We Buy Houses for Cash in Paterson, NJ

Paterson has its own layer of local rules that a seller can run into: a certificate for each rental turnover, a rent leveling code, a steep fee for vacant buildings, and design review near the Great Falls. Swifty Home Buyers buys Paterson houses for cash in their current condition. Our offer is firm, with no financing contingency, no agent commission and no repair requests, and you decide when to close. The sections below summarize what the city's own code and web pages say. Details and fees change, so confirm with the city or a local attorney. Treat this as general information rather than legal advice.

Areas we cover: Downtown, Great Falls, Eastside, Eastside Park, Sandy Hill, Hillcrest, Totowa Section, Manor Section, Lakeview, South Paterson, Riverside, Wrigley Park

Paterson's construction code sets a $151 fee for a certificate of occupancy for a new building or a continuing certificate of occupancy on an existing building when it is solely residential with no more than two units, $30 per unit (minimum $151) for solely residential buildings over two units, and $35 for a temporary certificate. Ask the construction office whether your property needs a certificate before a resale. The city's 2022 lead service line ordinance, number 22-037, also tells the Construction Official to deny a certificate of occupancy or CCO for a property until its lead service line is replaced.

Chapter 381 applies to dwellings of three or more units when the owner lives on site, and to two or more units when the owner does not. It exempts single-unit buildings, hotels and motels, licensed rooming houses, substantially rehabilitated structures, and subsidized housing, and new construction for the shorter of the mortgage amortization period or 30 years. Without going to the board, a landlord may ask for an annual increase of no more than 5%, or 3.5% where the head of household is 65 or older or disabled, with 30 days of written notice. The code says those caps apply until the city adopts a cost of housing index by ordinance, so confirm the current figure. Landlords must register every unit with its rent. Fines for illegal increases run from $100 to $1,500. The Rent Leveling office is at 125 Ellison Street, first floor, (973) 321-1242 ext. 2285.

• You own a Paterson two- or three-family where tenants turn over often and each move-in means another re-rental inspection.
• You inherited a vacant Paterson house and the $2,000 annual vacant building registration fee is adding up.
• You own a Paterson rental from out of town and are tracking nonresident owner registration and rent leveling filings.
• Your Paterson house sits in a historic district and you would rather not plan exterior repairs around commission review.
• Your Paterson property has an unpaid sewer balance or an unreplaced lead service line you would rather not deal with.

• Selling a house in New Jersey
• Sell as-is
• Inherited house
• Foreclosure

• Paterson City Code Chapter 183: Construction Codes, Uniform (certificate of occupancy fees)
• Paterson City Code Chapter 175: Certificates of Re-Rental Approval and Compliance
• Paterson City Code Chapter 381: Rent Leveling
• Paterson City Code: Rent increase restrictions (section 381-14)
• City of Paterson: Rent Leveling office
• Paterson City Code: Vacant Buildings (Chapter 271)
• Paterson City Code: Abandoned Properties (Chapter 157)
• Paterson City Code Chapter 371: Property Registration
• Paterson City Code: Sewer User Charges (Chapter 407)
• Paterson City Code Chapter 90: Service Charges
• Paterson City Code: Water Commission and Mandatory Replacement of Lead Service Line
• City of Paterson: Historic Preservation Commission
• City of Paterson: Downtown Commercial Historic District
• City of Paterson: Land Development Ordinance, historic preservation
• City of Paterson: Housing Division

Last reviewed: September 2026. General information only, not legal or tax advice. Rules vary by county and municipality and change over time; talk to a local real estate attorney or title company before you decide.