Selling in the City of Camden
Camden the city and Camden the county are easy to mix up, and for a seller the difference is real. The county takes in dozens of suburbs; the city is just under nine square miles on the river across from Philadelphia, with its own rules on resale, rentals and rent levels. This page covers the city only. If your house is in one of the surrounding towns, call us anyway, since we buy across New Jersey, but the city-specific steps below will not apply.
About two out of three homes in the city are rented. A cash sale suits several situations that come with that: a landlord with rent-controlled units, a family handling a parent's house, or an owner whose building has stood empty so long that nobody can live in it. It fits each of them because we buy without repairs, without emptying the house and without a lender who needs a certificate or appraisal first.
- 71,791residents in the 2020 census; 71,430 estimated for July 2025
- 34.4%owner-occupancy rate (ACS 2020–2024)
- $112,000median owner-estimated home value (ACS 2020–2024)
- $1,226median gross monthly rent (ACS 2020–2024)
Source: U.S. Census Bureau QuickFacts, Camden city, New Jersey. Survey values reflect owners' estimates, not closed sales.
Neighborhoods and Houses We Buy
The Camden Redevelopment Agency has neighborhood plans for Cramer Hill, Downtown, East Camden, Fairview, North Camden, Parkside and Waterfront South, and the city has other neighborhoods besides those. Across all of them we buy rowhomes, twins, single-family houses, two- to four-unit buildings, corner properties with a storefront and vacant lots. A house that is boarded up, has no working utilities or has been stripped inside is still a house we will price.
The city sits along two rivers, so flooding is a fair question on some blocks. New Jersey requires every seller, since March 20, 2024, to answer the state's flood risk questions on the disclosure form, and that includes a sale to us. Answer them as fully as you can; the answers do not change how we buy, because we take the house in its current condition.
The City's Resale Certificate
Camden requires a certificate before the sale or conveyance of any property in the city. Its building bureau calls it the Camden Resale Occupancy Certificate, or C.R.O.C., and some of its older wording calls the same requirement a Certificate of Continued Occupancy. The key points from the city's own guidance:
- Who applies: the seller. A buyer can apply as the seller's agent with the seller's written permission.
- Who receives it: the buyer, not the seller, because it travels with the new ownership.
- Fees: $200 for the application, plus a separate $64 fire safety fee.
- Time limit: an application is good for six months; after that a new one, with new fees, is needed unless permits are still open.
- Open permits: every open building permit must be closed out before the inspection, and no certificate is issued while any remain open.
- Penalties: a buyer who closes without the certificate remains liable for penalties of up to $2,000 until it is issued.
- Houses nobody can live in yet: the buyer can sign an Agreement To Not Occupy, committing to pull permits, do the work and apply for a certificate of occupancy.
That last option is how we buy houses that need real work. You do not have to fix the house to pass an inspection; we sign the agreement, take on the permits and do the work after settlement. If a contractor left a permit open years ago, tell us early, because it has to be closed before anything else moves. A rental also needs a separate inspection when its occupancy changes, handled by the Housing Bureau (856-757-7075). The state's smoke and carbon monoxide alarm certificate is part of the picture for one- and two-family houses as well.
Property Taxes, Liens and the Tax Office
Property taxes are paid to the Bureau of Revenue Collections at City Hall, 520 Market Street, Room 117, open to walk-ins from 8:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. on weekdays; questions can also go to tax@camdennj.gov. Bills are quarterly. In 2026 the third-quarter bill went out late in the summer, after the city received its certified tax rate, so the city let owners pay it without interest until September 21, and kept the fourth-quarter due date at November 1.
The bureau holds an annual tax lien sale and assigns city-held liens to investors when it can. It also offers installment agreements and a homeowner's application for lien reduction, so an owner with a lien should ask about both before deciding anything. When you sell, the title company orders an official tax search from the same office, and every unpaid quarter and lien comes out of the proceeds at closing. The general rate for 2025 was 3.687 per $100 of assessed value, and the effective rate, adjusted for assessment level, was 2.329. For more on liens, see selling with a tax lien in New Jersey.
Water Service and Final Bills
Water in the city is billed in the City of Camden's name, while the system is run through American Water Contract Services from its Camden Operations Center at 100 South 17th Street. Customer service is (866) 371-2623, and bills can be paid in person at City Hall, Room 117, on weekday mornings. The city also lists the SHARES customer assistance program for households that are behind.
When we buy, the title company asks for the final water figure and pays it with the other balances at settlement, so no water bill trails you after the move. If the water has been shut off at a vacant house, that is fine; we do not need it on to make an offer, though the city's rental inspections do require utilities to be on.
Rent Control and Rental Rules
Camden has had a rent control ordinance since March 12, 1981. Under it, when a lease ends, a landlord cannot raise the rent by more than the lesser of two numbers: the past year's consumer price index for the Philadelphia area, or 6% of the current rent. Landlords register each year with the Rent Control office in City Hall, Room 101, and the office keeps a file on residential properties that owners and tenants can review.
The Housing Bureau inspects rental units at a change of ownership or occupancy and issues a Rental Approval Certificate before anyone moves in, with a license for buildings of three or more units. Its checklist requires current taxes, utilities on, and registration with both Rent Control and the Municipal Clerk's office in Room 105.
New Jersey's Anti-Eviction Act sits on top of all of this. Selling the building is not a lawful reason to remove a tenant, and a lease in place at the sale binds the next owner. Tenants stay; we step into their leases at the rents the rent control rules allow, and receive the security deposits with interest at settlement. If your registration has lapsed or the base rents are unclear, bring what records you have and we will work from them. More detail is on our rental property page.
Vacant and Foreclosed Houses
The city is now the administrator for foreclosed vacant properties, and questions about them go to camdenVPR@camdennj.gov. If your house is vacant and a foreclosure has started, that registration is one more obligation stacking up on top of the mortgage, taxes and insurance.
Camden County's sheriff holds foreclosure sales on the first and third Wednesday of each month at noon, in the Camden City Council Chambers on the second floor of City Hall, 520 Market Street. Until that auction you can still sell, and the proceeds pay off the lender. After a sale, the court's guidance gives the owner ten days to redeem. If you sign a contract while in foreclosure, New Jersey's Foreclosure Rescue Fraud Prevention Act lets you cancel until midnight of the tenth business day, and the buyer cannot take or record a deed before then; our timeline allows for it. The full process is on our New Jersey foreclosure page.
County Offices for a Camden City Sale
| Task | Office | Why it matters to you |
|---|---|---|
| Deeds and mortgages | Camden County Clerk, Room 102, 520 Market Street ((856) 225-5300) | The deed and transfer fee are recorded here. The clerk also runs a Property Alert System for owners. |
| Probate | Camden County Surrogate, 509 Lakeland Road, Blackwood (856-225-7282) | An executor or administrator needs letters from the Surrogate before selling an inherited house. |
| Foreclosure auctions | Camden County Sheriff, foreclosure unit (856) 225-5531 | Sales are held at City Hall on the first and third Wednesday. Your sale must close before yours is called. |
| Contested foreclosures | Superior Court, General Equity, Camden Vicinage | If you answer the complaint, a judge hears the case here. |
| Tax appeals | Camden County Board of Taxation, through the city's Office of Assessments (City Hall, Room 329) | The city assessor processes appeals filed with the county board or the Tax Court. |
Estates are common in the city, and the inheritance tax rules decide what waiver the title company needs: Class A heirs such as children and spouses owe no tax, but the title company usually still wants a waiver, often Form L-9. Our inherited house guide walks through it.
Free Help in Camden
- South Jersey Legal Services, 745 Market Street, 1-800-496-4570: free civil legal help for eligible residents.
- City Senior Services and Emergency Assistance, 1000 North 6th Street: programs for older residents and rental and utility help for households in hardship.
- Camden tax office, City Hall Room 117: ask about installment agreements and the lien reduction application.
- NJ Housing and Mortgage Finance Agency, 1-800-NJ-HOUSE, and the Legal Services of New Jersey hotline, 1-888-576-5529.
If one of these lets you keep the house, take that route. A sale to us makes sense when keeping the property costs more than it is worth to you, not before.
Our Process for a Camden House
- Send the address or call, and tell us about occupancy, condition, open permits, liens and any foreclosure date.
- We visit once and give you a written figure, usually within a day.
- We apply for the resale certificate as your agent, or sign the Agreement To Not Occupy if the house needs work.
- The title company orders the tax search, the water figure and the mortgage payoff, and pays them from the price.
- You sign in person or with a mobile notary on the day you chose.