Important Housing Information for Renters Related to COVID-19
What protections are currently in place for renters during the COVID-19 pandemic?
The New Jersey eviction moratorium is currently in place through the end of 2021 for households with incomes below 80% of their Area Medium Income (AMI) who have applied for state or local rental assistance, and who have experienced an economic impact due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Tenants meeting these requirements must provide a self-certification that they meet the requirements to their landlords. This does not prevent landlords from continuing to file eviction proceedings in court, but it does prevent lockouts and removals.
Important: The laws governing tenant’s duty to pay rent have not changed. The moratorium on evictions does not cancel rent or mean that money is not owed.
Sources:
Governor Murphy Signs Sweeping Housing Eviction Prevention and Utility Assistance Bill.
What about public funded affordable housing?
The New Jersey Courts advises that all landlord/tenant trials are on hold until further notice. This would include public funded affordable housing.
Sources:
COVID-19 One Stop (njcourts.gov)
What about other bills like utilities?
The moratorium on utility service shutoffs ended as of July 1, 2021. However, the Governor's established a six-month grace period in which no residential customer will face disconnection of their gas, electric, or water services before the end of the grace period on December 31, 2021.
What is the normal eviction process in New Jersey?
In New Jersey, a tenant cannot be evicted without a judgment from the New Jersey Superior Court. Tenants have the right to appear in court to defend themselves against an eviction.Except for most nonpayment of rent cases, New Jersey law requires a landlord to provide their tenant with a written warning regarding violations to terms of the lease or rental agreement before they may seek to end the agreement. If the tenant continues to violate the terms of the lease/rental agreement, after being provided with a written warning, the landlord must provide the tenant with a written notice to quit the residence before filing the legal eviction.
A landlord cannot evict you or remove your belongings from a rental premise without first obtaining a judgment for possession and then a warrant of removal from the court. Only a Special Civil Part Officer can perform the eviction on behalf of a landlord.
Source: New Jersey Judiciary - Information for Residential Tenants
What resources are available for renters who may be at risk for displacement?
The state Department of Community Affairs, along with many counties and municipalities, are accepting applications for rental assistance that can help pay owed rent, future rent and utility bills.
Legal Services of New Jersey coordinates the statewide Legal Services system, which provides free legal assistance to low-income residents of New Jersey for their civil legal problems. Some additional tenant service organizations include Volunteer Lawyers for Justice – New Jersey, Community Health Law Project, Essex County Legal Aid Association, or City of Newark Office of Tenant Services.
Information for Renters Regarding Service & Assistance Animals
What are Service and assistance animals?
Service Animals: A service animal is a dog or miniature horse that has been individually trained to do work or perform specific tasks for an individual with a disability. People are generally most familiar with guide dogs for blind individuals, but animals can be trained to perform other tasks. For example, a service dog could be trained to let a person with diabetes know when their blood sugar levels were becoming too low.
Assistance Animals: Assistance animals refer to any animal that provides support, comfort or other assistance to their owner that is directly related to their disability. Assistance animals are not pets; however, they do not have to be trained to perform specific tasks. For example, an emotional support animal provides comfort to an individual with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder.
Neither the ADA nor New Jersey’s service animal law includes pets or what are often referred to as “emotional support animals.” Although these animals often have therapeutic benefits, they are not individually trained to perform specific tasks for their handlers.
Knowing Your Rights in Public Accommodations
Service animals are protected under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and are allowed to accompany individuals in public and private spaces. The ADA requires federal and local government agencies, businesses, and non-profit organizations that provide goods or services to the public to make reasonable changes in their policies, practices, and/or procedures to accommodate people with disabilities. Assistance animals are not protected under the ADA and are not allowed to accompany individuals into public accommodations unless that facility allows pets.
For Business and Public Accommodations:
When a person with a service animal enters a public facility or place of public accommodation, they can’t be asked about the nature or extent of their disability.
They can only be asked these questions if the reason why they have a service animal is not obvious:
Is the dog/miniature horse a service animal required because of a disability?
What work or task has the dog/miniature horse been trained to perform?
Your Rights In Housing
The Fair Housing Act and Section 504 allow owners of assistance and service animals to request a reasonable accommodation that allows these animals to reside with them in housing, including local Housing Authority properties. In order for a reasonable accommodation to be made, the owner must have a disability. Housing providers can request documentation that verifies you have a disability and that your service or assistance animal assists with your disability. However, this information can’t be required if the disability and reason for the assistance or service animal is obvious.
New Jersey’s Law Against Discrimination prohibits discrimination in housing against those with disabilities, including those who use service dogs. You must be allowed full and equal access to all housing facilities. If your lease or rental agreement includes a “no pets” provision, it does not apply to your service dog
Click Here for the Joint Statement of HUD and DOJ (p. 13-14)
Reasonable Accommodations For Housing Providers
What is a Reasonable Accommodation?:
A reasonable accommodation is defined as a change in a rule, policy, practice, or procedure that doesn’t fundamentally alter the purpose of the institution. A housing provider is only entitled to obtain information that is necessary to evaluate if a requested reasonable accommodation may be necessary because of a disability. If the disability and relationship between the disability and the assistance or service animal are obvious, the provider may not seek additional information.
Verification of a disability for a reasonable accommodation may be provided by a medical professional, a peer support group, a non-medical agency or a reliable third party. The verification only needs to establish that the person has a disability and that the assistance animal helps with their disability. A housing provider can’t request a detailed medical history or overly specific medical information. Housing providers can’t require persons with disabilities to pay extra fees or deposits as a condition of receiving a reasonable accommodation.
Grounds for Exclusion:
Service animals must be kept under control and can be excluded if their presence would fundamentally alter the service provided (i.e. they can be restricted from zoo areas in which natural predators of dogs are housed). An individual can be asked to remove their service animal from the premises if the animal isn’t housebroken or if the animal is out of control and they fail to take effective action to control it. If this happens, staff must offer the individual an opportunity to obtain goods or services without the animal’s presence in the facility.
Filing a Discrimination Complaint:
If you experience discrimination based on having an assistance or service animal, you have the right to file a complaint. You can file a complaint with the following agencies:
For discrimination that occurs in housing or public accommodations in New Jersey, you can file an administrative complaint with the New Jersey Division on Civil Rights at www.NJCivilRights.gov or by calling 973-648-2700 (Newark office.) Alternatively, you can file a civil complaint in Superior Court of New Jersey.
For discrimination in housing nationwide, you can file a complaint with HUD.
For an ADA-based discrimination in public accommodations nationwide, you can file a complaint with the DOJ.
