Estimated values: The U.S. Census suppresses field-level data for small places. Estimated from constituent census tracts, pop-weighted from real underlying ACS data.
Tenant beats landlord
50.6%
/ 100 outcomes
In court-decided eviction outcomes for Barnegat Light, NJ, tenants prevail in roughly 50.6% of contested cases. A higher number means landlords face stronger tenant defenses, longer calendars, and more required documentation, and landlord-friendliness drops as this rises.
Timeline
190d
filing → judgment
From the moment an unlawful-detainer notice is filed in Barnegat Light, NJ until a money judgment is entered, a contested eviction takes about 190 days on average. Longer timelines mean more lost rent and higher carry costs for landlords.
Cost range
$11.3–25.3k
legal + lost rent
A typical eviction in Barnegat Light, NJ costs landlords $11,312 to $25,275 all-in, covering court filing fees, process-server costs, attorney time, and lost rent during the calendar between filing and possession.
Average rent
$1,359
39% stretched on rent
Average gross rent in Barnegat Light, NJ is $1,359 per month per the U.S. Census American Community Survey (5-year 2023). 39% of renter households here spend more than 30% of pre-tax income on rent, the federal cost-burden threshold.
Renters
5.1%
of households
5.1% of occupied housing units in Barnegat Light, NJ are renter-occupied (vs owner-occupied). A higher renter share usually correlates with more eviction filings, more turnover, and a more active rental market.
Poverty
3.7%
18.8% unemp.
3.7% of Barnegat Light, NJ residents live below the federal poverty line, and unemployment runs at 18.8%. Both feed into the economic-stress sub-score in our Eviction Risk Score model because rent payment problems track poverty + joblessness more reliably than any other single signal.
Time machine
Scrub 50 years
197619861996200620162026
2026
● LIVE · today◀ REPLAY · historical
Nine-axis profile
9-axis profile · today
Shape of the risk surface
1 landlord · 10 tenant
Sub-scores · with sparkline
Where the score comes from
1 → 10 scale
Local political climate
GOP margin +36.0% (2024)
4.2
Regional political climate
County-weighted neighbor mix
4.2
State political climate
New Jersey legislature & governorship
6.8
Economic stress
3.7% poverty · 18.8% unemp.
6.1
Supply constraint
$1,359 average · 5.1% renters
2.5
Rent Control risk
39.3% of income on rent
5.6
Eviction process difficulty
190 days filing → judgment
6.1
Tenant organizing strength
5.1% renters
2.5
Housing court bias
County bench composition
4.6
Geographic context
Risk heat across Barnegat Light and the region
Click any city to see its score
How Barnegat Light compares
Risk score vs. peers, county, state, and the U.S.
Rank in Ocean County
High
#9of 45 cities
#9 of 45 cities in Ocean County for landlord eviction risk.
Rank in New Jersey
Low
#483of 696 cities
#483 of 696 cities in New Jersey for landlord eviction risk.
vs. county · state · U.S.
Score story
Six-stop tour of the risk profile
6.9
/ 10 · ELEVATED
The verdict
A Elevated-tier market.
Composite 6.9/10. Mid-range market; standard documentation usually wins. The 50-year curve shows a sharp climb.
50-yr trend+3.3 over 50 yr
197620012026
Steepening since 2010 · COVID inflection visible
190d
Typical timeline
The money
What renting (and evicting) looks like.
Rent published at $1,359/mo. A contested eviction takes 190 days and costs $11,312–$25,275 per case.
50-yr trendCalendar drag rising since '15
197620012026
Court-clerk data lands in the next release.
5.1%
Renters
The renters
Who you'll be renting to.
Out of 500 residents, 5.1% rent. 39% are spending 30%+ income on rent, 3.7% below the poverty line.
50-yr trendRenter share rising
197620012026
ACS 1970-present · once the migration overlay is in.
4.2
Local + regional
The politics
Mid-range climate. Not a coastal market.
Local & regional political climate score 4.2 and 4.2 (GOP margin +36.0% (2024)). State climate at 6.8, a mid-range statehouse.
50-yr trendTracks county vote margin
197620012026
Built on 50-yr presidential margins back to 1976.
6.8
State politics
The process
Moderate calendar, moderate friction.
State political climate 6.8/10 sets the legislative ceiling for landlord remedies, and it shows up in the process. Eviction process difficulty reads 6.1, housing court bias 4.6, rent-control risk 5.6. Standard process speed for the state.
50-yr trendProcess difficulty +1.1 since '00
197620012026
Court-clerk data lands in the next release.
6.1
Economic stress
The stress
Economic pressure is the background risk.
Economic stress: 6.1. Supply constraint: 2.5. The numbers behind those: 3.7% poverty, 18.8% unemployment, 39% of income on rent.
50-yr trendTwo visible dips · '08 + COVID
197620012026
Mirrors BLS unemployment series.
US eviction landscape · timeline × all-in cost
Barnegat Light sits in the slow & expensive quadrant
Bubble size = population · color = risk score
Barnegat Light · 190d · ~$18.3k all-in ($96/day) · score 6.9National average: 58d · $4.6k all-inHover any bubble for stats · click to openColor: 0–4 4–7 7–10
Landlording in Barnegat Light, New Jersey, presents an elevated-friction market where documented notices and proactive screening matter. The Eviction Risk Score is 6.9/10 (ELEVATED tier), drawn from the nine sub-axes shown above, covering rent-control exposure, eviction-process difficulty, housing-court bias, tenant-organizing strength, supply constraint, economic stress, and local, regional, and state political climate. This is not a quick-fix market: it's a Elevated-friction market where lease drafting, screening discipline, and well-documented notices materially change outcomes.
Barnegat Light is a city of 500 residents where 5.1% of occupied units are renter-occupied, and the typical renter spends 39.3% of income on rent. At an average rent of $1,359/month, the typical renter household here spends more than the federal 30% threshold on housing, a leading indicator of payment volatility and a precondition for the kinds of tenant defenses that show up most often in housing court.
01Process
How Barnegat Light eviction process actually works
Eviction process difficulty here reads 6.1/10, a number that combines statutory complexity (notice categories, just-cause rules, mandatory pre-filing disclosures) with operational realities (court calendar length and clerk responsiveness). The typical contested filing in Barnegat Light closes 190 days after the initial notice. For non-payment of rent the first step is a properly-formatted, properly-served pay-or-quit notice; for material lease breaches it's a cure-or-quit; for tenancies under just-cause protection an at-fault grounds notice (or a no-fault notice with statutory relocation assistance) is required.
The slow part of Barnegat Light's timeline is usually the calendar, not the motion practice. Housing court bias scores 4.6/10 here, meaning judges read borderline procedural defects in the tenant's favor more often than the national norm. The practical implication: every notice and every proof of service needs to be airtight before it gets filed.
02Cost
What it costs (and how long it takes)
An all-in eviction in Barnegat Light runs $11,312 to $25,275 per case once you account for filing fees, attorney time, lost rent during pendency, sheriff lockout, and unit turnover. That range is wide because the upper bound assumes a tenant answer plus motion practice, common when housing court bias is high. The lower bound assumes a default judgment after proper service.
For landlords running the numbers on holding costs vs. cash-for-keys: if your projected timeline times your monthly rent already exceeds the high-end cost number, cash-for-keys at 1–2 months' rent is typically the economically rational choice. With 190 days of typical timeline and $1,359/month in lost rent, that crossover happens fast here.
03Operations
Security deposits, screening, and lease terms
Tenant organizing strength scores 2.5/10 in Barnegat Light, and the city has limited rent control exposure (5.6/10). Operations practice that survives audit in this environment looks like:
Screening discipline. Document income (verified at 2.5 to 3x rent), credit (with a clear minimum), and prior-tenancy reference checks, but do not screen on protected categories or source-of-income where banned. Keep a written, consistent screening criteria document for every applicant.
Lease specificity. Use a state-specific lease that names every term clearly: rent due date, late fees within statutory caps, deposit handling, smoke and CO disclosure, lead paint disclosure (pre-1978 stock), and a clean attorney's-fees clause.
Security deposit handling. Itemize deductions within the statutory window. Photograph move-in/move-out condition. In New Jersey, deposit cap and refund window are statute, so exceed them at your own risk.
Mid-tenancy documentation. Keep date-stamped records of every rent receipt, every habitability request, every notice served. The day you need them in court is too late to start.
04Strategy
What an everyday landlord should actually do here
If you own one to four units in Barnegat Light: hire a property manager who knows the local court. The pricing differential between self-managing and hiring out is small relative to the cost of one botched eviction in a ELEVATED tier market. If you own five or more: build relationships with a local landlord-side attorney before you need one, since retainer fees are negligible compared to emergency-rate billing when an eviction is already moving.
The avoidable mistakes here are all upstream of the filing: weak screening, an informal lease, sloppy rent receipts, and notice templates pulled off the internet that don't match New Jersey's statutory language. Fix those four, and most cases settle or default. Skip them, and a $25,275 all-in fight is the realistic worst case.
04bPractical traps
Local traps to avoid in Barnegat Light
Trap · 6/10
The 6/10 score combines local political climate, court bias, cost-of-eviction, tenant organizing strength, and the likelihood of new tenant-protective legislation. See the breakdown above for Barnegat Light-specific sub-scores.
05FAQ
Frequently asked questions
Q1
Can I evict a tenant in Barnegat Light for no reason?
No. New Jersey is a "just cause" eviction state. You must have a legally recognized reason to evict a tenant, such as non-payment of rent, property damage, or a lease violation. You cannot terminate a tenancy without cause, even at the end of a lease term, unless specific conditions are met, like you moving into the unit yourself.
Q2
How long does it typically take to evict someone in Barnegat Light?
Our data shows a typical eviction timeline of 190 days in Barnegat Light, New Jersey. This is an average and can vary depending on the specifics of the case, tenant defenses, and court backlog. It's a lengthy process.
Q3
What is the maximum security deposit I can charge in New Jersey?
You can charge a maximum of 1.5 times the monthly rent for a security deposit. For example, if rent is $2,000/month, the maximum deposit is $3,000.
Q4
Are there rent control laws in Barnegat Light?
Barnegat Light itself does not have local rent control ordinances. However, New Jersey does have state laws that can impact rent increases, especially for certain types of properties or under specific circumstances. It's important to understand the statewide rules. Learn more at New Jersey rent control rules.
Q5
What should I do if my tenant stops paying rent?
Immediately issue a 3-day pay-or-quit notice. If the rent isn't paid within three days, file for eviction in court. Consider offering "cash for keys" as an alternative to a lengthy eviction. It's highly recommended to consult with an attorney specializing in landlord-tenant law at this stage.
Q6
Does New Jersey protect tenants based on their source of income?
Yes, New Jersey has statewide source-of-income protection. This means you cannot discriminate against applicants or tenants based on lawful income sources, such as Section 8 vouchers, disability benefits, or alimony. Your screening must focus on consistent application of criteria like credit and rental history.
A 6.9/10 places Barnegat Light in the 31st percentile of New Jersey cities on the Eviction Risk Score index. The score is the average of the nine sub-axes, all calibrated on a national 1 to 10 scale where 1 is most landlord-friendly and 10 is most tenant-protective. The 50-year reconstruction shows this score has risen sharply since 1976, a structural drift driven by court-calendar growth, rent-control adoption, and the rise of tenant-side legal aid. The trajectory matters more than the snapshot: the score is the climate, not the weather.
Cities with similar eviction risk to Barnegat Light (6.9/10)
Same risk band nationally · click any city for its full breakdown.
