Seventy-One Thousand People on Three Square Miles
Passaic packs more than 71,000 people onto about 3.1 square miles of land, which works out to over 22,000 residents per square mile in the 2020 count. By population it ranks third in Passaic County, behind only Paterson and Clifton. Fewer than one home in four is lived in by its owner, households average well over three people, and about 41% of residents are foreign-born. Most of what we are asked to buy here is a multi-family house with someone already living in at least one unit, or a family home that an owner has outgrown or inherited.
- 71,337people, July 2025 estimate (70,537 at the 2020 census)
- 23.8%of homes occupied by their owner (ACS 2020–2024)
- $429,900typical value of an owner-occupied home, 2020–2024 survey
- $1,465median gross monthly rent (ACS 2020–2024)
Census Bureau QuickFacts, City of Passaic.
Treat that median as a census average and nothing more. A detached one-family on a quiet block, a three-family with long-term tenants and a two-family with an unpermitted basement unit sit in different price worlds, and we price each one after walking through it.
The Occupancy Certificate Every Sale Needs
The city's Division of Housing, part of Inspections & Code at 330 Passaic Street, issues an occupancy certificate (OC) before a residential property can be transferred. It is a property maintenance and zoning inspection, not a building permit review, and the city is clear that passing it does not excuse any missing construction permits. The certificate is issued in the buyer's name, so the application has to list the buyer's full contact details or it sits on hold; an LLC buyer also supplies its registered agent and certificate of formation. The posted fees are $65 for a one-family house or a condo and $100 for a two-family; for three or more units the fee is calculated per building.
The city suggests applying at least two weeks before closing. When the house passes and every final approval is in, the continued occupancy certificate follows in five to seven business days, and a $300 expedite brings that down to five days or less. The inspection report goes by email to both seller and buyer. Cancelling needs 24 hours' notice; a missed visit, or one where inspectors reach fewer than 60% of the units, triggers a re-inspection charge of $50 or $20 a unit, whichever is lower.
| Paper | Who issues it | What to know |
|---|---|---|
| Occupancy certificate | Division of Housing, 973-365-5615 | $65 or $100 for one- and two-families; apply about two weeks ahead |
| Smoke and CO compliance | Fire Prevention, 973-365-5687 | $45 inspection, $25 re-check; good for three months and filed as part of the OC |
| Temporary occupancy certificate | Division of Housing | Escrow sized to the violations found; issued in two to three business days, valid 30 days |
| Notarized purchaser form | Signed by the buyer | Acknowledges that cellars may be used only for storage |
That purchaser form matters more in Passaic than in most towns. The city states plainly that sleeping in a cellar or renting it as a unit is illegal and that partition walls are not allowed down there. If your basement has been divided into rooms or rented, an inspection will find it. A conventional buyer's lender usually wants it cleared before closing. Our purchase leaves the cellar as we find it, and we make the correction ourselves after settlement, or through the temporary certificate, whose escrow the city holds and returns once the final inspection passes.
Smoke and Carbon Monoxide Alarms
Fire Prevention runs its own inspection, separate from the housing visit but filed as part of the occupancy certificate. Inspectors look for a smoke detector on every level, basement included, a smoke alarm and a carbon monoxide alarm outside each sleeping area and within ten feet of the bedrooms, and a horn and strobe where an attic with an egress window is occupied. For a building of three units or more, the city adds a hardwire report to the file. The approval is valid for three months, so a closing that slips past that window means booking a new visit. Once you accept our offer, the alarms, the scheduling and any re-check are our job.
Tenants, Registration and Rent Leveling
Passaic requires every landlord and tenant of a multiple dwelling to file a landlord-tenant registration with the Division of Housing under Chapter 185 of the city code, with a copy of the occupancy certificate attached; the form lists penalties of up to $2,000. Registrations sent in within 30 days of a new certificate are processed without the $25 per-unit charge. Owners of rental buildings also file an annual heating-system certification for each building before November 15. The city has a Rent Leveling Board at City Hall (973-833-8610) that can tell you whether your units come under local rent rules.
None of that has to be perfect for us to buy. Leases carry over to a new owner in New Jersey, a sale is not a lawful reason to remove a tenant, and security deposits with their interest pass to us at closing, with the tenants notified in writing. If the registrations lapsed or a unit was never listed, we take that on after settlement. The statewide landlord rules are laid out on our rental property sale page.
Property Taxes and the Tax Sale
The Tax Collector's office, reachable at 973-365-5530, bills four times a year, and each installment is due on the opening day of its quarter. Ten days of grace apply, pushed to the following business day if the last one is a Saturday, Sunday or holiday, but the money has to be in hand by then; a postmark does not count. Miss it and interest is charged from the quarter's first day, at 8% on the first $1,500 owed and 18% past that point, and the collector notes that nobody has the authority to forgive it. On the state's 2025 figures, Passaic's general tax rate was 4.258 and its effective rate 2.113 per $100 of value.
Unpaid taxes and municipal charges go to an online tax sale each year. The most recent posted notice set the auction for December 16, 2025, with bidders competing down from 18% interest and any lien nobody bought struck off to the city at the full 18%. If a certificate was sold on your house, request a redemption figure from the collector with the city's lien redemption form instead of relying on an old bill. When we buy, the title company pays that amount from the sale price. The tax lien page covers the owner protections added in 2024.
Water Lines and a City Repair Loan
Passaic Valley Water Commission supplies the city's water, and its records show lead or galvanized service lines in Passaic. The commission reports its replacement program as finished and still inspects a line on request, which is worth doing before you sign a disclosure. Separately, the city's 2026 Housing Rehabilitation Program offers owner-occupants of one- to three-family homes up to $20,000 per unit in major repairs, as a zero-interest loan forgiven only if the owner keeps title and lives there for ten years. If you took one of these loans and now want to sell sooner, call Community Development at 973-365-5641 for the balance; the title company will need it.
How Our Purchase Works in Passaic
- Send the address and tell us how the building is used: which units are rented, what the basement holds, whether the city has written to you.
- One visit, then a written figure, normally inside a day.
- We file the occupancy certificate in our name as buyer, book Fire Prevention and handle anything either inspection turns up.
- The settlement agent clears your mortgage, taxes and liens out of the purchase money and wires you the balance; signing can happen in person or before a notary near you.
Passaic is one of sixteen municipalities in Passaic County. We also buy in neighboring Clifton and nearby Paterson.
The city's Senior Affairs office (973-365-5754) handles information and referral, transportation and meals-on-wheels, kosher meals included. Northeast New Jersey Legal Services covers Passaic County; its Passaic office is closed to walk-ins for now, but staff are working remotely. Families handling an estate see the county Surrogate in Paterson by appointment, room 101 at 71 Hamilton, phone (973) 881-4760; letters are not issued until at least eleven days after the death.