Cite: Chase Manhattan Bank v. Josephson, 135 N.J. 209 (1994).
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What if you are not covered by eviction for cause? It is important to remember that, even if the Anti-Eviction Act does not apply to you, the landlord or property owner still must take you to court before you can be removed from your home. As explained in Chapter 8, a landlord or property owner cannot remove you without court approval. Self-help removals or lockouts are illegal, even if you are not covered by the Anti-Eviction Act.
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NOTE! If you live in public housing, or another type of subsidized housing, you may be entitled to additional notices.
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Grounds for eviction (N.J.S.A. 2A:18-61.1)
a. Not paying rent
Notices required before filing eviction suit:
- No notices are required, except where the tenant resides in federally subsidized housing. In public housing, a 14-day notice is required.
Comments:
- The Homelessness Prevention Program and Emergency Assistance Program may help with back rent. See Chapter 13, Special Programs for Tenants.
- Landlords sometimes try to evict tenants for charges that are not really part of the “rent.” Additional charges cannot be made part of the rent in an eviction case unless there is a written lease that contains special language. See pages Late Charges and Attorney's fees. And for tenants who live in federally subsidized housing, such as public housing, extra fees like late charges and attorney’s fees can never be included as part of the rent in an eviction case. Landlords and attorneys who wrongly claim that certain charges are part of the rent can be sued under the federal Fair Debt Collection Practices Act. Cite: Hodges v. Feinstein, 189 N.J. 210 (2007).
b. Disorderly conduct that disturbs other tenants
Notices required:
- Notice to cease.
- Notice to quit—must be served on the tenant at least three days before filing an eviction suit.
Comments:
- Notice to cease must specifically and in detail describe the disorderly conduct and demand that the tenant stop it or face eviction. Cite: A.P. Development Corp. v. Band, 113 N.J. 485 (1988). The notice must also tell you that if you stop the disorderly conduct, you won’t be evicted. Cite: RWB Newton Assoc. v. Gunn, 224 N.J. Super. 704 (App. Div. 1988).
- Disorderly conduct must then continue after the notice to cease for the tenant to be evicted.
c. Damage or destruction of the landlord’s property
Notices required:
- Notice to quit—must be served on the tenant at least three days before filing the eviction suit.
Comments:
- The tenant’s conduct that causes the damage must be intentional or grossly negligent. (You can’t be evicted because of damage caused by a simple accident on your part.)
d. Violation of landlord’s rules and regulations
Notices required:
- Notice to cease.
- Notice to quit—must be served on the tenant at least one calendar month before filing the eviction suit.
Comments:
- Notice to cease must specifically and in detail describe the violation of rules and demand that the tenant stop it or face eviction. The notice should cite the rule that the landlord feels is being violated.
- The rules and regulations must be accepted by the tenant in writing or be part of the lease at the beginning of the lease term.
- The rules and regulations must be reasonable.
- Violation of the rules and regulations must be “substantial.”
e. (1) Violation of lease agreement
Notices required:
- Notice to cease.
- Notice to quit—must be served on the tenant at least one month before filing an eviction suit.
Comments:
- Notice to cease must describe the lease violation and demand that the tenant stop it or face eviction. The notice should also cite the number of the lease provision that the landlord feels is being violated.
- The lease must be reasonable.
- Violation of the lease must be “substantial.”
- The landlord must reserve “right of reentry” in the lease. If the lease does not contain these words, or other words giving the landlord the right to go back into the apartment if the tenant breaches the lease, then the right of reentry has not been reserved. (Even if a landlord reserves the right of reentry, the landlord must still go to court and follow all of the other legal requirements described in this manual before he or she can take back the apartment.)
e. (2) Violation of public housing lease agreement provision prohibiting illegal use of drugs or other illegal activities
Notices required:
Comments:
- Federal law allows housing authorities to have a lease provision prohibiting illegal use of controlled dangerous substances (drugs). However, the housing authority must have amended its lease to include this provision.
- The lease provision must have been in effect at the beginning of the lease term.
- Eviction may also occur for violation of a public housing lease provision prohibiting “other illegal activities.”
- The lease may prohibit illegal activity on or off the premises.
- A public housing authority may evict a tenant when a member of the tenant’s household or a guest engages in drug-related activity, even if the tenant did not know about the drug-related activity. Cite: Dept. of Housing and Urban Development v. Rucker, 122 S.Ct. 1230 (2002). The Secretary of Housing and Urban Development has urged public housing authorities “to be guided by compassion and common sense” in these cases, and that “(e)viction should be the last option explored, after all others have been exhausted.” The New Jersey courts have agreed with this position. The housing authority has to have a good reason for evicting innocent family members. Cite: Oakwood Plaza Apts. v. Smith, 352 N.J. Super. 467 (App. Div. 2002). If you are a tenant in this situation, you should contact an attorney.
f. Not paying a rent increase
Notices required:
- One-month notice ending tenancy and notice of the rent increase.
Comments:
g. Housing or health code violations where:
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(1) The landlord needs to board up or tear down the building.
(2) The landlord cannot correct violations without removing the tenant.
(3) The landlord must end overcrowding or an illegal occupancy.
(4) A government agency wants to close a building as part of a redevelopment project. |
Notices required:
- Notice to quit—must be served on the tenant at least three months before filing the eviction suit.
Comments:
- Housing or health code violations must be substantial, and the landlord must be financially unable to make repairs.
- In most cases, the tenant cannot be evicted until relocation assistance is provided. See Relocation assistance, which explains the Relocation Support Program and how to apply for relocation assistance.
- The state must report to the court whether repairs can be made with tenants present for reason g.(2).
h. Landlord wants to permanently retire building from residential use
Notices required:
- Notice to quit—must be served on the tenant at least 18 months before filing the eviction suit.
Comments:
- The notice must say in detail what the landlord plans to do with the building. If the landlord’s notice fails to clearly state what the future use of the property will be, the notice is defective and the court cannot evict the tenant. Cite: N.J.S.A. 2A:18-61.1(b); Sacks Realty v. Batch, 235 N.J. Super. 269, aff'd. 248 N.J. Super. 424 (App. Div. 1991).
- The landlord must send a copy of the notice to quit to the Department of Community Affairs and to the rent control office.
- The tenant cannot be evicted unless the landlord has all necessary approvals to convert the building to non-residential use.
- This ground cannot be used for eviction in order to avoid relocation assistance that is available in the case of housing and health code violations—see g.
- The landlord is liable for damages if the tenant is evicted for this reason and the landlord then re-rents to another tenant.
i. Not accepting changes in the lease
Notices required:
- Notice to quit—must be served on the tenant at least one month before filing the eviction suit.
Comments:
- Changes in the lease must be “reasonable.”
- The lease can only be changed at the end of the lease.
- You can also avoid eviction in cases where you refused to sign a lease or accept a lease change that you thought was unreasonable, even after you lose your case. As long as you agree to accept the new lease or lease change after the hearing is over, and pay any rent due, the landlord must allow you to stay. Cite: Village Bridge Apartments v. Mammucari, 239 N.J. Super. 235 (App. Div. 1990).
j. Paying rent late month after month (habitual lateness)
Notices required:
- Notice to cease.
- Notice to quit—must be served on the tenant at least one month before filing the eviction suit.
Comments:
- The notice to cease must demand that the tenant stop paying rent late.
- The tenant must continue to pay rent late at least two more times after receiving the notice to cease. Cite: 534 Hawthorne Avenue Corp. v. Barnes, 204 N.J. Super. 144 (App. Div. 1985); Tower Management Corp. v. Podesta, 226 N.J. Super. 300 (App. Div. 1988).
- If the tenant pays rent late after receiving the notice to cease, the landlord must keep providing the tenant with notices that paying rent late violates the lease. If the landlord does not give this notice every time the landlord accepts a late payment, the landlord can lose the right to evict the tenant. Cite: Ivy Hill Park v. Abutidze, 371 N.J. Super. 103 (App. Div. 2004).
k. Conversion to condominium or cooperative
Notices required:
- Notice to quit—must be served on the tenant at least three years before filing the eviction suit.
Comments:
- The tenant must be served with notice of intent to convert, the plan for conversion, and a notice of the right to rent comparable housing in addition to the notice to quit.
- See Chapter 14, Condominium and Cooperative Conversions, for steps in condominium conversion.
l. The owner wants to live in the apartment or house
Notices required:
- Notice to quit—must be served on the tenant at least two months before filing the eviction suit. If there is a written lease, the eviction suit cannot be filed until after the lease expires.
Comments:
- Only applies where (1) the landlord is converting the apartment into a condominium and wants to sell it to a buyer who will move in; (2) the owner of three or fewer condominium or cooperative units wants to move in, or is selling the unit to a buyer who wants to move in; or (3) the owner of a house or building with three or fewer apartments wants to move in or is selling the house or building to a buyer who wants to move in.
- If the landlord is selling to a buyer who wants to move in, there must be a contract for sale and the contract must state that the house or apartment will be vacant at the time of closing.
- The buyer or owner must intend to live in the house or apartment and not convert it to commercial use. Cite: Aquino Colonial Funeral Home v. Pittari, 245 N.J. Super. 585 (App. Div. 1991).
m. Tenant loses a job that includes rental unit
Notices required:
- Notice to quit—must be served on the tenant at least three days before filing eviction suit.
Comments:
- Applies where the tenant works for the landlord as a janitor, superintendent, or in some other way; the tenant gets to live in the apartment as part of the job; and the landlord ends the tenant’s job.
n. Conviction of a drug offense
Notices required:
- Notice to quit—must be served on the tenant at least three days before filing the eviction suit.
Comments:
- The drug offense must have taken place in the apartment building or on the grounds of the apartment complex.
- The tenant must be convicted of a drug offense. (“Conviction” means pleading guilty or being found guilty in court.) This also applies if the tenant is a juvenile and has been found delinquent for a drug offense.
- This will not apply if the person convicted has completed or been admitted to a drug rehabilitation program.
- This also applies if the tenant (1) lets a family member or anyone else who has been convicted of a drug offense in the building or complex live in the tenant’s apartment, or (2) has in the past allowed that person to live in the apartment. This section does not apply to permitting a juvenile to occupy the premises where the juvenile has been found delinquent for the offense of use or possession.
- The tenant being evicted for letting a drug offender live in the apartment must know that the person has been convicted. If not, the tenant cannot be evicted. Cite: Housing Authority of the City of Hoboken v. Alicea, 297 N.J. Super. 310 (App. Div. 1997); Housing Authority of the City of Jersey City v. Thomas, 318 N.J. Super. 191 (App. Div. 1999). However, if the tenant lives in subsidized housing—even if it is privately owned—the landlord may be able to evict the tenant even if the tenant did not know. But the landlord must have a good reason for evicting an innocent tenant in this situation. Cite: Oakwood Plaza Apts. v. Smith, 352 N.J. Super. 467 (2002).
- No eviction suit may be brought more than two years after the date of the conviction, or more than two years after the person’s release from jail, whichever is later.
- Specific rules apply when the landlord is a public housing authority. See e.(2).
o. Conviction of assaulting, attacking, or threatening the landlord
Notices required:
- Notice to quit—must be served on the tenant at least three days before filing the eviction suit.
Comments:
- The tenant must be convicted of assaulting or threatening harm to the landlord, a member of the landlord’s family, or the landlord’s employees. (“Conviction” means pleading guilty or being found guilty in court.) This also applies if the tenant is a juvenile who has been found delinquent for such acts.
- This also applies if the tenant (1) lets a family member or anyone else who has been convicted of such assaults or threats live in the tenant’s apartment, or (2) has in the past allowed that person to live in the apartment.
- The tenant who is being evicted for letting a person convicted of such assaults or threats live in the apartment must know of the conviction. Cite: Housing Authority of the City of Hoboken v. Alicea, 297 N.J. Super. 310 (App. Div. 1997); Housing Authority of the City of Jersey City v. Thomas, 318 N.J. Super. 191 (App. Div. 1999).
- No eviction suit may be brought more than two years after the date of the conviction, or more than two years after the person’s release from jail, whichever is later.
p. Engaging or being involved in drug activity, theft, or assaults or threats against a landlord
Notices required:
- Notice to quit—must be served on the tenant at least three days before filing the eviction suit.
Comments:
- Under this section, unlike sections n., o., and q., the landlord does not have to show a conviction—only that the activity violates criminal law.
- The drug activity must have occurred in the apartment building or apartment complex. However, this section will not apply if the person who has been engaging in drug-related activity completes or is admitted to a drug rehabilitation program.
- The assault or terroristic threats must have involved the landlord, a member of the landlord’s family, or an employee of the landlord.
- Theft means theft of property on the leased premises—from the landlord, the leased premises, or from other tenants residing in the leased premises.
- This section also applies if the tenant (1) lets a family member or anyone else who has engaged in these activities live in the tenant’s apartment, or (2) has in the past allowed that person to live in the apartment. However, this section will not apply if the person who has been engaging in drug- related activity is a juvenile who has been found delinquent for the offense of use or possession.
- The tenant being evicted for letting an offender live in the apartment must know that the person has been engaging in drug-related activity. If not, the tenant cannot be evicted. Cite: Housing Authority of the City of Hoboken v. Alicea, 297 N.J. Super. 310 (App. Div. 1997); Housing Authority of the City of Jersey City v. Thomas, 318 N.J. Super. 191 (App. Div. 1999). However, if the tenant lives in subsidized housing—even if it is privately owned—the landlord may be able to evict the tenant even if the tenant did not know. But the landlord must have a good reason for evicting an innocent tenant in this situation. Cite: Oakwood Plaza Apts. v. Smith, 352 N.J. Super. 467 (2002).
- Specific rules apply when the landlord is a public housing authority. See also e.(2).
q. Conviction of theft offense
Notices required:
- The notice to quit is not specified in the statute. However, it would appear from the rest of the statute (sections b., c., m., n., o., p.) that a notice to quit must be served on the tenant at least three days before filing the eviction suit.
Comments:
- The tenant must have been convicted of theft of property from the landlord, from the leased premises, or from other tenants residing in the same building or complex. (“Conviction” means pleading guilty or being found guilty in court.) This section applies if the tenant is a juvenile who has been found delinquent for such acts.
- This section also applies if the tenant lets a family member or anyone else who has been convicted of theft occupy the premises.
- The tenant who is being evicted for letting an offender live in the apartment must know that that person has been convicted. If not, the tenant cannot be evicted. Cite: Housing Authority of the City of Hoboken v. Alicea, 297 N.J. Super. 310 (App. Div. 1997); Housing Authority of the City of Jersey City v. Thomas, 318 N.J. Super. 191 (App. Div. 1999).
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NOTE! If you live in public housing, or another type of subsidized housing, you may be entitled to additional notices.
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