DE HB381

Requires the Delaware Real Estate Commission to create a comprehensive rights and responsibilities guide for landlords and tenants, developed with input from housing-related organizations as needed.

Mandates landlords and real estate service providers provide the guide to prospective tenants before entering into a rental agreement and at lease renewal if the term is 1 or more years; guide may be in electronic or paper format with tenant acknowledgment required.

Guide must include information on renters and flood insurance, tenant legal representation, eviction diversion programs, lead-based paint disclosures, local licensing and registration requirements, bed bug obligations, fair housing laws, smoke and carbon monoxide detector requirements, and school district feeder patterns.

Designates the guide as a statutorily required form under Title 24 and makes failure to provide it an unlawful practice subject to penalties under Title 6; Commission may amend the guide by majority vote of appointed members.

Takes effect upon enactment, with full implementation required by the earlier of one year from enactment or publication of the guide by the Real Estate Commission; penalty provisions become effective 180 days after the guide is published.