Pet Policy Clause
in Your Lease
What it actually means, what New Jersey law says, what's specific to Newark - and exactly what to do. In plain English.
Quick Summary - What You Need to Know
- N.J. Stat. Ann. § 46:8-21.2 bars an owner from requiring more than "1 1/2 times 1 month's rental" as security for a dwelling, and names no separate category for pets. N.J. Stat. Ann. § 46:8-19 covers any "money or other form of security" deposited on a lease.
- A senior citizen in a senior citizen housing project may keep a pet. N.J. Stat. Ann. § 2A:42-104 says such a senior "shall, upon providing written notice to the landlord, be permitted to own, harbor or care for a domesticated animal while a resident of that project".
- In a senior citizen housing project, § 2A:42-105 bars a landlord from arbitrarily refusing to renew over the animal, with a civil penalty "of not more than $500 for each offense" recoverable by the resident. Under § 2A:42-107 the landlord may still act over a code violation or a failure to care for, control or clean up after the animal.
- Disability rights sit outside the pet act. § 2A:42-109 says nothing in it "shall impair the rights of a person with disabilities to own, harbor or care for a domesticated animal, including guide dogs and service dogs".
- Newark's rent control chapter names pet money. Newark Rev. Gen. Ord. § 19:2-2 defines rent to include "monies demanded or paid for parking, pets, the use of furniture, subletting, security deposits and damage and cleaning deposits".
Understanding the Pet Policy Clause
A Newark renter with an animal meets the money question under two different bodies of law. New Jersey's security statute measures what can be held as a deposit, and Newark's rent control chapter defines rent in words that name pets outright.
The state ceiling never uses the word pet. N.J. Stat. Ann. § 46:8-21.2 bars an owner from requiring more than 1 1/2 times one month's rent as security for a dwelling, and names no separate category for pets.
Newark Rev. Gen. Ord. § 19:2-2 then defines rent to include money demanded or paid for pets, alongside security deposits and damage and cleaning deposits.
Two groups of renters have more than a price to discuss. A senior citizen in a senior citizen housing project may keep a domesticated animal on written notice under § 2A:42-104.
And § 2A:42-109 says nothing in that pet act shall impair the rights of a person with disabilities to an animal, guide dogs and service dogs included.
What renters assume
That a pet deposit is its own bucket, so a landlord can ask for it on top of a full security deposit because the animal is a separate risk with its own line on the lease.
What is actually true
The ceiling in N.J. Stat. Ann. § 46:8-21.2 is written about money required as security, up to 1 1/2 times one month's rent, and it names no separate category for pets. § 46:8-19 covers any "money or other form of security" deposited on a lease. Our New Jersey record finds no pet allowance above that figure, so add every amount held as security together before you compare.
Seventeen rows sit in the comparison further down this page, and one carries a dollar figure: Denver's $300 deposit cap. Eight fold pet money into a general deposit ceiling: Los Angeles, New York City, Boston and Washington at one month's rent, Portland at a one-month city cap, Phoenix at a 1.5-month cap, Atlanta at two months and Las Vegas at three.
The other eight print no cap: Austin, Miami, Chicago, Nashville and Philadelphia read no cap, Seattle no dollar cap, Columbus no cap with the lease in control, and Newark no pet-specific cap.
Newark's qualifier is the word to read. The New Jersey sections our record read do cap security of any kind, at 1 1/2 times one month's rent under § 46:8-21.2, the same multiple Phoenix's row shows.
That section names no pet category, and the bars further down this page draw only a figure written for pet money, so Newark's track stays empty.
Plain English Version
In Newark, look at pet money as part of one sum rather than as an extra. New Jersey's ceiling is written about money required as security, up to one and a half times a month's rent, and it names no pet category.
So add together everything the lease asks you to deposit as security, pet money included, and compare the total with that figure. A pet line billed with the rent is a separate question, and Newark's rent control chapter defines rent to include it.
A senior in a senior housing project, or a renter whose animal is tied to a disability, has more than a price to discuss.
Pet Clause Example - What the Wording Looks Like in Newark, NJ
The sample clause below is real lease language - a court quoted it word for word, and then ruled on it. What the judge decided is at the bottom of this block.
Find the equivalent paragraph in your own lease and read the two side by side. The wording will differ; the moving parts rarely do.
No pets are allowed in the building or on the Premises at any time. Tenants may be assessed labor cleanup charges (if applicable) for each violation. Tenants agree to an increase in the rental deposit up to the maximum allowed by law in the events of non-compliance with pet prohibitions. Reasonable accommodations accepted.
Quoted from the published opinion in Cohen v. Clark, 945 N.W.2d 792 (Iowa 2020). Judicial opinions are not subject to copyright; the lease language is reproduced in limited part for commentary under 17 U.S.C. § 107.
“in the building or on the Premises”
In New Jersey the kind of building can change the answer. Under N.J. Stat. Ann. § 2A:42-104, a senior citizen residing in a senior citizen housing project “shall, upon providing written notice to the landlord, be permitted to own, harbor or care for a domesticated animal while a resident of that project”. § 2A:42-103 defines that project as a building of three or more units solely occupied by senior citizens, and a senior citizen as a person 62 or over, or a surviving spouse aged 55 or over.
“Tenants may be assessed”
For a senior keeping an animal under § 2A:42-104, § 2A:42-107 lets the landlord still act over a failure to care for, control or clean up after the animal, so a protected senior who leaves the mess can face action. In Newark, Newark Rev. Gen. Ord. § 19:2-2 defines rent to include money “demanded or paid for” pets and “damage and cleaning deposits”.
“to the maximum allowed by law in the events of non-compliance”
The law this sentence points at has a precise New Jersey answer. N.J. Stat. Ann. § 46:8-21.2 bars an owner from requiring more than 1 1/2 times one month's rent as security for a dwelling, and names no separate category for pets. § 46:8-19 covers any “money or other form of security” deposited on a lease. The ceiling this clause reaches for is the one your original deposit is already measured against, and the section names no second one for animals.
“Reasonable accommodations accepted”
New Jersey's pet act answers this line with a saving sentence of its own. § 2A:42-109 says nothing in the act “shall impair the rights of a person with disabilities to own, harbor or care for a domesticated animal, including guide dogs and service dogs”. The senior-housing rules sit beside those rights and do not narrow them. Our New Jersey record quotes that sentence and does not set out the disability law it preserves; read that law itself before relying on this line of the lease.
The no-pets clause was enforced - for the tenant who relied on it. A renter with a severe dog allergy signed first, in reliance on this clause. The landlord later waived it so a neighbour could keep an emotional support dog. The Iowa Supreme Court held that waiver was not a reasonable accommodation: the allergic tenant had priority in time, and the dog was a direct threat to her health that air purifiers and separate stairwells did not fix. She recovered on the no-pets clause and on the covenant of quiet enjoyment, and the case was sent back for damages of one month's rent. The point renters miss: an accommodation request is weighed against everyone in the building, not just against the landlord.
One court, one lease, one state. That answer is not automatically yours, and your lease may be worded to land differently. Use this to know what to look for and what to ask - your state's tenant hotline or a local tenant attorney can answer it for your document.
New Jersey Law on Pet Policy Clause
- Seniors in senior citizen housing may keep a pet. Section 2A:42-104 says such a senior "shall, upon providing written notice to the landlord, be permitted to own, harbor or care for a domesticated animal while a resident of that project".
- The senior protection has set limits. Section 2A:42-103 defines a senior citizen as "a person 62 years of age or over", including a surviving spouse aged 55 or over. A project is a building of three or more units solely occupied by senior citizens, excluding owner-occupied premises with not more than three rented units and health care facilities.
- A landlord may not arbitrarily refuse to renew over the animal. Section 2A:42-105 sets a civil penalty "of not more than $500 for each offense", recoverable by the resident. Under § 2A:42-107 the landlord may still act over a code violation or a failure to care for, control or clean up after the animal.
- Disability rights sit outside that act. Section 2A:42-109 says nothing in it "shall impair the rights of a person with disabilities to own, harbor or care for a domesticated animal, including guide dogs and service dogs".
- The deposit cap names no pet category. Section 46:8-19 covers any "money or other form of security" deposited on a lease. Section 46:8-21.2 caps all money required as security at 1 1/2 times one month's rent and names no separate category for pets.
Sources include N.J. Stat. Ann. § 2A:42-104; N.J. Stat. Ann. § 2A:42-103; N.J. Stat. Ann. § 2A:42-105; N.J. Stat. Ann. § 2A:42-107; N.J. Stat. Ann. § 2A:42-109; N.J. Stat. Ann. § 46:8-21.2; N.J. Stat. Ann. § 46:8-19; Newark Rev. Gen. Ord. § 19:2-2 - statutes change; verify the current text for your situation.
In the New Jersey sections our record read, a pet deposit meets the general security statute rather than a pet rule. N.J. Stat. Ann. § 46:8-21.2 bars an owner from requiring more than "1 1/2 times 1 month's rental" as security for a dwelling, and the section names no separate category for pets.
§ 46:8-19 sets how wide that net is: it covers any "money or other form of security" deposited on a lease. Our New Jersey record finds no separate pet allowance above the ceiling in the sections it read.
The practical step is arithmetic: add every amount the lease asks you to deposit as security, and compare the total with 1 1/2 times one month's rent.
The pet act our record read, §§ 2A:42-103 to 109, answers a different question, which is whether the animal may stay at all. Under § 2A:42-104 a senior citizen residing in a senior citizen housing project "shall, upon providing written notice to the landlord, be permitted to own, harbor or care for a domesticated animal while a resident of that project".
§ 2A:42-103 draws the lines. A senior citizen is "a person 62 years of age or over", including a surviving spouse aged 55 or over.
A project is a building of three or more units solely occupied by senior citizens, and owner-occupied premises with not more than three rented units, and health care facilities, are excluded.
§ 2A:42-105 bars a landlord from arbitrarily refusing to renew over the animal, and sets a civil penalty "of not more than $500 for each offense", recoverable by the resident. The right has limits of its own.
Under § 2A:42-107 the landlord may still act over a code violation, or over a failure to care for, control or clean up after the animal.
Outside a senior citizen housing project, our New Jersey record carries no section on pet bans, which leaves the lease you signed as the document that answers it, alongside the disability rights § 2A:42-109 preserves.
Disability rights stand apart from all of this. § 2A:42-109 says nothing in the pet act "shall impair the rights of a person with disabilities to own, harbor or care for a domesticated animal, including guide dogs and service dogs". Our New Jersey record quotes that saving sentence and does not set out the disability law it preserves.
Read that law directly rather than reasoning from the pet act or from the deposit arithmetic here.
New Jersey Tenant Protections
Our New Jersey record carries these protections for a renter with an animal, each with a stated reach. N.J. Stat. Ann. § 46:8-21.2 bars an owner from requiring more than 1 1/2 times one month's rent as security for a dwelling, and names no separate category for pets.
N.J. Stat. Ann. § 46:8-19 covers any money or other form of security deposited on a lease.
Under § 2A:42-104, a senior citizen residing in a senior citizen housing project may own, harbor or care for a domesticated animal on written notice to the landlord. § 2A:42-103 defines a senior citizen as a person 62 years of age or over, including a surviving spouse aged 55 or over.
It defines a project as a building of three or more units solely occupied by senior citizens, excluding owner-occupied premises with not more than three rented units and health care facilities. § 2A:42-105 bars an arbitrary refusal to renew over the animal, with a civil penalty of not more than $500 for each offense recoverable by the resident. § 2A:42-107 still lets the landlord act over a code violation or a failure to care for, control or clean up after the animal. § 2A:42-109 provides that nothing in that act shall impair the rights of a person with disabilities to own, harbor or care for a domesticated animal, including guide dogs and service dogs.
In Newark, Newark Rev. Gen. Ord. § 19:2-2 defines rent to include monies demanded or paid for pets, security deposits, and damage and cleaning deposits.
What's Specific to Newark
Figures are the state rule, or the stronger city ordinance where one exists. Verify the current law for your own situation before relying on it.
Our record of Newark's ordinances finds no pet deposit cap and no rule on keeping a pet in a rental in the chapters it read. Those are the Housing Code and Rent Control chapters and Article 1 of the Domestic Animals chapter, in an edition with legislation through July 15, 2026.
What the city does do is name pet money in its rent control chapter. Newark Rev. Gen. Ord. § 19:2-2 defines rent to include "monies demanded or paid for parking, pets, the use of furniture, subletting, security deposits and damage and cleaning deposits".
That is a definition, and its weight comes from what it gathers into a single word.
Read a pet clause against it line by line. A monthly pet charge, a pet deposit and a pet fee are each money demanded or paid for pets, which is a category the definition names.
Our record states that definition and stops there. It does not set out how the rest of the rent control chapter applies to money brought inside it, or which Newark units the chapter reaches.
Ask the city which parts of the chapter apply to your unit, with your lease in hand, rather than taking an answer from this page.
Beyond that definition, a Newark renter works from the state sections. The security ceiling in N.J. Stat. Ann. § 46:8-21.2 is the figure to measure a pet deposit against, at 1 1/2 times one month's rent for all money required as security. § 46:8-19 covers any "money or other form of security" deposited on a lease, so bring the pet deposit into that sum when you check the figure.
On a pet ban in an ordinary Newark rental, the ordinance chapters our record read are silent, which leaves the lease you signed as the document that answers it. Two state provisions sit on top of that lease.
A senior citizen in a senior citizen housing project may keep a domesticated animal on written notice under § 2A:42-104. A person with disabilities keeps the rights § 2A:42-109 preserves, guide dogs and service dogs included.
The date on the Newark text matters. It was read in an edition carrying legislation through July 15, 2026, and an ordinance adopted after that would not appear in it.
Check the current code before relying on the absence of a rule, and read § 19:2-2 as it stands today.
N.J. Stat. Ann. § 46:8-21.2 caps money required as security for a dwelling at 1 1/2 times one month's rent and names no separate category for pets. Put the pet deposit into the same sum as the rest.
§ 2A:42-103 covers a person 62 or over, or a surviving spouse aged 55 or over, in a building of three or more units solely occupied by senior citizens, with set exclusions. There, § 2A:42-104 lets a senior keep a domesticated animal on written notice to the landlord.
Ask whether the pet money is held as security. § 46:8-21.2 caps all money required as security at 1 1/2 times one month's rent, and the section names no second ceiling for animals.
§ 2A:42-109 says nothing in the pet act shall impair the rights of a person with disabilities to a domesticated animal, guide dogs and service dogs included. That is a disability question, and our New Jersey record does not set out the disability rules themselves.
Sources
The law this guide relies on, and where to read it. Statutes change, so confirm the current text before you act on it.
Red Flags to Watch Out For
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A pet deposit stacked on a full security deposit
N.J. Stat. Ann. § 46:8-21.2 caps all money required as security for a dwelling at 1 1/2 times one month's rent and names no separate category for pets. Add the two together and compare.
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A pet figure described as the New Jersey limit
The New Jersey statutes our record read set no separate dollar cap on a pet deposit. Ask which section the number comes from, and read that section yourself.
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A senior's renewal refused over the animal
§ 2A:42-105 bars a landlord from arbitrarily refusing to renew over the animal in a senior citizen housing project, with a civil penalty "of not more than $500 for each offense". § 2A:42-107 lists the grounds on which the landlord may still act.
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A pet charge described as something other than rent
Newark Rev. Gen. Ord. § 19:2-2 defines rent to include "monies demanded or paid for parking, pets, the use of furniture, subletting, security deposits and damage and cleaning deposits". Our record states that definition only, so ask the city how the chapter applies before accepting any label.
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A service dog billed as a pet
§ 2A:42-109 says nothing in the pet act "shall impair the rights of a person with disabilities to own, harbor or care for a domesticated animal, including guide dogs and service dogs".
Your Rights as a Newark Tenant
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A ceiling on everything held as security
N.J. Stat. Ann. § 46:8-21.2 bars requiring more than 1 1/2 times one month's rent as security for a dwelling, and § 46:8-19 covers any "money or other form of security" deposited on a lease.
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A senior's right to keep an animal
In a senior citizen housing project, § 2A:42-104 lets a senior citizen keep a domesticated animal "upon providing written notice to the landlord". § 2A:42-103 sets the age at 62, or 55 for a surviving spouse.
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No arbitrary refusal to renew
In a senior citizen housing project, § 2A:42-105 sets a civil penalty "of not more than $500 for each offense", recoverable by the resident, for an arbitrary refusal to renew over the animal. § 2A:42-107 keeps the landlord's grounds for code violations and failures to care for, control or clean up after it.
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Disability rights are preserved
§ 2A:42-109 says nothing in the pet act "shall impair the rights of a person with disabilities to own, harbor or care for a domesticated animal, including guide dogs and service dogs".
What To Do - Step by Step
Write down every pet figure on its own line
A refundable deposit, a charge billed per violation and a line repeated with the rent are three different obligations. Copy each amount from the lease with the heading printed above it.
Add up everything held as security
Take the ordinary deposit and any pet deposit together and compare the total with 1 1/2 times one month's rent, the ceiling in N.J. Stat. Ann. § 46:8-21.2. Do it before any money changes hands.
Check whether the senior pet act reaches your building
§ 2A:42-103 covers a building of three or more units solely occupied by senior citizens, with exclusions for small owner-occupied premises and health care facilities. If it fits, give the landlord the written notice § 2A:42-104 calls for, and keep a copy.
Ask the city how its rent definition applies to your unit
Newark Rev. Gen. Ord. § 19:2-2 defines rent to include money demanded or paid for pets. Our record states that definition only, so bring your lease and ask the city which parts of the rent control chapter reach your unit.
Photograph the unit when you move in and when it is empty
Date-stamped photographs of every room are what separate a real cleanup cost from a claimed one, whether the charge arrives as a per-violation bill or as a deduction.
Read the current text, then object in writing
Check § 46:8-21.2, §§ 2A:42-103 to 109 and § 19:2-2 as they stand today. Then send the landlord a written objection naming the section you rely on and asking which section the charge is made under.
A New Jersey legal aid or tenant advice service is the next call if that goes nowhere.