Flood of evictions expected in N.J. this year. Courts want changes to help tenants.
Updated 11:09 AM;
Today 11:00 AM
The condo of Jennifer and Christopher Ocasio on Hana Road in Edison, The couple faces eviction despite Governor Murphy’s Executive Order 106, which states that no one may be removed from their home due to the inability to pay rent during the COVID-19 emergency. Friday, July 24, 2020John Jones | For NJ Advance Medi
Facebook Share
Housing advocates having been sounding the alarm about the incoming flood of evictions New Jersey is facing once Gov. Phil Murphy lifts the eviction moratorium, which currently runs through mid-July.
arrow
New Jersey’s court system is considering dramatically changing how it handles eviction cases as it projects an “avalanche” of 194,000 landlord-tenant filings next year after the state’s eviction moratorium is lifted.
A panel of tenant advocates, landlord representatives, and court staff convened by New Jersey Chief Justice Stuart Rabner made 18 recommendations to the court that would not only help handle a deluge of eviction filings but also reimagine the court process for landlords and tenants. More than a third of New Jersey residents rent their homes, and in cities like Newark, renters make up 78% of the population.
“These recommendations really have the potential to be life-changing,” said Jessica Kitson, senior managing attorney for Volunteer Lawyers for Justice, a civil legal aid organization based in Newark.
N.J. must ban ‘the tenant blacklist’ | Editorial
Updated Dec 10, 2020;
Posted Dec 10, 2020
A renter is forced to relocate with her two children. (Beth Nakamura | File photo)Oregonlive.com file photo
Facebook Share
It could be that you didn’t pay rent for legitimate reasons, like having
no heat or water. But tenants are still getting blackballed from future rentals, as if even asserting your rights against a landlord is offensive.
“It’s wildly unfair,” Jessica Kitson of Volunteer Lawyers for Justice says. “We have clients living without heat, without hot water. They can’t find a new place. They have an eviction filing on their record that is being used against them.”