Hoboken to End City-Only Housing Preference Following Civil Rights Settlement

Settlement with Attorney General Platkin and Division on Civil Rights expands access to affordable housing and addresses racial impact of residency requirement.

MORRISTOWN, N.J. — The City of Hoboken has agreed to revise its affordable housing policy and eliminate a city-only residency preference that state investigators found may have discriminated based on race, following a settlement announced by Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin and the New Jersey Division on Civil Rights (DCR).

The agreement resolves a civil rights complaint alleging that Hoboken’s 2019 ordinance—Municipal Ordinance Amendment B-175, which gave priority to current Hoboken residents for affordable housing—had a racially disparate impact, effectively excluding applicants from nearby, more diverse communities.

DCR launched an investigation after receiving a complaint from a Black Jersey City resident who had remained on an affordable housing waitlist for five years but was blocked from applying under the Hoboken-only preference. The Division found that the policy may have violated the New Jersey Law Against Discrimination (LAD) by disproportionately excluding individuals from surrounding towns with larger minority populations.

Key Policy Changes and Settlement Terms

Under the settlement, Hoboken will take several corrective steps:

Elimination of the Hoboken-only preference in favor of a regional preference for applicants from COAH Region 1 (Hudson, Bergen, Passaic, and Sussex counties), reinstating the broader geographic eligibility that existed before the 2019 ordinance.
Reinstatement of waitlist positions for individuals previously denied or skipped due to the now-revised preference.
Opportunity for reinstatement of applicants who were removed from the list for missing annual recertifications, if their original application predated the ordinance change.
Screening of previously skipped applicants for current eligibility to apply for affordable housing units.
Allocation of at least $30,000 toward affordability assistance and fair housing initiatives.
Mandatory anti-discrimination training for Hoboken staff involved in housing administration.

These changes will apply to new affordable housing units constructed to meet Hoboken’s 2025–2035 obligations under the Mount Laurel doctrine and state affordable housing law.

State Officials Emphasize Equity and Fair Access

Attorney General Platkin framed the settlement as a necessary step toward correcting systemic barriers to affordable housing.

“This agreement will make it easier for eligible low-income people to access affordable housing in a part of our state where rents are skyrocketing and affordable housing opportunities are at a premium,” said Platkin. “Housing discrimination continues to deny too many New Jerseyans the opportunity to access safe, affordable housing.”

DCR Director Yolanda N. Melville highlighted the broader significance of the policy reform.

“Discrimination has no place in affordable housing policy,” said Melville. “This settlement is a significant step forward in our mission to promote equal access to housing for all New Jersey residents.”

Legal Context and Enforcement

The New Jersey Law Against Discrimination prohibits not only overt discrimination but also policies that, while facially neutral, have a disparate impact on protected groups. DCR’s investigation concluded that Hoboken’s local-only preference likely excluded non-residents in neighboring, racially diverse areas from affordable housing opportunities.

The agreement ensures compliance with state civil rights law and reinforces the state’s commitment to equitable access in housing programs.

The DCR investigation was conducted by Deputy Associate Director Iris Bromberg and Investigator Charles Washington, with legal representation by Division of Law Civil Rights Section Chief Nancy Trasande and Deputy Attorneys General Douglas Praschak, Mia Dohrmann, and Geoffrey McGee.

More information on New Jersey’s housing discrimination laws and resources is available at www.njcivilrights.gov.