Getting your deposit back in Bergen County, NJ: the courthouse, the boards, and who helps
You do not need a lawyer to sue for a deposit here. On the county's median rent, a full-deposit case lands in the Special Civil Part at the Hackensack courthouse - but that depends on your deposit, not the median, and the check below settles it. The rules behind it are the state's, not the county's: New Jersey law governs the deposit in all 70 municipalities, for the 123,102 households that rent here. What is local is everything around the rule: which courthouse hears the case, which towns keep a rent board, where the landlord is registered, and who will help for free.
Where you stand
Your deadline, your numbers, and why no Bergen County ordinance changes either.
Has your landlord missed the 30-day deadline?
Two fields, ten seconds - the math follows N.J.S.A. 46:8-21.1, the same statute in every Bergen County town. Add your deposit to see what you can demand and which Hackensack track the doubled claim lands on.
The rules themselves: 30 days, doubled, one and a half months
These rules come from New Jersey state law, not from the county. We checked the published code of all 70 Bergen County municipalities against the state's 2026 survey: not one has a deposit ordinance of its own, so a landlord who tells you it works differently in Hackensack, Bergenfield or Cliffside Park is wrong.
The Rent Security Deposit Act, N.J.S.A. 46:8-19 to 46:8-26, reads the same in every Bergen County town. The New Jersey page has the full text and the case law; this is the short version.
- 30 days
- to return it after you move out
- 2x
- what a court awards on money wrongfully kept
- 1.5 months
- the most any NJ landlord may collect
The clock starts the day the tenancy ends - usually the day the keys go back - and runs 30 days, five business days if fire, flood or condemnation put you out. Miss it, or keep money without an itemized reason, and the court doubles what was withheld: "shall", not "may", with costs on top. The same doubling applies at the Hackensack courthouse as anywhere in the state. The statute in full, the exemptions and the case law are on the New Jersey page.
What a deposit dispute looks like in Bergen County, in numbers
- $1,914
- median monthly rent
- $2,871
- the most a landlord may hold on it
- 123,102
- renter households - 35% of the county
The median Bergen County renter pays $1,914 a month, so the deposit on a median unit tops out at $2,871 - one and a half months is the state cap. If a landlord keeps all of it past the 30 days, the claim is that amount doubled, $5,742, which is over the $5,000 Small Claims line: a typical full-deposit case in this county files in the Special Civil Part, on the longer form with the higher fee. Smaller deposits - anything under $2,500 - stay in Small Claims.
Rent boards in 26 of the 70 municipalities
Rent control is the one landlord-tenant rule New Jersey towns set locally, and 26 towns in Bergen County keep a board. None of it touches deposits - the cap and the 30 days are the state's everywhere - but a board knows its local landlords, which is worth a call when a management company has gone quiet.
The 26 Bergen County boards, and the towns without one
| Municipality | Covers | Annual limit | Board |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bergenfield | 2 family dwellings where the owner is not resident, 3+ | No more than 4% | Rent Leveling Board (201) 387-4055 ext. 4151 |
| Cliffside Park | buildings of 3 or more units | No more than 5% of prior base rent; no more than 3% of prior base rent for senior citizens and tenants with disabilities (as defined within the Senior Citizens and Disabled Protected Tenancy Act) | Rent Leveling Board (201) 945-3456 |
| Dumont | buildings of 3 or more units | 1.5% of the current rent, or the percentage increase of the Consumer Price Index for the NY, NY-Northeastern NJ area based upon an average of the previous 12 months, whichever is greater. The 12-month increase shall not exceed 5% in its entirety. Hardship increases may be approved by the Rent Leveling Board. | Rent Leveling Board (201) 387-5034 |
| East Rutherford | buildings of 3 or more units | 5.5%. Hardship or capital improvement increases may be approved by the Rent Board, but capital improvement increases shall not exceed 15% of tenant's rent. | Rent Control Board (201) 933-3444 |
| Edgewater | buildings of 3 or more units | Maximum of 5% if landlord pays heat, 3.5% if tenant pays heat, and 3.5% for qualified senior and disabled tenants; Additional rent control provisions if a dwelling is found to be "substandard" by the Borough's Supervisor of Multiple Dwellings. Hardship or capital improvement increases may be approved by the Rent Board. | Rent Leveling Board (201) 943-1700 ext. 3133 |
| Elmwood Park | buildings of 4 or more units | 2.5%. Property tax surcharge and capital improvement increase may be approved, but capital improvement increase cannot exceed 10% of the tenant's rent. | Rent Leveling Board (201) 796-1457 ext. 204 |
| Englewood | every rental unit | 4%; Upon vacancy, base rent may be increased up to the highest base rent charged for a rental unit within the same premises having the same or fewer number of rooms. Hardship or capital improvement increase may be approved by Hearing Officer. | Administrative Hearing Officer (201) 871-6637 |
| Fair Lawn | every rental unit | 4% or percentage increase of the CPI for NY-Northeast NJ, whichever less. On vacancy of a housing unit, no landlord may request or receive a new rental for said housing unit in excess of 10% of the maximum rent last charged for said housing unit, and only one increase in any 12-month period permitted. Hardship or capital improvement increases may be approved by Board. | Rent Leveling Board (201) 564-6152 |
| Fairview | buildings of 3 or more units | 7% not less than $20.00 not more than $35.00. 3% for qualified seniors or disabled persons. | Rent Leveling Board (201) 943-3300, Ext. 280 |
| Fort Lee | every rental unit | 5%. For qualified seniors or disabled tenants, use MAP formula. Class 1 MAP: Operating Costs Adjustment (OCA) + Tax Adjustment (TA) + Utilities Adjustment (UA) + Prior Year Carryover (PYC). Class 2 MAP: OCA + TA + PYC. | Rent Leveling Office (201) 654-3036 |
| Hackensack | buildings of 3 or more units | 5% if landlord pays 4.5% if tenant pay 1% off for seniors | Rental Stabilization Board (201) 646-3920 x2020 |
| Hasbrouck Heights | buildings of 3 or more units | 5%, 2.5% for a qualified senior citizen tenant. Exemption application permitted for capital expenditures and extreme hardship | Rent Board (201) 288-0195 |
| Leonia | buildings of 3 or more units | Maximum increase is lesser of 5% and the percentage difference between the CPI of the Leonia region 3 months prior to expiration/termination of lease and 3 months prior to commencement of lease. Minimum increase is 3%. | Rent Leveling Board (201) 592-5752 |
| Little Ferry | buildings of 3 or more units | Percentage difference between CPI 90 days prior to expiration of lease and CPI 90 days prior to date lease was entered, up to 10% | Rent Leveling Board (201) 641-9234 |
| Lyndhurst | buildings of 4 or more units | 5.5%. Hardship or capital improvement increases may be approved, but capital improvement increase cannot exceed 10% of rent. Landlords may also qualify for "tax base rent adjustment" based on increase in municipal real property tax. | Rent Leveling Board (732) 247-0922 x440 |
| Maywood | buildings of 3 or more units | 4.25%. Hardship and capital improvement increases may be approved. | Rent Advisory Board (201) 845-2900 x 203 |
| Moonachie | Mobile Homes only | Not more than the percentage increase in the CPI for the NY-Northeast NJ region. Tenant-owned and park-owned homes should apply allowable percentage to corresponding sum of tenant- or park-owned base rents and dividing by corresponding number of such homes in park. Increases for hardship or capital improvements may be approved. | Mobile Home Park Rent Leveling Board (201) 641-1813 |
| New Milford | buildings of 4 or more units | Not to exceed 2%. Hardship surcharge may be approved. | Rent Leveling Board (201) 967-5044 |
| North Arlington | buildings of 3 or more units | 4% if tenant pays for heat and hot water. If landlord pays for heat and hot water: 5% if current rent is $325 or under, 4.5% if current rent is between $325 and $499.99, 4% if current rent is $500+. 2% for senior tenants age 65 or older | Rent Leveling and Control Board (201) 991-6060, ext. 111 |
| Palisades Park | buildings of 4 or more units | 4% | Rent Leveling Board (201) 585-4100 |
| Ridgefield | buildings of 3 or more units | CPI-U NY/Northern NJ/Long Island, NY-NJ-CT-PA 90 days prior to proposed increase and first day of month 12 months prior to effective date. If tenant pays heat: Minimum of 2% and maximum of 3.5%. If landlord pays heat: Minimum of 2.5% and maximum of 4%. | Rent Leveling Commission/Tenant Advocate (201) 943-5215 |
| Ridgefield Park | buildings of 3 or more units | CPI increase during previous calendar year. Maximum for tenants who pays for heat is 75% of same figure. | Rent Stabilization Board (201) 641-9125 ext. 5 |
| River Edge | buildings of 5 or more units | 4% | Rent Leveling Board (201) 599-6303 |
| Rutherford | buildings of 4 or more units | 4% 2.5% if all tenants age 65+ and have a combined gross income of $50,000 or less. | Rent Board (201) 460-3000 ext. 3114 |
| Teaneck | buildings of 3 or more units | CPI NY/Northern NJ percentage increase in the 12 month period preceding the proposed increase. | Administrative Monitoring Officer (201) 837-1600 |
| Wallington | buildings of 4 or more units | CPI 90 days prior to expiration/termination of lease and date lease is entered into. 6% maximum for dwellings with more than 50 units. | Rent Leveling Board (973) 777-0318 ext. 1 |
No rent control: Allendale, Alpine, Bogota, Carlstadt, Closter, Cresskill, Demarest, Emerson, Englewood Cliffs, Franklin Lakes, Garfield, Glen Rock, Harrington Park, Haworth, Hillsdale, Ho-Ho-Kus, Lodi, Mahwah, Midland Park, Montvale, Northvale, Norwood, Oakland, Old Tappan, Oradell, Paramus, Park Ridge, Ramsey, Ridgewood, River Vale, Rochelle Park, Rockleigh, Saddle Brook, Saddle River, South Hackensack, Tenafly, Upper Saddle River, Waldwick, Washington, Westwood, Wood-Ridge, Woodcliff Lake, Wyckoff. In those towns the rent is whatever the lease says, and the deposit is still capped at one and a half months of it.
One town had a board and dropped it: Teterboro (repealed September 14, 1999). An older lease may still mention the ordinance; it no longer applies, and it never touched the deposit either way.
The courthouse, and how you file
The Hackensack window, the form your claim needs, and what it costs here.
Where a Bergen County deposit case is filed
Deposit lawsuits go to the Special Civil Part of the Superior Court, which sits by county. You file in the county where the landlord lives or does business - not where you live - and if the landlord is out of state, in the county where the rental is. A Hackensack tenant whose landlord runs the building from the next county over files there; a Hackensack tenant with a Hackensack landlord files here. The Special Civil Part window is in the Bergen County Justice Center, Room 427.
- The courthouse
- Bergen County Justice Center
Special Civil Part (Small Claims Section)
10 Main Street, Room 427, Hackensack, NJ 07601 - Phone and hours
- 201-221-0700 ext. 25250
Mon - Fri: 8:30 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. - Small Claims Section
- Claims up to $5,000. Filing fee $35, plus $5 for each additional defendant.
- Special Civil Part
- Claims up to $20,000. Filing fee $50 to $75.
The Hackensack office in practice
Checked on September 4, 2026 against the court's own pages. Rooms, hours and phone extensions change without notice - confirm with the office before you rely on any line below.
- Special Civil Part / Small Claims line - the courthouse number above
- 201-221-0700 ext. 25250
- Landlord-tenant line
- 201-221-0700 ext. 25230
Free help inside the courthouse. The vicinage's Ombudsman office - Bergen County Justice Center, 10 Main Street, Room 125, Hackensack, NJ 07601, 201-221-0700 ext. 25103, [email protected] - explains forms and procedure to people without a lawyer, Monday through Friday, 8:30 am to 4:30 pm. Staff cannot give legal advice, but they can tell you which form, which window, and what is missing from your file before you pay the fee.
Settling before the judge. On the hearing date the court sends both sides to a settlement conference first; many deposit cases end there with a payment plan.
Filing here: the Bergen County layer
The procedure is the state's - what is local is the window you hand it to. Filing to judgment in New Jersey, in four steps has the sequence, the exhibit stack and the hearing itself. Here is the Bergen County layer.
- Before you file
- Send the demand letter by certified mail first, citing N.J.S.A. 46:8-21.1 and the 30-day deadline, and give it 10 to 14 days. A judge will ask whether the landlord had a chance to pay, and the letter becomes your first exhibit.
- Your form
- Up to $5,000 it is the Small Claims kit; above that the Special Civil Part complaint. Enter your deposit in the check at the top and this page names your form.
- Where to hand it in
- The Special Civil Part window, 10 Main Street, Room 427, Hackensack, NJ 07601 - in person during court hours, by mail to the same address, or online through JEDS. One copy of the complaint per defendant.
- What it costs here
- $35, plus $5 for each additional defendant in Small Claims, $50 to $75 in the Special Civil Part. A fee waiver is available if you cannot afford it - ask the clerk for the form when you file.
The Hackensack office at 201-221-0700 ext. 25250 can tell you the current wait - count on two to three months from filing to a hearing date in most vicinages.
The forms, from the court itself
Looking things up, and getting help
The landlord's legal name and address, which of 70 Bergen County clerks holds it, and who helps for free.
Finding the landlord's mailing address
A demand letter needs an address, and the one on the lease is often a management office that has since moved. Under New Jersey's Landlord Identity Law your landlord had to register the owner's name and address - with the municipal clerk for one- and two-unit buildings, with the state for anything larger - and the clerk's copy is public. The lookup below has the clerk for every one of Bergen County's 70 municipalities.
4 Bergen County cities run their own rental registries on top of the state filing - an inspection or licensing office that holds the current owner and managing agent for every registered rental. Where your building is in one of them, that office is usually quicker than the clerk.
- Hackensack · Continued Certificate of Occupancy (CCO) for rental of one- and two-family homes (Department of Building, Housing and Land Use) · 201-646-3920
CCO application (owner name and contact, property address, tenant information) is required for sale or rental of one- and two-family homes; $100 one-family, $150 two-family; applications by appointment only. No public lookup shown; call 201-646-3920 or visit 65 Central Ave, Hackensack, NJ 07601 (CCO instructions list 116 Holt Street).
- Fort Lee · Registration of Newly Rented Apartments (Rent Leveling Board forms RLB-21 / RLB-18) and Landlord Identity Registration (Rent Leveling Office, administered by the Fort Lee Housing Authority; Landlord Identity Registration via Borough Clerk) · 201-676-3008
Landlords must register each new rental and tenant with the Rent Leveling Board within 60 days (forms RLB-21 for apartments, RLB-18 for condo/coop/one-family); the borough also collects the Landlord Identity Registration form. No public lookup shown; contact Rent Leveling Administrator Sylvia Ruiz at 201-676-3008 ([email protected]) or Assistant Marleny Sanchez at 201-654-3036, 1403 Teresa Drive, Fort Lee.
- Englewood · Certificate of Rental Occupancy (pre-occupancy inspection of each residential rental unit, Code Chapter 325 Rental Property) (Building and Code Enforcement) · 201-871-6642
Landlord (owner, managing agent or rental agent) must obtain a new certificate of occupancy for each unit before each new tenant, so the application identifies the responsible owner/agent. No public lookup shown; call 201-871-6642 or visit 2-10 North Van Brunt Street, Englewood, NJ 07631 (Mon-Fri 9-5).
- Cliffside Park · Certificate of Continued Occupancy - Rental (Building Department)
Borough posts a Certificate of Continued Occupancy - RENTAL application on the Building Department applications page (contents not verifiable - site returned 403).
Where the landlord's registration is filed: the municipal clerk
New Jersey's Landlord Identity Law makes every landlord file a registration statement - the owner's legal name and address, and the managing agent's - and for one- and two-unit buildings it is filed with the clerk of the municipality the rental is in (larger buildings register with the state Department of Community Affairs). The clerk's copy is a public record. Pick your town for the office that holds it.
All 70 municipal clerks in Bergen County
| Municipality | Clerk's office | Phone |
|---|---|---|
| Allendale Borough | 500 West Crescent Avenue, Allendale, NJ 07401-1726 | (201) 818-4400 |
| Alpine Borough | 100 Church Street, Alpine, NJ 07620-1000 | (201) 784-2900 |
| Bergenfield Borough | 198 North Washington Avenue, Bergenfield, NJ 07621-1352 | (201) 387-4055 |
| Bogota Borough | 375 Larch Avenue, Bogota, NJ 07603-1067 | (201) 342-1736 X 223 |
| Carlstadt Borough | 500 Madison Street, Carlstadt, NJ 07072-1549 | (201) 939-2850 |
| Cliffside Park Borough | 525 Palisade Avenue, Cliffside Park, NJ 07010-0206 | (201) 945-3456 |
| Closter Borough | 295 Closter Dock Road, Closter, NJ 07624-2645 | (201) 784-0600 |
| Cresskill Borough | 67 Union Avenue, Cresskill, NJ 07626-2130 | (201) 569-5400 |
| Demarest Borough | 118 Serpentine Road, Demarest, NJ 07627-2128 | (201) 768-0167 |
| Dumont Borough | 50 Washington Avenue, Dumont, NJ 07628-3694 | (201) 387-5022 |
| East Rutherford Borough | One Everett Place, East Rutherford, NJ 07073-1701 | (201) 933-3444 |
| Edgewater Borough | 55 River Road, Edgewater, NJ 07020-1017 | (201) 943-1700 |
| Elmwood Park Borough | 182 Market Street, Elmwood Park, NJ 07407-1407 | (201) 796-1457 |
| Emerson Borough | 146 Linwood Avenue, Emerson, NJ 07630-1865 | (201) 262-6086 |
| Englewood City | 2-10 North Van Brunt Street, Englewood, NJ 07631-2707 | (201) 871-6636 |
| Englewood Cliffs Borough | 482 Hudson Terrace, Englewood Cliffs, NJ 07632-2906 | (201) 569-5252 |
| Fair Lawn Borough | 8-01 Fair Lawn Avenue, Fair Lawn, NJ 07410-1829 | (201) 796-1700 |
| Fairview Borough | 59 Anderson Avenue, Fairview, NJ 07022-2029 | (201) 943-3300 |
| Fort Lee Borough | 309 Main Street, Fort Lee, NJ 07024-4799 | (201) 592-3500 |
| Franklin Lakes Borough | 480 DeKorte Drive, Franklin Lakes, NJ 07417-1914 | (201) 891-4000 |
| Garfield City | 111 Outwater Lane, Garfield, NJ 07026-2621 | (973) 340-2000 |
| Glen Rock Borough | 1 Harding Plaza, Glen Rock, NJ 07452-2100 | (201) 670-3956 |
| Hackensack City | 65 Central Avenue, Hackensack, NJ 07601-4202 | (201) 646-3980 |
| Harrington Park Borough | 85 Harriot Avenue, Harrington Park, NJ 07640-1500 | (201) 768-1700 |
| Hasbrouck Heights Borough | 320 Boulevard, Hasbrouck Heights, NJ 07604-1316 | (201) 288-0195 |
| Haworth Borough | 300 Haworth Avenue, Haworth, NJ 07641-1298 | (201) 384-4785 |
| Hillsdale Borough | 380 Hillsdale Avenue, Hillsdale, NJ 07642-2731 | (201) 666-4800 |
| Ho-Ho-Kus Borough | 333 Warren Avenue, Ho-Ho-Kus, NJ 07423-1594 | (201) 652-4400 |
| Leonia Borough | 312 Broad Avenue, Leonia, NJ 07605-1820 | (201) 592-5780 |
| Little Ferry Borough | 215-217 Liberty Street, Little Ferry, NJ 07643-1726 | (201) 641-9234 |
| Lodi Borough | One Memorial Drive, Lodi, NJ 07644-1696 | (973) 365-4005 |
| Lyndhurst Township | 367 Valley Brook Avenue, Lyndhurst, NJ 07071-1810 | (201) 804-2457 |
| Mahwah Township | 475 Corporate Drive, Mahwah, NJ 07430-3603 | (201) 529-5757 |
| Maywood Borough | 15 Park Avenue, Maywood, NJ 07607-2015 | (201) 845-2900 |
| Midland Park Borough | 280 Godwin Avenue, Midland Park, NJ 07432-1836 | (201) 445-5790 |
| Montvale Borough | 12 DePiero Drive, Montvale, NJ 07645-1816 | (201) 391-5700 |
| Moonachie Borough | 70 Moonachie Road, Moonachie, NJ 07074-1140 | (201) 641-1813 |
| New Milford Borough | 930 River Road, New Milford, NJ 07646-3043 | (201) 967-5044 |
| North Arlington Borough | 214 Ridge Road, North Arlington, NJ 07031-6036 | (201) 991-6060 |
| Northvale Borough | 116 Paris Avenue, Northvale, NJ 07647-1592 | (201) 767-3330 |
| Norwood Borough | 455 Broadway, Norwood, NJ 07648-1302 | (201) 767-7200 |
| Oakland Borough | One Municipal Plaza, Oakland, NJ 07436-1827 | (201) 337-8111 |
| Old Tappan Borough | 227 Old Tappan Road, Old Tappan, NJ 07675-7049 | (201) 664-1849 |
| Oradell Borough | 355 Kinderkamack Road, Oradell, NJ 07649-2182 | (201) 261-8200 |
| Palisades Park Borough | 275 Broad Avenue, Palisades Park, NJ 07650-1594 | (201) 585-4100 |
| Paramus Borough | 1 Jockish Square, Paramus, NJ 07652-2737 | (201) 265-2100 |
| Park Ridge Borough | 53 Park Avenue, Park Ridge, NJ 07656-1252 | (201) 573-1800 |
| Ramsey Borough | 33 N. Central Avenue, Ramsey, NJ 07446-1807 | (201) 825-3400 |
| Ridgefield Borough | 700 Shaler Boulevard, Ridgefield, NJ 07657-1626 | (201) 943-5215 |
| Ridgefield Park Village | 234 Main Street, Ridgefield Park, NJ 07660-2500 | (201) 641-4950 |
| Ridgewood Village | 131 North Maple Avenue, Ridgewood, NJ 07450-3287 | (201) 670-5500 |
| River Edge Borough | 705 Kinderkamack Road, River Edge, NJ 07661-2439 | (201) 599-6300 |
| River Vale Township | 406 Rivervale Road, River Vale, NJ 07675-5723 | (201) 664-2346 |
| Rochelle Park Township | 151 West Passaic Street, Rochelle Park, NJ 07662-3105 | (201) 587-7730 |
| Rockleigh Borough | 26 Rockleigh Road, Rockleigh, NJ 07647-2706 | (201) 768-4217 |
| Rutherford Borough | 176 Park Avenue, Rutherford, NJ 07070-2310 | (201) 460-3000 |
| Saddle Brook Township | 55 Mayhill Street, Saddle Brook, NJ 07663-4899 | (201) 587-2900 |
| Saddle River Borough | 100 East Allendale Road, Saddle River, NJ 07458-3040 | (201) 327-2609 |
| South Hackensack Township | 227 Phillips Avenue, South Hackensack, NJ 07606-1624 | (201) 440-1815 |
| Teaneck Township | 818 Teaneck Road, Teaneck, NJ 07666-4535 | (201) 837-1600 |
| Tenafly Borough | 100 Riveredge Road, Tenafly, NJ 07670-2016 | (201) 568-6100 |
| Teterboro Borough | 510 Route 46 West, Teterboro, NJ 07608-1000 | (201) 288-1200 |
| Upper Saddle River Borough | 376 W. Saddle River Road, Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458-1621 | (201) 327-2196 |
| Waldwick Borough | 63 Franklin Turnpike, Waldwick, NJ 07463-1809 | (201) 652-5300 |
| Wallington Borough | 24 Union Boulevard, Wallington, NJ 07057-1219 | (973) 777-0318 |
| Washington Township | 350 Hudson Avenue, Township of Washington, NJ 07676-4731 | (201) 664-4404 |
| Westwood Borough | 101 Washington Avenue, Westwood, NJ 07675-2001 | (201) 664-7100 |
| Woodcliff Lake Borough | 188 Pascack Road, Woodcliff Lake, NJ 07677-7921 | (201) 391-4977 |
| Wood-Ridge Borough | 85 Humboldt Street, Wood-Ridge, NJ 07075-2344 | (201) 939-0202 |
| Wyckoff Township | 340 Franklin Avenue, Wyckoff, NJ 07481-2060 | (201) 891-7000 |
List from the county's own directory, checked September 4, 2026.
Free help in Bergen County
- Northeast New Jersey Legal Services - Bergen County office · 201-487-2166
190 Moore Street, Suite 100, Hackensack, NJ 07601. Free civil legal help for lower-income residents, including tenant matters.
- Volunteer Lawyers for Justice · 973-645-1955
Statewide pro bono program that helps tenants draft deposit demand letters and prepare pro se complaints against landlords who kept a deposit.
- Legal Services of New Jersey hotline · 1-888-576-5529
Statewide intake line for free legal help, 1-888-LSNJ-LAW.
If it goes wrong
What losing costs, whether they can retaliate, and how a Bergen County judgment is actually collected.
Before you file: the three things people worry about
- What if I lose?
- You are out the filing fee and the time. You are the one suing, so losing leaves you where you started and puts no eviction on your record. What losing actually costs - and the one point most failed claims turn on - is on the New Jersey suing page.
- Can the landlord retaliate?
- After a move-out, barely - the tenancy is over and you are the plaintiff. If you still rent from them, New Jersey bars reprisals for exercising a legal right. The full answer is on the New Jersey suing page; in Bergen County the ombudsman at the Bergen County Justice Center and Northeast New Jersey Legal Services - Bergen County office both take the question in person, for free.
- If I win, how do I get paid?
- The court does not collect for you - a judgment is an instrument you enforce, and judgments against landlords are unusually collectable. Collecting your judgment walks through levy, garnishment and liens. The writ is issued by the Vicinage 2 (Bergen) clerk at the same Hackensack window you filed at.
Build your case
The case builder runs on New Jersey law, which is exactly the law that applies here. It checks the 30-day deadline against your move-out date, grades each deduction, and writes the demand letter with the statute cited - the letter that becomes Exhibit A at the Hackensack courthouse if it comes to that.
Build your case →Sources
- NJ Department of Community Affairs, 2026 Rent Control Survey (all 564 municipalities)
- Superior Court of New Jersey, Vicinage 2 (Bergen) - NJ Courts Special Civil Part directory, 2024-11-13
- NJ Courts, Bergen vicinage - offices and ombudsman pages
- NJ Courts, Lawsuits $5,000 or less (Small Claims)
- Northeast New Jersey Legal Services - Bergen County office
- U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2024 5-year, tables B25064 and B25003 (via Census Reporter)
- Rent Security Deposit Act, N.J.S.A. 46:8-19 to 46:8-26 (official text)
Court, board and legal-aid details checked on September 4, 2026. Phone numbers and fees change; confirm with the office before you rely on one. Not reviewed by a licensed attorney, and not legal advice.