Hoboken, New Jersey, is one of many cities in the state struggling with rising rents.
First, the city with some of the highest rents in the nation is considering filing a lawsuit in state court to determine how much a rent increase would be considered excessive under state law, Patch Network Report.
State law says rent increases for all units cannot be “unconscionable or unreasonable,” a vague standard that could be interpreted, the outlet said.
The city is considering whether to apply to state court for an injunction — on behalf of tenants of luxury buildings facing rent increases of 25 percent or more — seeking to clarify the definition of “unconscionable and unreasonable.”
According to the outlet, precedent suggests the figure has been fixed at 25%, but advocates are still seeking clarification on the matter.
Meanwhile, the Hoboken City Council last week delayed a vote on a local ordinance — another law governing rent increases in the city — that would allow landlords who cut rents during the pandemic to raise rents in one go. control unit, said the patch.
Increases will be allowed during lease renewals or if a new tenant moves into a unit, New Jersey Net Report. If passed, landlords would not be able to “bank increases” by raising rents for years they have not increased rents during the pandemic, thereby preventing large increases.
Still, the proposed measures have come under fire from landlord and tenant groups, with tenant advocates saying there is still no cap on how much rents can go up.
“[Tenants are] Lockdown, even if they want to leave for whatever reason, now the city council wants to pass an ordinance that almost guarantees a big increase,” tenant advocate Cheryl Fallick told NJ.com.
But landlords have also been unimpressed by the proposal, saying, among other things, the clause allowing tenants to challenge their landlord’s rent calculations to city officials is too onerous.
“All these landlords are caught in an administrative nightmare,” Ron Simoncini of the Mile Square Taxpayers Association, a landlords group, told NJ.com. “These are real people who own real estate and have to house real people and they’re treated like it’s just some big ideological concept. It’s not.”
average rent in Nearly $3,800 a month in Hobokenan increase of $460 year-over-year, according to Zillow.com.
Hoboken is far from the only city dealing with rising rents.
New York City’s rent board voted against it last week, favoring rent increases of 2% to 5% for one-year leases for stable units and 4% to 7% for two-year leases.
Separately, the agency approved a rent freeze for stable hotels.
While a far cry from the initially discussed possibility of an 8 per cent increase for one-year leases and a 16 per cent increase for two-year leases, the proposal has been criticized by landlord and tenant advocates.
“Any increase in current rents would have devastating consequences for tenants already battling a historic affordability crisis, post-pandemic inflation, and a looming recession expected later this year,” Adriene Holder, lead counsel for the Legal Aid Civil Practice, said in a statement.
However, landlords pointed out that the proposed increase was not high enough.
“With most buildings approaching 100 years old, the city’s rent-stabilized housing stock is on the brink of bankruptcy,” said Michael Tobman, membership and communications director for the Rent Stabilization Association, a landlord group. “RGB’s own numbers don’t lie: Costs have skyrocketed, rental income has fallen.”
The court decided how much the rent increase was considered excessive under state law, Patch Network Report.
State law says rent increases cannot be “unconscionable or unreasonable,” a vague standard that could be interpreted, the outlet said.
The city is considering whether to apply to state court for an injunction — on behalf of tenants of luxury buildings facing rent increases of 25 percent or more — seeking to clarify the definition of “unconscionable and unreasonable.”
According to the outlet, precedent suggests the figure has been fixed at 25%, but advocates are still seeking clarification on the matter.
Meanwhile, the Hoboken City Council last week delayed a vote on a local ordinance — another law governing rent increases in the city — that would allow landlords who cut rents during the pandemic to raise rents in one go. Control unit, Patch said.
Increases will be allowed during lease renewals or if a new tenant moves into a unit, New Jersey Net Report. If passed, landlords would not be able to “increase rents” by raising rents after years of no increases during the pandemic.
Still, the proposed measure has come under fire from both sides, with tenant advocates saying there is still no cap on how much rents can go up.
“[Tenants are] Lockdown, even if they want to leave for whatever reason, now the city council wants to pass an ordinance that almost guarantees a big increase,” tenant advocate Cheryl Fallick told NJ.com.
But landlords were also unimpressed with the proposal, saying, among other things, provisions allowing tenants to challenge their landlords’ rent calculations to city officials were too onerous.
“All these landlords are caught in an administrative nightmare,” Ron Simoncini of the Mile Square Taxpayers Association, a landlords group, told NJ.com. “These are real people who own real estate and have to house real people and they’re treated like it’s just some big ideological concept. It’s not.”
average rent in Nearly $3,800 a month in Hobokenan increase of $460 year-over-year, according to Zillow.com.
Hoboken is far from the only city dealing with rising rents.
Last week, New York City’s rent board initially voted to increase rents by 2% to 5% on one-year leases and 4% to 7% on two-year leases for stable units, but faced strong opposition.
Separately, the agency approved a rent freeze for stable hotels.
While a far cry from the initially discussed possibility of an 8 per cent increase for one-year leases and a 16 per cent increase for two-year leases, the proposal has been criticized by landlord and tenant advocates.
“Any increase in current rents would have devastating consequences for tenants already battling a historic affordability crisis, post-pandemic inflation, and a looming recession expected later this year,” Adriene Holder, lead counsel for the Legal Aid Civil Practice, said in a statement.
Landlords, however, pointed out that the increase was not high enough.
“With most buildings approaching 100 years old, the city’s rent-stabilized housing inventory is on the brink of bankruptcy,” said Michael Tobman, membership and communications director for the Rent Stabilization Association, a landlord group. “RGB’s own numbers don’t lie: Costs have skyrocketed, rental income has fallen.”
— Ted Glazer
