Bayonne officials say the city will stop approving new short-term rental applications and will not renew existing ones once their current terms run out, effectively winding down a registration program that has drawn complaints from residents in quiet residential pockets of the city. The decision comes after months of pushback over noise, parking and safety concerns tied to rentals operating in neighborhoods never built for revolving-door guests.
Officials Signal the Program's End
Mayor Sharon Ashe-Nadrowski said Bayonne will not approve new short-term rental applications as existing approvals reach the end of their terms, according to TAPinto Bayonne. Council President Melissa Godesky-Rodriguez indicated the city intends to end the existing program altogether, the outlet reported, adding that she said back in September the city intended to freeze existing rentals and address alleged abuses of the program. Bayonne adopted its short-term rental regulations in 2024 under the previous administration, and current officials say those rules have done little to resolve residents' concerns.
The frustration isn't new. Multiple residents pressed the Bayonne City Council at a Sept. 16 meeting to revisit the ordinance, according to Citizen Portal, arguing that units were operating beyond a 60-day limit and causing noise, safety and parking problems. Residents also told the council that enforcement relies largely on owner self-reporting, a system they said has let problem properties keep operating for long stretches.
A West 42nd Street Property Drew Repeated Complaints
Bayonne has continued to receive complaints about disruptive short-term rentals in otherwise quiet residential neighborhoods, per TAPinto Bayonne. Residents complained of excessive noise, late-night gatherings, people coming and going at all hours, litter and parking problems. One property on West 42nd Street was described by residents as drawing gatherings that reportedly attracted as many as 20 to 30 people, the outlet reported.
Business Administrator Andrew Casais said the current short-term rental program is not working as intended and that the regulations lack enforcement mechanisms to address rule-violating or problematic properties, according to the same TAPinto Bayonne report. Bayonne officials believe the ordinance's penalties have not sufficiently stopped problematic operations, and Casais said he could not say whether the city might eventually consider a different regulatory approach altogether.
What the 2024 Ordinance Actually Requires
Bayonne's short-term rental rules trace back to Ordinance O-24-37, adopted June 12, 2024, which amended the city's planning regulations. Under the ordinance, a short-term rental is defined as occupancy by someone other than the owner or a permanent resident for 60 days or fewer consecutively, and operators must obtain a city permit before a property is rented or advertised. The ordinance also requires annual city registration, sets an initial registration fee of $1,000 with a $750 annual renewal fee, and generally requires property owners to live on site — though it allows certain existing operators with prior city registration and passed inspections to keep operating.
Enforcement under the ordinance allows for permit revocation once a property is the subject of three or more substantiated complaints, and it sets fines of up to $2,000 per violation, with a minimum of $100 per violation for each day the violation continues. Even so, officials now say those tools haven't been enough to rein in repeat offenders.
Bayonne Isn't Alone in Grappling With Airbnbs
Bayonne officials previously acknowledged fielding complaints about short-term rentals even before this latest round, with one city official telling Hudson County View, “We are seeing some complaints.” That report also noted North Bergen has sought to regulate short-term rentals ahead of the World Cup Finals, while Kearny and Weehawken have banned or prohibited them outright.
Neighboring cities have taken their own swings at the issue. Jersey City limits short-term rentals to 60 days per year when the owner is off site but sets no annual cap if the owner lives on the property, rules a federal appeals court upheld in a 2022 decision, according to nj.com. In Hoboken, officials moved to introduce a regulating ordinance after a disturbance at a rental property prompted a SWAT response, as reported by CBS New York. Hoboken Mayor Emily Jabbour said that city's proposed rules would bar short-term rentals in rent-controlled properties entirely and cap owners at 60 days annually.
