What does a Delaware landlord have to disclose with the lease?

Beyond the federal lead paint disclosure for a building built before 1978, the Delaware checklist has three items: names and business addresses of all owners of the Premises or of their resident agent, printed on the lease, with a free copy of the lease to the Tenant; the Attorney General's summary of the Delaware Residential Landlord-Tenant Code, given at the start of the tenancy; and bed bug disclosure, including any infestation or treatment in adjoining units. Each one names its statute and the landlord initials it in the document.

Which Delaware statutes does this lease cite?

Del. Code tit. 25, 5514; Del. Code tit. 25, 5509; Del. Code tit. 25, 5106; and Del. Code tit. 25, 5118, read on October 23, 2026. They print in the document footer so a reader can check each clause against the statute in a minute.

Should a lawyer look at this Delaware lease before I use it?

It is a general form, not legal advice, and it does not claim to comply with any law. The clauses state what the Delaware statute requires and name the statute. A lawyer who works with Delaware landlords can tell you whether the form fits your property, your city and the terms you want to add, which is worth the hour before signing a lease for a large rent or a long term.

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Delaware Residential Lease Agreement

A plain-language lease for a house or apartment in Delaware. The deposit, notice, entry and disclosure clauses follow Delaware statute, cited in the document. Download the blank PDF or e-sign it online; electronic signatures are recognized under the federal ESIGN Act and state UETA laws.

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Different state?

Page one of the Delaware Residential Lease Agreement — Page 1 of the PDF. Tinted boxes are the placed fields, one color per role.

Delaware rules in this lease

Security deposit cap: No more than one month's rent for a lease of one year or longer, or for a month-to-month tenancy once it has run one year, with no cap for a furnished unit
Deposit return: Within 20 days after the tenancy ends, the Landlord returns the deposit with an itemized list of any damages and the estimated cost of repair, sent to the address in this Lease or to a forwarding address the Tenant gives in writing at or before move-out.
Where the deposit is kept: The Landlord keeps the deposit in an escrow account used only for deposits at a federally insured bank with an office in Delaware and tells the Tenant where it is held.
Ending a month-to-month tenancy: Either party ends a month-to-month tenancy with at least 60 days' written notice, and the 60 days begin on the first day of the month after the notice is received.
Landlord entry: The Landlord gives at least 48 hours' notice before entering, enters only between 8 a.m. and 9 p.m., and needs no notice in an emergency or for a repair the Tenant asked for.
Disclosures: 4 items, listed below with the section that requires each one
Statutes: Del. Code tit. 25, 5514, Del. Code tit. 25, 5509, Del. Code tit. 25, 5106, Del. Code tit. 25, 5118. Read the Delaware statute
Rules read on: 2026-10-23

A general form, not legal advice, and not a claim that it complies with any law. Rules change and vary by city. Check the statute cited here, or ask a lawyer, before you rely on it.

What is different in Delaware

Pick Delaware and four parts of this lease change: the security deposit clause, the notice clause for a month-to-month tenancy, the entry clause and the disclosures checklist, each rewritten from the Delaware statute. The rest of the document reads the same in every state.

Start with the deposit. Delaware caps it at one month's rent for a lease of one year or longer, or for a month-to-month tenancy once it has run one year, with no cap for a furnished unit, and the statute also says where the money sits while the tenant lives there. The return rule, quoted in full below, says when and how the deposit comes back, and requires an itemized statement of anything kept and turns on the tenant's forwarding address.

Ending a month-to-month tenancy works the same from both sides in Delaware. Either party ends a month-to-month tenancy with at least 60 days' written notice, and the 60 days begin on the first day of the month after the notice is received.

Before coming in, the landlord gives notice, and Delaware puts a number on it. The Landlord gives at least 48 hours' notice before entering, enters only between 8 a.m. and 9 p.m., and needs no notice in an emergency or for a repair the Tenant asked for.

The disclosures checklist carries three Delaware items on top of the federal lead paint notice, among them bed bug disclosure, including any infestation or treatment in adjoining units, each with the section that requires it and a line for the landlord's initials.

This row notes no city or county overlay for Delaware; if the property is in a city with its own rental ordinance, check it before signing. The state clauses follow four sections of Delaware law, read on October 23, 2026 and listed in the Statutes row above; the same citations print in the footer of the PDF.

Read the Delaware clauses

The wording below is what prints in the PDF for Delaware, word for word, under the headings Security deposit, Entry, Ending the lease and default, and Disclosures.

Security deposit

Within 20 days after the tenancy ends, the Landlord returns the deposit with an itemized list of any damages and the estimated cost of repair, sent to the address in this Lease or to a forwarding address the Tenant gives in writing at or before move-out. The deposit may not exceed one month's rent for a lease of one year or longer, or for a month-to-month tenancy once it has run one year, with no cap for a furnished unit. The Landlord keeps the deposit in an escrow account used only for deposits at a federally insured bank with an office in Delaware and tells the Tenant where it is held.

Entry

The Landlord gives at least 48 hours' notice before entering, enters only between 8 a.m. and 9 p.m., and needs no notice in an emergency or for a repair the Tenant asked for.

Ending the lease and default

Either party ends a month-to-month tenancy with at least 60 days' written notice, and the 60 days begin on the first day of the month after the notice is received. If rent is unpaid or a term is broken, the Landlord gives the written notice Delaware law requires before ending the tenancy, and the Tenant is responsible for rent through the end of the term unless the Premises is re-rented sooner.

Disclosures the Landlord initials

Lead-based paint and hazards, for a building built before 1978, with the EPA pamphlet (42 U.S.C. 4852d)
Names and business addresses of all owners of the Premises or of their resident agent, printed on the lease, with a free copy of the lease to the Tenant (Del. Code tit. 25, 5105)
The Attorney General's summary of the Delaware Residential Landlord-Tenant Code, given at the start of the tenancy (Del. Code tit. 25, 5118)
Bed bug disclosure, including any infestation or treatment in adjoining units (Del. Code tit. 25, 5317)

Footer of the PDF: Delaware clauses follow Del. Code tit. 25, 5514, Del. Code tit. 25, 5509, Del. Code tit. 25, 5106, Del. Code tit. 25, 5118 as read on 2026-10-23.

Delaware lease questions

How much can a landlord charge for a security deposit in Delaware?: No more than one month's rent for a lease of one year or longer, or for a month-to-month tenancy once it has run one year, with no cap for a furnished unit. The cap comes from Del. Code tit. 25, 5514, and the lease repeats it in the deposit clause.
When does the security deposit come back in Delaware?: Within 20 days after the tenancy ends, the Landlord returns the deposit with an itemized list of any damages and the estimated cost of repair, sent to the address in this Lease or to a forwarding address the Tenant gives in writing at or before move-out.
Where does a Delaware landlord keep the deposit?: The Landlord keeps the deposit in an escrow account used only for deposits at a federally insured bank with an office in Delaware and tells the Tenant where it is held.
How much notice ends a month-to-month tenancy in Delaware?: Either party ends a month-to-month tenancy with at least 60 days' written notice, and the 60 days begin on the first day of the month after the notice is received.
How much notice does a Delaware landlord give before entering?: The Landlord gives at least 48 hours' notice before entering, enters only between 8 a.m. and 9 p.m., and needs no notice in an emergency or for a repair the Tenant asked for.
What does a Delaware landlord have to disclose with the lease?: Beyond the federal lead paint disclosure for a building built before 1978, the Delaware checklist has three items: names and business addresses of all owners of the Premises or of their resident agent, printed on the lease, with a free copy of the lease to the Tenant; the Attorney General's summary of the Delaware Residential Landlord-Tenant Code, given at the start of the tenancy; and bed bug disclosure, including any infestation or treatment in adjoining units. Each one names its statute and the landlord initials it in the document.
Which Delaware statutes does this lease cite?: Del. Code tit. 25, 5514; Del. Code tit. 25, 5509; Del. Code tit. 25, 5106; and Del. Code tit. 25, 5118, read on October 23, 2026. They print in the document footer so a reader can check each clause against the statute in a minute.
Should a lawyer look at this Delaware lease before I use it?: It is a general form, not legal advice, and it does not claim to comply with any law. The clauses state what the Delaware statute requires and name the statute. A lawyer who works with Delaware landlords can tell you whether the form fits your property, your city and the terms you want to add, which is worth the hour before signing a lease for a large rent or a long term.

Who this is for. A Delaware lease is one half of a landlord's paperwork; proving a notice was received is the other. Both are covered at free e-signatures for landlords.

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