AirBnB friendly cities in NJ?

[Uneeq Khan]

Newbie looking to AirBnB in NJ. Wanted to know if anyone recommends any city that are AirBnB friendly. Even buildings with lease that are AirBnB friendly.

[Ryan Goldfarb]

@Uneeq Khan - I'm a little late to the party here, but, as you can imagine, short-term rental regulations are a bit of a unique beast in NJ.

While STRs are legal at the state level -- and subject to NJ Sales Tax and the State Occupancy Fee on rentals less than 90 nights -- many municipalities differ on their approaches to these types of rentals.

Certain municipalities almost entirely prohibit STRs/Airbnbs. Others permit them with certain conditions (minimum required stays, maximum # of occupied days per year, primary occupancy requirements, etc.). But many municipalities are silent on them entirely, meaning they don't have ordinances one way or another. 

Enforcement is another story, too.

While you would think looking at Airbnb would shed light on where regulations permit STRs, it really doesn't offer much. Many people list on platforms like Airbnb regardless of the legality. Some will do so in compliance with the township's requirements. Others will not, either out of ignorance or blatant disregard for the law.

The best thing to do is to choose your desired municipality and google "[city name] short term rental ordinance" (and variants of that). 

Unfortunately, as has been the case with places like Jersey City, a municipality can be quite permissive of short-term rentals -- passing ordinances to permit them with leniency -- and then reverse course once the complaints start rolling in.

All that said, we've had a fair amount of success with STRs in NJ. If you're diligent in your research and understand the risks and the landscape, you can be, too. Feel free to reach out with any questions!