New Affordable Housing Law Delivers Results: Nearly All NJ Towns Resolve Challenges by Dec. 31 Deadline

Following the December 31 deadline for municipalities to resolve challenges to their Housing Element and Fair Share Plans, Fair Share Housing Center announced today that approximately 380 municipalities have developed compliant plans — an unprecedented level of participation and compliance in the state’s affordable housing process.

Earlier this year, a record 423 municipalities adopted and filed housing plans, far more than ever before. In the months since, the new Affordable Housing Dispute Resolution Program — created by NJ’s new affordable housing law, A4/S50 — successfully guided towns and advocates through a structured mediation process that has resolved the overwhelming majority of disputes without years of costly litigation.

While the vast majority of municipalities acted in good faith, a small number — approximately 40 towns — did not reach agreements by the December 31 deadline. Even among those towns, while some advanced bad faith interpretations of the law, others have only minor disputes remaining that are likely to be resolved in the next month or two. For these towns, the Affordable Housing Dispute Resolution Program will issue a recommendation on the plan that can then be reviewed in a court proceeding. Under the new law, all municipalities will have until March 15 to file a revised housing plan and adopt implementing ordinances and resolutions.

New Jersey’s landmark new affordable housing law, signed by Gov. Murphy in March 2024, streamlined the development process, codified a transparent methodology for determining municipal obligations, and created new tools and incentives to encourage compliance. For the first time, all municipal housing plans are publicly available online, ensuring accountability at every stage — from planning to construction.

“What we’re seeing is nothing short of a sea change,” said Adam Gordon, executive director of Fair Share Housing Center. “For decades, New Jersey’s affordable housing system was bogged down by delay and litigation. This new law is working exactly as intended — bringing towns to the table, resolving disputes efficiently, and moving us toward the actual construction and preservation of affordable homes.”

Many of New Jersey’s largest suburbs have now finalized strong plans that will create and preserve affordable housing through smart growth strategies, including the redevelopment of outdated malls, office parks, and other underutilized sites. Communities across the state are planning mixed-income housing near transit, partnering with nonprofit developers, and expanding opportunities for seniors, people with disabilities, and first-time homebuyers.

Prior to the passage of A4/S50, many of these same municipalities spent years — and in some cases decades — locked in litigation over their affordable housing requirements. Under the new law, towns were given clear obligations, predictable rules, and a fair opportunity to resolve disputes through mediation rather than protracted court battles. The result is a process that is faster, more transparent, and far more productive.

In New Jersey, the constitutional obligation for each municipality to allow its fair share of affordable homes, known as the Mount Laurel Doctrine, is recalculated every 10 years in cycles known as Rounds. Each municipality’s obligations are calculated by looking at factors in various regions of the state — such as job growth, existing affordability, and the growth of low- and moderate-income households — which determines an individualized requirement for affordable housing.

Ahead of the Fourth Round, NJ's new affordable housing law (A4/S50) — sponsored by Senate President Nicholas Scutari, Senate Majority Leader Teresa Ruiz, State Senator Troy Singleton, Assembly Speaker Craig Coughlin, and State Assemblymembers Yvonne Lopez, Benjie Wimberly, and Verlina Reynolds-Jackson — streamlined the affordable housing development process and codified the methodology used to determine each municipality’s obligations over the next decade. A broad range of advocates, including civil rights, disability rights, domestic violence, faith-based, homelessness, and planning organizations — as well as many municipal leaders — have supported the reforms.

New Jersey’s law gives towns a wide variety of tools to create affordable housing in the way they prefer. Municipalities can choose from a range of options — such as 100% affordable housing, mixed-income housing, supportive housing for seniors or people with disabilities, or repurposing abandoned malls or offices. Towns only lose their ability to be in control of the process when they refuse to allow affordable housing.

Examples of municipalities filing strong plans to create and preserve affordable housing under New Jersey’s new affordable housing law (A4/S50) include:

• East Brunswick Township will redevelop the Brunswick Square Mall into a mixed-income, mixed-use development and use town-owned land for a 100% affordable housing development for 25 families;
• Evesham Township will redevelop an outdated office park into mixed-income housing that also includes supportive housing for people with disabilities and partner with Habitat for Humanity to create new affordable homeownership opportunities for families;
• Galloway Township will redevelop multiple sites along the Route 9 and White Horse Pike corridors into mixed-income housing;
• Hamilton Township will create new affordable homes near the Hamilton Train Station and partner with local non-profit HomeFront and a local Catholic Church to create new homes for families and seniors;
• Paramus Borough will continue the recent success in redeveloping major shopping malls into mixed-income housing by allowing for more such conversions along the Route 17 corridor;
• Princeton will partner with local non-profit Princeton Community Housing to create new affordable housing and create new opportunities for mixed-use, mixed-income downtown redevelopment.

“At the end of the day, this is about people — teachers, nurses, seniors, veterans, families with young children, and people with disabilities — being able to afford to live in the communities they call home,” Gordon added. “New Jersey has shown that when the rules are fair and the process works, towns will step up. This law is laying the foundation for a more inclusive, more affordable future.”