Delaware Landlord-Tenant Law for DIY Landlords (2026)

Security deposits, the 5 percent late fee cap, 60-day notices, the 5-day rent demand and the summary possession timeline in Delaware, in plain English for landlords who manage their own rentals.

Last updated September 23, 2026

Delaware keeps almost everything a small landlord needs in one place, the Residential Landlord-Tenant Code at 25 Del. C. chapters 51 through 59. Two things catch out-of-state owners. Late fees are capped by statute, and most notices run 60 days instead of 30.

Here is what a Delaware landlord has to get right, with the code section behind each rule.

Security deposits

The cap is one month's rent. For a rental agreement of one year or more, you cannot take more than one month's rent as security. For a month-to-month tenancy the same one-month cap applies once the tenancy passes its first year. Furnished units sit outside the cap (25 Del. C. § 5514).

A pet deposit is capped separately. No more than one month's rent, no matter how long the term runs. You cannot charge a pet deposit for a service or support animal (§ 5514).

The money goes in escrow. Deposits belong in an escrow account at a federally insured bank with offices in Delaware, used only for deposits, and you have to tell the tenant in writing where that account sits. Skip either step and you forfeit the right to keep any part of the deposit (§ 5514).

You have 20 days to settle up. After the tenancy ends and you get possession back, you have 20 days to return the deposit or send an itemized list of damages with the estimated cost of repair. Miss the 20 days and you lose the right to withhold anything (§ 5514).

Wrongful withholding costs double. A tenant who proves you kept money you were not entitled to can recover double the amount wrongfully withheld (§ 5514).

Application fees are capped too. The greater of 10 percent of one month's rent or $50 (§ 5514).

Nonrefundable fees are out. You cannot charge a nonrefundable fee as a condition of occupancy. Optional service fees for something real, a pool or a tennis court, are fine. A tenant may offer a surety bond in place of a deposit if you accept one (§ 5311, § 5514A).

Late fees

Five percent, after five days. A late charge cannot exceed 5 percent of the monthly rent, and you cannot impose it within 5 days of the day rent was due (§ 5501(d)).

Add three days if you have no local office. If you keep no office or payment location in the county where the unit sits, the rent due date is treated as 3 days later for late fee purposes. Out-of-county owners lose three days before the clock starts (§ 5501(d)).

Rent increases and rent control

Sixty days' written notice. To renew a lease on modified terms, including a higher rent, you give written notice at least 60 days before the term expires, naming the new rent and the date it starts. Silence from the tenant counts as acceptance. A tenant who rejects it has to give you notice at least 45 days before the last day of the term, and that rejection works as a termination notice (§ 5107).

Delaware has no statewide rent control and no statutory cap on how much you can raise rent on a private residential unit. The limits are the 60-day notice and your lease. Manufactured home communities run under a separate rent justification law in chapter 70, which does not touch house and apartment rentals.

Entering the unit

Forty-eight hours' notice, 8am to 9pm. You give at least 48 hours' notice before entering to inspect, repair, decorate, supply services or show the unit, and you enter between 8am and 9pm. Emergencies are the exception, and you can enter at any time (§ 5509).

Using access to harass a tenant is barred by the same section. If a tenant unreasonably refuses access, you have a remedy under § 5510.

Ending a month-to-month tenancy

Sixty days, either direction. Landlord or tenant can end a month-to-month by giving the other side a minimum of 60 days' written notice. The 60 days start on the first day of the month after the day notice actually lands, so a notice sent on October 10 starts running November 1 (§ 5106(d)).

When rent isn't paid

A written demand of at least 5 days. Any time after rent is due, you can demand payment in writing and tell the tenant the agreement ends if payment is not made within a stated period of not less than 5 days from the date the notice went out (§ 5502(a)).

Two traps in the same section. If the tenant pays before you file, you cannot go forward on that nonpayment. If you accept rent after filing without a written reservation of your rights, you give up the past-due claim (§ 5502(c), (d)).

When the tenant breaks a rule

Seven days to cure. For a breach of the lease or the rules, give written notice that names the rule, says you may terminate if the violation continues after 7 days, and states it is given under § 5513. A substantially similar breach within one year lets you file on that earlier notice without another cure period.

The summary possession process

File. You file a complaint for possession in the Justice of the Peace Court for the county where the property sits. The court serves it with a notice of the hearing date (25 Del. C. § 5701, § 5704).
Hearing and judgment. The court hears the case and enters judgment, or a default judgment if the tenant does not appear (§ 5710, § 5711, § 5712).
Appeal window. A party has 5 days after judgment to ask for an appeal, and a tenant who appeals has to post a bond or other assurance covering costs and rent accruing (§ 5717).
Writ of possession. The court issues the writ no earlier than the expiry of that appeal and motion time. The officer carrying it out gives at least 24 hours' notice and acts between sunrise and sunset (§ 5715).

Two lines you do not cross. Locking a tenant out or otherwise ousting them yourself is unlawful (§ 5313). And retaliation is presumed if you move to evict, raise rent or cut services within 90 days of a tenant complaint or tenant organizing. A tenant who proves it recovers 3 months' rent or treble damages, whichever is greater, plus costs (§ 5516).

Repairs and habitability

You have to meet state and local housing codes, keep the unit fit and safe, maintain common areas, keep electrical and plumbing in good working order, and hand over a unit certified lead safe or lead free (§ 5305).

If you leave a repair undone, the tenant can send written notice and then repair and deduct a reasonable sum, capped at $400 or half of one month's rent, whichever is less, once you have had 30 days to fix it or 10 days to start real corrective work (§ 5307). Heat and water failures carry their own tenant remedies (§ 5308).

One paperwork step landlords miss. At the start of the rental term you have to give the tenant the summary of the Landlord-Tenant Code prepared by the Attorney General's Consumer Protection Unit. Skip it and the tenant can plead ignorance of the law as a defense (§ 5118).

The short version

Deposit cap of one month's rent on terms of a year or more, in a Delaware escrow account you disclose
20 days to return the deposit or send an itemized list, double damages if you withhold wrongly
Late fee capped at 5 percent, no earlier than 5 days late, 3 extra days if you have no office in the county
60 days' written notice to raise rent at renewal, 60 days to end a month-to-month
48 hours' notice to enter, between 8am and 9pm
5-day written demand for unpaid rent, 7-day notice for other breaches
Give the tenant the state Code summary on day one

Let Taz handle the paperwork

Taz is an AI property manager for landlords who would rather not live in the code books. It tracks the 20-day deposit clock, sends rent reminders, takes maintenance requests day and night, and keeps the records a Delaware justice of the peace would ask for. See how Taz works.

Where this guide says a state has no rule on something, that means we found no statute setting one, which is not the same as none existing. Local ordinances and court practice can add requirements. Confirm anything you plan to rely on.

This guide is general information, not legal advice. Laws change, and your city or county may add rules. Talk to a Delaware attorney before acting on a specific situation. Last checked September 2026.