Security deposit cap
N.J.S.A. 46:8-21.2State law
A landlord who collects a security deposit may not collect more than one and one-half times one month’s rent.
Answers the question “How much deposit can they ask?”
The source
… after sending a written request to the landlord that the landlord fulfill the requirements of the Security Deposit Law. In New Jersey, the landlord is not required to collect a security deposit from the tenant, however, if they do, they must follow prescribed rules and regulations (N.J.S.A. 46:8-26). The maximum-security deposit to be collected by the landlord cannot be more than one and one-half times one month’s rent ( N.J.S.A. 46:8-21.2 ). It can be less. Any additional yearly security deposit increase may not exceed 10% of the current security deposit. A landlord may not charge a pet security deposit if it exceeds one and one-half times one month’s rent when combined with the regular security deposit. In the case of…
- Official law
- Open the official source
- Document
- D067, retrieved Oct 1, 2026
- Dates
- In force
- Status on Oct 1, 2026
- In force
What it depends on
- Covers
- Conditions not extracted yet.
- Key value
- 1.5 times one month’s rent
- Exemptions
- Owner-occupied two- or three-family dwellings, unless the tenant sends a written request and allows 30 days for the law to apply.
- What you can do next
- Read the law at its official source
Audit trail
The model reads the law; code decides who it covers. The line between them stays visible.
Extracted by the model
What the model read from the source text, checked by code (the quote must appear word for word).
- Category
- Deposits
- Requirement
- A landlord who collects a security deposit may not collect more than one and one-half times one month’s rent.
- Key value
- 1.5 times one month’s rent
- Effect
- protection_or_duty
- Quote found in source
- yes
- Confidence
- 90%
reasoning boundary
Decided by code
Deterministic: same rules, facts and date give the same answer.
- Jurisdiction: listed only for addresses whose state or legal city is NJ.
- Dates: no effective date in the text; treated as in force.
- Coverage: tested against whether the owner lives in the building, the number of units; a missing fact gives "unknown", never a guess.
As of Oct 1, 2026Engine run
Sources retrieved Oct 1, 2026.
Which buildings it reaches
All 140 sample addresses in New Jersey on Oct 1, 2026.
- 139 applies
- 1 unknown
Every dot is the rule engine’s result for that address. The larger dots are the example addresses listed below.
Decided by code for the example addresses
On Oct 1, 2026. Rules that don’t apply are left out.
- 327 Jackson St, Hoboken: Applies. N.J.S.A. 46:8-21.2 covers this address: 20 units (NJ class 4C, building description "5B-20U-H").