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Landlords usually do not need a reason for deciding not to renew a lease. As long as their reasons are not discriminatory or retaliatory, in most states, landlords can simply decline to offer a new lease and are then free to stick to their guns.

However, your state of New Jersey -- along with New Hampshire and some rent control cities -- marches to the beat of a different rule. In these places, landlords cannot refuse to renew unless they have a legally recognized reason -- called just cause -- for doing so. The New Jersey statute setting out this uniquish twist is Section 2A:18-61.1. All of the reasons you can refuse to renew are spelled out in the letter of the law: failure to pay the rent, refusal to agree to a reasonable change in tenancy terms, destruction of the premises and other objectionable behavior. Unless your tenant has misbehaved in a way specifically recognized by law, you cannot refuse to renew.

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