Alberta Jimenez has long been fighting for the rent control ordinance that Passaic’s city council passed earlier this month, capping the amount that a landlord can raise rent to 3% per year.

The council had enacted a similar ordinance in February, capping rent increases at 6% and forbidding vacancy decontrol where a landlord can increase the rent to any amount once a unit becomes vacant.

But the community advocacy group Make the Road New Jersey fought for the city to lower that cap even further, citing a housing crisis that they say is pushing thousands of families close to homelessness.

“With this new ordinance that has been passed I can now breathe easily, and I do feel a big sense of relief,” said Jimenez. “Every year, the landlord has been increasing my rent by about $100 dollars, including during the COVID pandemic.

“It’s been incredibly difficult for me and my family, because I am the mother of four younger daughters and I have to choose between paying for our food and meals, or paying for our rent,” she said. “And if I don’t pay the rent completely, I’m charged with late fees that add to my stress and burden me.”

The New Jersey Apartment Association, which represents landlords, opposes rent control of any kind, saying that ordinances like this only end up hurting renters in the long run.

“Rent control doesn’t reflect the economics of housing. It discourages investment in housing, and by doing so, it creates a shortage of supply and disinvestment in the housing supply that we already have. And the cost of labor has gone up significantly, insurance costs have doubled since the pandemic,” said Nicholas Kikis, vice president of Legislative and Regulatory Affairs at the New Jersey Apartment Association. “We’re seeing rising utility costs, those are going up tremendously. Appliance costs, the costs of materials. So we’re seeing all of these cost drivers on the expense side, and it’s important that owners be able to recapture those costs through rents, because otherwise we’ll see a decline in quality of housing, or we’ll see owners struggle to provide services and stay in business.

The Passaic ordinance does allow owners to apply for higher increases if they’ve made capital improvements or other major repairs to a housing unit.

A bill was passed by the Assembly earlier this year that establishes a state standard for “unconscionable rent increases,” in light of the growing eviction and homelessness rates in New Jersey over the last few years. It hasn’t moved in the Senate, though. In the meantime, Make the Road is working on establishing rent control ordinances in other cities, like Perth Amboy and Elizabeth.