05-17-11
Notice of the intended action is essential to the landlord obtaining a judgment of possession. First, a notice to cease must be sent providing a tenant with notice of the offending conduct and an opportunity to alter that conduct. RWB Newton Assocs. v. Gunn, 224 N.J. Super. 704, 709-10 (App. Div. 1988). Second, if the tenant does not cease the late payments, a notice to quit is mailed informing the tenant that the tenancy has been terminated and explaining the basis of the termination, thereby requiring the tenant to vacate the premises. See Carteret Props. v. Variety Donuts, Inc., 49 N.J. 116, 123 (1967). The Notice to Quit must "specify in detail the cause of the termination of the tenancy."N.J.S.A. 2A:18-61.2.
Accordingly, a landlord's failure to comply with the notice requirements negates the salutary purpose of the Act, precluding entry of judgment in favor of the landlord. Paige, supra, 346 N.J. Super. at 383-84. Because the Act "does not specify any limit on the number of months that must pass before the Notice to Cease becomes ineffective or must be reissued, nor does it state how many late payments of rent constitute 'habitual' late payment of rent under the statute[,]" the Court has instructed judges to apply "a flexible[,]" rather than a strict, time period so that a determination that the tenant's conduct is "habitual" becomes "a function of time and circumstances." A.P. Dev. Corp. v. Band, 113N.J. 485, 495-96 (1988).
