Know Your Rights
Based upon a document on Tenants’ Rights (and here in Spanish) published by Legal Services of Jersey (p. 44), landlords must provide heat as required by the state codes and the local town or city ordinance. Under the state housing codes, from October 1 to May 1, the landlord must provide enough heat so that the temperature in the apartment is at least 68 degrees from 6 am to 11 pm. Between 11 pm and 6 am, the temperature in the apartment must be at least 65 degrees. The housing inspector or board of health in your town enforces the heat requirements in the state and local codes. Larger cities have special no-heat hotlines that are set up to handle complaints.
To file a complaint from anywhere in New Jersey, contact the Bureau of Housing Inspection's Housing Code Enforcement at 609-633-6241.
Hotlines
East Orange
Tenants residing in apartments located in East Orange without heat and hot running water, or who have had their utilities shut off can call the Department of Code Enforcement at 973-266-5320.
Jersey City
Jersey City maintains a 24-hour heat and hot water hotline. They can be reached at 201-547-4900. This phone line is only for Jersey City residents.
Newark
Tenants residing in apartments in Newark without heat and hot running water, or who have had their utilities shut off, can call 973-733-6471 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
Orange Township
These phone lines are only for Orange Township residents.
To report heating problems or related issues from Friday evening at 5:00 pm through Monday morning at 8:00 am, call:
Khalfani Alleyne: 973-296-8419
Lonnie Saunders: 973-706-4203
Paul Inman: 973-592-5425
Elroy Corbitt: 973-706-4053
If issues with heat arise at any other time, call the Code Enforcement office directly: (973) 266-4051.
Paterson
Please contact the city’s ‘No Heat” Hotline, 973-321-1277 should you need to report a ‘no heat’ incident. This phone line is only for Paterson residents.
Trenton
All complaints regarding a lack of heat or hot water, or another winter-related emergency 609-989-3560. This phone line is only for Trenton residents.