Delaware Residential Lease Agreement
The Delaware Residential Landlord-Tenant Code governs residential rental agreements in the state, and a lease term that conflicts with it is unenforceable. The Code caps the security deposit at one month's rent on leases of a year or more, caps late charges at 5 percent of monthly rent, and requires 60 days' written notice to end a tenancy.
What Delaware law does to this document
Security deposit cap and escrow account
A landlord may not require a deposit of more than one month's rent where the rental agreement is for one year or more. The limit does not apply to furnished units. The deposit must be placed in an escrow account at a federally insured bank with an office that accepts deposits in Delaware, and the landlord must disclose the location of the account to the tenant. A pet deposit is capped at one month's rent regardless of the lease term.
25 Del. C. § 5514(a), (b), (i)Return within 20 days
Within 20 days after the agreement ends the landlord must give the tenant an itemized list of damages with estimated repair costs and pay the balance of the deposit. Failure to send the list is an acknowledgment that nothing is owed for damages. A landlord who misses the deadline owes double the amount wrongfully withheld. Failing to keep the deposit in a qualifying account forfeits it to the tenant.
25 Del. C. § 5514(e), (f), (g)Late charges
A late charge may not exceed 5 percent of the monthly rent and may not be imposed within 5 days of the due date. The landlord must keep an office or other permanent place to receive rent in the county where the unit is located. Without one, the time to pay is extended 3 days beyond the due date. A late charge counts as additional rent.
25 Del. C. § 5501(d)Sixty days' notice to end or change the lease
A landlord or tenant ends a fixed-term agreement by giving at least 60 days' written notice before the term expires. A month-to-month tenancy also takes 60 days' written notice, counted from the first day of the month after the notice is given. A landlord who wants to renew on changed terms, including a new rent, must give 60 days' written notice before expiration, and the tenant is treated as accepting unless the tenant gives notice of termination at least 45 days before the term ends.
25 Del. C. §§ 5106, 5107Entry requires 48 hours' notice
The landlord must give at least 48 hours' notice of intent to enter and may enter only between 8:00 a.m. and 9:00 p.m. The notice is not required for repairs the tenant requested, and the landlord may enter at any time in an emergency. A tenant may waive the 48-hour notice in a signed addendum only for showings to prospective tenants or purchasers.
25 Del. C. § 5509(b)Required disclosures
Every written rental agreement must prominently disclose the names and usual business addresses of the owners or their appointed resident agents, and the tenant must receive a free copy of the agreement. At the start of the term the landlord must also give the tenant the summary of the Landlord-Tenant Code prepared by the Consumer Protection Unit of the Attorney General's Office. If the summary is not provided, the tenant may plead ignorance of the law as a defense.
25 Del. C. §§ 5105, 5118Where people go wrong in Delaware
- Charging a nonrefundable move-in, cleaning or pet fee, when the Code bars nonrefundable fees as a condition of occupancy other than optional fees for actual services such as a pool.
- Leaving the generator's suggested answers in place: the draft uses the entry notice, deposit return period and deposit account you type in, so enter 48 hours and 20 days and name the Delaware escrow bank, and note that it does not state the 8:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. entry window or include the Attorney General's Code summary.
- Adding a clause in which the tenant waives rights under the Code or agrees to a confession of judgment, which is unenforceable and can cost the landlord three months' rent if the landlord knowingly tries to enforce it.
How the generator works
A current residential lease, fixed-term or month-to-month, covering rent, deposit, maintenance, and the disclosures landlords now have to make. Answer a short interview and the draft assembles as you go, with Delaware already set as the governing state. Download it as PDF or Word. No fee. No account.