Real listings. Honest community notes.

The word 'approximately' in a bedroom count is a significant red flag. A legitimate listing knows exactly how many legal bedrooms it has. 'Approx. 5 bedrooms' strongly suggests one or more rooms don't meet NJ legal bedroom requirements — no egress window, no closet, unpermitted conversion, or insufficient square footage. Pull the permit history before visiting and ask the agent directly to clarify which bedrooms are legally permitted as such. Don't assume the bedroom count will hold up to inspection or appraisal.

Heads up - the listing shows 6 bedrooms but the property description only accounts for 5 (2 on the 1st floor, 3 on the 2nd). The extra appear to be basement office rooms with a separate entrance. Worth asking the agent where the other bedrooms are before you visit — and pull the permit history to see if that basement was ever legitimately converted. Also worth knowing for anyone considering this as an investment — Garfield's housing department is notably attentive when it comes to school enrollment. The city cross-references rental occupancy against school enrollment records, so if you're running this as a multi-unit and tenants have school-age kids, you'll want proper lease agreements in place that accurately reflect who's living there and in which unit. Landlords who aren't buttoned up on this have found themselves on the city's radar. Do it right from the start.