Exterior paint costs in Trenton

New Jersey checks older rentals for lead on a schedule. Under a 2021 state law, single-family, two-family and multiple rental dwellings built before 1978 have to be inspected for lead-based paint every three years or at tenant turnover, whichever comes first. A lead-safe certificate lasts two years. Seasonal rentals and homes certified lead-free are among the exceptions.

In Trenton, that rule reaches a big share of the housing. The city's median home dates from 1959, more than a decade older than the metro's 1972, so most of the city's homes were built before that 1978 line.

So if you own a rental here, peeling paint is something to fix on purpose, not something to leave for the next tenant, and if you hire the repaint out, it has to be done lead-safe by a certified crew.

Trenton also has eight historic districts designated by the city, Mill Hill among them. The guidance for Mill Hill says exterior renovation there needs review and approval by the city's Landmarks Commission, with the application in before work begins.

If your house is both a rental and in a district, line up the Landmarks application and the lead-safe work together, so one doesn't hold up the other.