Is month to month lease fee legal?

[Renter62]

New Jersey. My lease renewal includes a 4% increase in rent, an increase that the landlord is legally entitled to in my city. I wish to be on a month to month lease. In the current lease and the previous ones, the landlord does write that if you want a lease that's shorter than one year, you can do that, but there is an additional amount required of $50 per month.

Is it legal for my landlord to demand this additional $50 per month of me, in addition to the 4% rent increase, if I choose to be on a month to month lease ?

Thank you.

[sandyclaus]

Re: Is month to month lease fee legal?

New Jersey. My lease renewal includes a 4% increase in rent, an increase that the landlord is legally entitled to in my city. I wish to be on a month to month lease. In the current lease and the previous ones, the landlord does write that if you want a lease that's shorter than one year, you can do that, but there is an additional amount required of $50 per month.

Is it legal for my landlord to demand this additional $50 per month of me, in addition to the 4% rent increase, if I choose to be on a month to month lease ?

Thank you.

I can't be sure unless I read over the specific ordinance, but I don't believe that it is legal to do so.

In what city/township do you live?

[Disagreeable]

Re: Is month to month lease fee legal?

The 4% is a rent increase. The $50 is a no lease surcharge.

[sandyclaus]

Re: Is month to month lease fee legal?

I can't be sure unless I read over the specific ordinance, but I don't believe that it is legal to do so.

In what city/township do you live?

Per the poster's request, I won't mention the specific township in which he lives, but the ordinance appears clear. There is a section that references how a rent increase applies in the case of a tenancy at will, which OP has.

The ordinance states:

In cases of week-to-week, month-to-month or other tenancies at will, a landlord shall be entitled to only one (1) rental increase for a twelve-month period. With respect to rental increases for such tenants, no landlord may request or receive a percentage increase in rent which is greater than four percent (4%) per annum, provided that the date of the last rental increase or start of tenancy shall be at least twelve (12) months prior to the date of the extended increase.

In OP's situation, it has to be either/or. The LL cannot impose the statutory annual rental increase AND an additional $50 per month, because that would put the LL over the legal rental increase level that he's entitled to.

The LL can certainly charge the $50 per month for the M2M rate, and then supplement UP TO the amount of the allowable annual increase, but he can't legally do both.

[sandyclaus]

Re: Is month to month lease fee legal?

The 4% is a rent increase. The $50 is a no lease surcharge.

Nope. The $50 is an additional rent increase which the LL is not entitled to. If it were a flat $50, that would be different, and I might consider it to be fee or surcharge. However, according to OP, it's an additional $50 PER MONTH, so effectively the LL is trying to slip in an additional increase for those wanting to go M2M. That makes it an illegal rent increase because it raises the rent over the statutory allowed limit for the year.