Mayor Solomon Releases Initial Results of Jersey City's First-Ever Rent Control Audit Identifying over 20,000 Units, Empowering Residents to Fight Illegal Rent Increases
Mayor Solomon Releases Initial Results of Jersey City's First-Ever Rent Control Audit Identifying over 20,000 Units, Empowering Residents to Fight Illegal Rent Increases
More than 1,700 properties, over 20,000 units, identified in first phase of citywide rent control audit; renters and landlords can now look up their building online at rentcontrol.jcnj.org
Mayor Solomon announces Colleen Smith as the new Director of Housing Preservation – bringing a career of experience fighting for tenant’s rights
JERSEY CITY, N.J. (September 9, 2026) — Mayor James Solomon today announced the completion of the first phase of the City's rent control audit and the launch of the Jersey City Rent Control Property Map — the first time in the City's history that residents can look up online whether their building is subject to rent control.
The map identifies more than 1,700 properties containing over 20,000 units that the City recognizes as rent controlled. Properties classified as rent-controlled are subject to strict rent restrictions under the City’s Rent Control Ordinance, which limits the amount and requirements for rent increases.
For decades, that information lived in paper files, spreadsheets, and handwritten charts inside City Hall. Tenants living in rent-controlled units who wanted to determine whether their rent increase was legal often had no practical way to find out. With this new tool, residents now have the transparency they deserve, making it easier to verify whether a rent increase is subject to the rent restrictions provided by the Rent Control Ordinance.
"Rent control only protects you if you know it applies to you," said Mayor James Solomon. "For years, that information was locked away from the public. Now any renter in Jersey City can pull up their address on their phone and see whether their building is covered. This is the single most important step we've taken to make sure tenants aren't being overcharged — giving them a powerful tool to fight illegal rent increases."
The map was built by the Division of Housing Preservation's Office of Landlord/Tenant Relations in response to Executive Order 2026-004, which Mayor Solomon signed earlier this year directing the City to conduct a comprehensive review of every multi-unit building in Jersey City.
Staff assembled the list by cross-referencing several separate sources of information: New Jersey tax assessment records identifying apartment buildings, annual landlord registration statements filed with the City, and individual property files going back decades. Because no single source was complete or fully accurate, each property had to be reviewed and verified against multiple records.
"Our team went building by building through records that were never designed to be searched this way," said Keshav Poddar, Deputy Mayor for Housing and Economic Development. "This map represents thousands of hours of work, and it gives tenants a tool they've never had before."
"Our legal team works with hundreds of tenants facing eviction each year, and we see firsthand how often building owners try to skirt rent control laws. This tool puts essential information directly in renters' hands, giving them a clear, reliable way to know their rights before a landlord can take advantage of them. We tested it against clients we know to be in rent-controlled units, and it got every one right." - Elizabeth R. Hurley, Esq., Legal Director, The Waterfront Project, Inc.
New leadership for the Division of Housing Preservation
Mayor Solomon also announced the appointment of Colleen Smith, MSW, LCSW, as Director of Housing Preservation. Smith will lead the division carrying out the rent control audit, which also oversees the Office of Landlord/Tenant Relations, landlord registration, and the City’s tenant protection programs.
Smith is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker who comes to the City from the Center for Justice Innovation, where she spent more than a decade and most recently served as Senior Advisor. As the organization’s Director of New Jersey Programs, she led Newark Community Solutions, a community justice initiative of more than 20 staff operating in the Newark Municipal Court and the Essex Vicinage, and launched its first eviction prevention program. She holds a Master’s in Social Work from New York University and a bachelor’s degree from McGill University, and lives in Jersey City.
“Colleen has spent her career helping people navigate systems that were never built for them,” said Mayor Solomon. “She has seen eviction and housing instability up close, and she is going to bring that to a division whose work touches every renter in this city.”
“Rent protections only matter if tenants can actually use them,” said Colleen Smith. “This map is an accessible tool that will tangibly help residents. My job is to make sure the rest of the system works the same way, and that people can find out where they stand and get what they are owed.”
This is a working list & more buildings will be added
The City is releasing this map as a preliminary, working inventory rather than a final one.
The properties on the map are buildings with five or more units for which the City has no documentation of an exemption from rent control. A number of additional buildings have been set aside because they either have a confirmed exemption on file or may qualify for one that hasn't yet been verified.
Reviewing those buildings is the focus of Phase II of the audit, now underway. The City will contact property owners who have claimed an exemption without adequate documentation and require them to submit proof. Where an owner cannot establish a valid exemption, the property will be added to the map and its tenants will be notified directly. Phase II is expected to be substantially complete by the end of 2026.
Additional properties are also expected to be identified as landlords come into compliance with the City's annual registration requirement. The Office has issued over 300 summonses to-date this year to property owners who have failed to comply with Chapter 260's registration requirement, prioritizing negligent landlords who have not complied with this requirement for years.
What renters should do
If you believe your building should be on the list but isn't, submit a report through SeeClickFix under the category “Rent Control Status Request”. The Office of Landlord/Tenant Relations will investigate and determine the property's rent control status.
Renters who believe they've received an increase above the legal limit, or who did not know their building was rent-controlled, can contact the Office of Landlord/Tenant Relations at (201) 547-5127 for more information on filing an Illegal Rent Petition.
What landlords should do
Property owners whose building appears on the map and who believe it qualifies for an exemption under § 260-1 or § 260-6 may file a Rent Control Exemption Request with the Office. The Office will review the supporting documentation and issue a written determination approving or denying the property’s rent-control exemption. If the Office denies the exemption, the property owner may appeal the determination to the Rent Leveling Board.
Appearing on the map does not by itself change a property's legal status, and property owners will have a full opportunity to establish an exemption.
What comes next
Later phases of the audit will include direct written notice to tenants in rent-controlled buildings and a comprehensive effort to establish the lawful base rent for every rent-controlled unit in the city.
The Rent Control Property Map is available at rentcontrol.jcnj.org.