Aerial view of Hoboken on Aug. 6, 2024. (Reena Rose Sibayan / The Jersey Journal)
2025 ended with uncertainty for New Jersey’s affordable housing market due to decisions from city council meetings and state investigations. But, now as of January, it may be looking up.
Read about what’s going on in this month’s Jersey Escrow—where all your housing information is stored.
A new year brings new housing to the Garden State—or at least that’s what advocates and communities hope for in 2026 due to law A4/S50, which was first signed in 2024 by former state Gov. Phil Murphy. A4/S50, backed by advocates, like Fair Share Housing Center, encourages New Jersey municipalities to adopt and file affordable housing plans by Dec. 31, 2025.
In a press release from January, Fair Share Housing reports that 380 state municipalities have adopted and filed affordable housing plans. Forty municipalities that have not done so have until March 15, 2026 to do so. Despite the municipalities that have yet to take action, the center says this is “unprecedented.”
“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,” said Executive Director Adam Gordon.
In order to fill the need for affordable housing across the Garden State, municipalities have begun to consider unconventional sites for development; one of those being strip malls and office parks.
Newly-elected state Gov. Mike Sherill proposed this during her campaign in 2025, promising to collaborate with local governments to figure out a plan that works for the structure of each municipality and maximizes under utilized spaces.
Closer to home, Jersey City Planning Board unanimously approved mixed-use redevelopment in Ward F that makes room for affordable housing. The plan is to develop an eight-story building on 33 Pacific Avenue with 99 total units—15 of which will be set aside for affordable housing.
Know any New Jersey housing news or resources we should include? Email Chelsea Pujols at [email protected].
