Which certificates you need to sell or rent a home, town by town in New Jersey
Certificate of occupancy Woodbridge NJ: resale and rental rules
Confirm with the Woodbridge Township offices before you rely on this page. Woodbridge has no certificate of continued occupancy; what a sale (or refinance) needs is the Bureau of Housing's Certificate of Compliance, a smoke, carbon-monoxide and sanitary-sewer discharge inspection that also requires every open permit to be closed. The fee depends on notice before the change of occupant: $50 per unit with more than ten business days, $70 with four to ten, $125 with fewer than four; payment is exact cash or bank check only; the certificate is handed over at the inspection and is valid 60 days. There is no online form: the application is taken by phone and the caller must give the buyer's name and contact details. Rentals need annual registration and an annual inspection, whose fees are not on the fetched forms. The fee sheet is labelled 2021 by its file name only and still lists the fire extinguisher. Sources on the town's own site: Certificate of Compliance - fees and requirements for resale of reside (undated); Instructions for Residential Resale & Rentals (undated); Rental Registration Form - single & multiple unit rental (undated). State rule for every sale or lease of a one- or two-family home: N.J.A.C. 5:70-2.3 (text). Last checked 24 October 2026.
| Question | Answer | The town's own words |
|---|---|---|
| Municipal certificate needed before a sale | Yes: Certificate of Compliance ('Smoke Detector Inspection', Residential Sale/Refinance) from the Bureau of Housing: smoke, CO, fire extinguisher and sanitary sewer discharge inspection. No Certificate of Continued Occupancy. | Please be advised that the Township of Woodbridge does not require the issuance of a Certificate of Continued Occupancy; however, the Township does require a Smoke Detector inspection as per Ordinance adopted by the Township of Woodbridge on April 15, 1980 |
| Municipal certificate needed before a new tenant | Yes: Annual Rental Registration and Annual Rental Inspection (Bureau of Housing); fee not stated on the fetched forms | Physical Inspections for BOTH Certificate of Compliance and Annual Rentals are being performed. |
| Smoke and CO alarm certificate (state rule N.J.A.C. 5:70-2.3) | Township of Woodbridge, Department of Planning and Development, Bureau of Housing (732-634-4500 ext 6009), fee $50.00 / $70.00 / $125.00 per unit depending on notice | FEES: The request fee for a certificate of smoke detector, carbon monoxide alarm and portable fire extinguisher compliance as required by N.J.A.C. 5:70-2.3, shall be based upon the amount of time remaining before the change of occupants is expected as follows: |
| Fee: Request received more than ten (10) business days prior to the change of occupant | $50.00 per unit | received more than ten (10) business days prior to the change of occupant: fifty ($50.00} dollars per unit. |
| Fee: Request received four (4) to ten (10) business days prior to the change of occupant | $70.00 per unit | received four (4) to ten (10) business days prior to the change of occupant: seventy ($70.00) dollars per unit. |
| Fee: Request received fewer than four (4) business days prior to the change of occupant | $125.00 per unit | received fewer than four (4) business days prior to the change of occupant: one hundred twenty-five ($125.00} dollars per unit. |
| How long the certificate stays valid | 60 days from the date of inspection | The Certificate of Compliance is valid for 60 days from the date of inspection. |
| How early to apply | No deadline stated; fee is lowest when requested more than 10 business days before the change of occupant; closing date required when applying | You must also have a closing date. |
| Who applies | Not stated; application is taken by phone (732-634-4500 ext 6009) and the caller must supply the buyer's name, address, e-mail and phone; form not available online | Form NOT available on-line. Call 732-634-4500 x:6009 to schedule. |
| Last rule change on record | Fee schedule cites Ord.# 05-23 and Ord. #05-93; document filename dated 2021; still lists the fire extinguisher requirement | (Ord.# 05-23; Ord. #05-93) |