Delaware Seller Disclosure Requirements: The Condition Report, When It Is Due, and Who Is Exempt

Delaware seller disclosure requirements come from one statute and one long form. The Buyer Property Protection Act tells you to put every known material defect in writing, hand it to buyers before they make an offer, and keep it current until settlement. Sellers who get in trouble usually missed the timing, not the content.

This guide covers the statute section by section and the nine exempt transfers. It also walks the Real Estate Commission's current condition report, the radon and new construction forms, the federal lead paint rule, and what changes in an as-is cash sale.

What Are Delaware's Seller Disclosure Requirements?

Delaware requires a seller of residential real property to disclose, in writing, all material defects known at the time it is offered for sale or known before final settlement (6 Del. C. § 2572). The rule lives in subchapter VII of chapter 25 of Title 6, cited in the statute itself as the Buyer Property Protection Act.

The disclosure runs to the buyer and, where applicable, to the agent and subagent. Chapter 25 sits inside Delaware's prohibited trade practices law, so nondisclosure of a known defect is a trade practice problem, not a paperwork lapse.

The statute does not define "material defect." A condition you would want to know about if you were buying the house is the practical test, and the form's 165 questions are the Commission's working answer. Every question carries the same instruction: answer from your own knowledge of the property, including what your repair invoices and insurance claims already told you.

When Is the Condition Report Due in Delaware?

Two deadlines apply, and the earlier one surprises people. Section 2572(b) says the disclosure "shall be made in writing before the seller signs the listing agreement." Section 2573 sets the second: the seller or agent gives a copy to all prospective buyers "prior to the time the buyer makes an offer to purchase." The form is finished before the house is listed, not after an offer arrives.

Selling without a listing agreement

Without a listing agreement, there is no listing-agreement trigger to hit. The § 2572(a) duty still attaches to any seller transferring residential real property, and § 2573 still requires delivery before the buyer makes an offer. In a for-sale-by-owner or direct cash sale, that pre-offer deadline governs.

The report keeps going until settlement

Section 2572(b) also requires the report to be "updated as necessary for any material changes occurring in the property before final settlement." Section 2571(3) defines final settlement as the moment the parties have signed and delivered all papers and consideration to convey title.

A pipe that bursts in February after a January contract is a material change, and it belongs in an updated report. The signature page carries a line for the date the contents were last updated. Section 2573 adds a further consequence: the signed form becomes part of the purchase agreement, so your answers are contract terms.

Which Properties and Transfers the Act Covers

Section 2576 reaches well beyond a simple house sale. The act applies to transfers by sale, exchange, installment land sale contract, lease with an option to purchase, or ground lease. Covered property types are:

• Residential real property improved with dwelling units for one to four families.
• Manufactured housing lots.
• Vacant land zoned for residential use and marketed as appropriate for a one to four family dwelling.

The vacant land language was added by 80 Del. Laws, c. 308. Section 2571 keeps the scope wide on the other side too. A "seller" is any individual, partnership, corporation, or trustee transferring residential real property, so an LLC that owns a rental duplex is a seller too.

Delaware's older stock keeps the form busy. Zillow's home value index for Delaware reads $410,192, up 1.3% year over year (Zillow Home Value Index, July 2026). Much of that inventory is brick rowhome and twin stock built between 1900 and 1930, as our Wilmington housing market guide explains.

The Nine Exempt Transfers Under § 2577

Section 2577 lists nine transfers the subchapter does not apply to, and most describe a seller who never lived in the house. The Real Estate Commission publishes a Seller's Disclosure and Radon Disclosure Exemption form, effective August 1, 2026, on which the seller checks the category and the buyer acknowledges that neither disclosure is required.

Two exemptions that end sooner than sellers expect

The Commission's exemption form adds two notes that narrow things in practice. The first concerns estates. The fiduciary exemption applies only where the executor or administrator is the seller. Once the house has passed to the heirs and they are selling in their own names, the form says they must complete the standard disclosure. Our guide to selling an inherited house in Delaware covers when that authority ends.

The second concerns lenders. A lender that took a house by deed in lieu or at sheriff's sale is exempt on the way in. The form says that same lender must complete the disclosure when reselling. The exemption covers the distressed transfer, not the resale.

Inside the Seller's Disclosure of Real Property Condition Report

The current Seller's Disclosure of Real Property Condition Report runs 11 pages and asks 165 numbered questions across 16 sections (Delaware Real Estate Commission, effective August 1, 2026). Each substantive question takes a yes or a no, with a written U for unknown or NA for not applicable, and many route to section XVI for an explanation.

One item comes straight from the statute. Section 2578(c) requires every form to carry the street repaving block, which asks whether the property owner, DelDOT, a municipality, or the community pays to repave the adjacent street, plus the estimated fee. The statute even dictates the warning: repairing and repaving the streets can be very costly.

Question 17 is the other one worth flagging. It asks about unpaid assessments, including deferred water and sewer charges, so delinquent county or municipal charges belong there. Sellers who are behind should read our guide to Delaware property tax sales first.

The New Construction, Vacant Land, and Radon Forms

The standard report is one of five Real Estate Commission forms. Section 2578(a) authorizes the Commission to develop a standard form "or forms for different circumstances," and four variants sit alongside it.

• New construction. Question 7 says that if the property is new construction with no certificate of occupancy issued, stop and complete the New Construction Only version, 8 pages and 85 questions. Section 2578(b) requires a fire sprinkler notice. The form states that a builder contracting to build a new one or two family dwelling must offer the option of an automatic sprinkler or other fire suppression system.
• Vacant land. Residentially zoned vacant land marketed for a one to four family dwelling gets its own 7-page, 57-question report.
• Radon. Radon lives in its own section of the same act and on its own one-page form.
• Exemption certification. This form documents which § 2577 category applies and delivers the Commission's notices to buyers.

What the radon section actually requires

Section 2572A sits inside the Buyer Property Protection Act, added by 75 Del. Laws, c. 360. Every purchaser of residential real property with a dwelling must be notified that the property may present a potential radon risk. The seller must hand over any radon test or inspection information already in hand and disclose known radon hazards.

Testing is not required. The Commission's Radon Disclosure form asks four questions: whether radon is present, whether any tests or inspections exist, whether the buyer got copies of everything you hold, and the date of each report. Section 2577's exemptions reach the radon duty too, which is why one form covers both.

What the Report Does Not Do

The report is not a warranty and not an inspection, and two short sections say so. Section 2574 calls the completed form a good faith effort by the seller to make the required disclosures. It is not a warranty by the seller or any agent, and no substitute for inspections.

Section 2575 is a shield rather than a sword. The buyer has no cause of action against the seller, agent, or subagent for three things:

• Material defects in the condition of the property disclosed to the buyer before the buyer made an offer to purchase.
• Material defects that developed after the offer was made but were disclosed before final settlement, provided the seller has complied with the agreement of sale.
• Material defects that occur after final settlement.

Disclosure is what buys the protection. A defect you wrote on the form before the offer is one the buyer cannot later sue you over. A defect you knew about and left off gets none of that shelter, and subchapter VII sets no cap on what follows.

The form goes further than the statute on one point. On the acknowledgment page, the seller indemnifies any agent involved in the sale against liability from third-party reliance on the disclosures. An agent who passes along your answers is not underwriting them. You are.

Federal Lead Paint Disclosure for Pre-1978 Houses

If your Delaware house was built before 1978, a federal duty applies on top of the state form, and no state exemption waives it. The Residential Lead-Based Paint Hazard Reduction Act, 42 U.S.C. § 4852d, sets requirements EPA and HUD enforce (EPA, Lead-Based Paint Real Estate Disclosure). Sellers of most pre-1978 housing must:

• Give the buyer the EPA pamphlet "Protect Your Family From Lead in Your Home."
• Disclose any known lead-based paint and lead-based paint hazards.
• Provide any available records or reports about lead-based paint.
• Allow the buyer a 10-day window for a lead inspection or risk assessment, which the buyer may waive.
• Include the required disclosure language and signed acknowledgments in the contract.

Question 54 on the Delaware form asks about lead hazards, listing lead paint, lead pipes, and lead in soil. Question 110 asks what plumbing material carries the water supply, with lead as a checkbox. Answering both is not the same as satisfying the federal rule, which also wants the pamphlet, the records, the inspection window, and the contract language.

Does Selling a House As Is in Delaware Remove the Disclosure Duty?

No. Selling a house as is in Delaware is a statement about repairs, not about information. An as-is clause appears nowhere in the § 2577 exemption list, so it cannot remove the report, and it cannot turn a known defect into an unknown one. The as-is clause answers who fixes it. The condition report answers what you know. You comply with both.

An as-is clause still earns its place. It ends the repair negotiation before it starts, so you are not funding a settlement credit or scheduling contractors around a move. The buyer's acknowledgment page anticipates this, stating that unless the contract says otherwise, the property is sold in its present condition without warranties from the seller or any agent.

What an as-is clause does not cover is an answer you knew was wrong when you wrote it. The safer sequence for the owner of an aging Wilmington rowhome or a 1960s Dover ranch is simple: disclose fully, sell as-is, and let the price carry the condition. If the repair list has outgrown what you want to manage, our guide for houses needing major repairs covers the tradeoff.

How a Direct Cash Sale Changes the Conversation

The report still gets delivered in a cash sale, because nothing in subchapter VII turns on how the buyer pays. What changes is the reaction. A financed buyer reads a disclosed defect and often returns with a repair demand, a credit request, or a lender who wants it fixed before funding. A cash buyer who purchases as-is prices it instead.

Propcash is a direct cash homebuyer, founded in 2026 and based in Nashville, and we buy houses across Delaware as-is. We do not ask a seller to repair what the report reveals. An abandoned oil tank in a Dover yard, knob-and-tube wiring in a Trolley Square twin, or galvanized supply lines can be disclosed and still transact.

• You still complete the form. Fill it out honestly and deliver it before the buyer makes an offer.
• Your records travel with it. Tank abandonment permits, well water tests, septic pumping dates, and Class H inspection results attach to questions 51, 119, 122, and 123.
• No repair list follows. Propcash buys as-is, so disclosed conditions typically shape the offer rather than a punch list.
• No financing contingency sits behind it. Cash transactions need no bank underwriting or appraisal, so a disclosed condition is less likely to derail a closing.
• You pick the closing date. Cash transactions can close in as few as 7 days, or later if an estate or lien payoff needs room.

Sellers on a hard calendar feel this most. You can get a cash offer on your Delaware house and compare it against a listed sale, or read more about selling a house for cash in Delaware first.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I still have to fill out a condition report if I sell my house as is in Delaware?

Yes, in almost every case. An as-is clause is a contract term about who pays for repairs, and it appears nowhere in the exemption list at 6 Del. C. § 2577. The condition report is still required, and you still disclose the material defects you know about. As-is means you decline to fix them, not that you may stay silent.

When must a Delaware seller give the buyer the condition report?

Two deadlines apply. Under 6 Del. C. § 2572(b), the written disclosure must be made before the seller signs the listing agreement. Under § 2573, a copy goes to every prospective buyer before that buyer makes an offer. Without a listing agreement, the second deadline governs, and the report is still updated before settlement.

Who is exempt from Delaware seller disclosure requirements?

Section 2577 of Title 6 lists nine exempt transfers. They cover court-ordered transfers, deeds in lieu of foreclosure, sheriff's sales, and fiduciary transfers during estate, guardianship or trust administration. The list also reaches co-owner transfers, transfers to a spouse or lineal relative, divorce settlements, and government transfers. The Real Estate Commission publishes a certification for documenting which applies.

Is the Delaware condition report a warranty on the house?

No. Under 6 Del. C. § 2574, the completed form is a good faith effort by the seller to make the required disclosures. It is expressly not a warranty by the seller or any agent, and no substitute for inspections. The form answers what the seller knows, not what an inspector would find.

Do heirs selling an inherited Delaware house have to complete the disclosure form?

Usually yes. The fiduciary exemption in § 2577(5) covers a transfer by a fiduciary during administration of a decedent's estate, and the Commission's exemption form says it applies only where the executor or administrator is the seller. Once the house has passed to the heirs selling in their own names, the standard report is required.

Does a cash buyer still need the Delaware disclosure report?

Yes. Nothing in the Buyer Property Protection Act turns on whether the buyer pays cash or whether a broker is involved. A direct cash buyer receives the same signed report, which becomes part of the agreement of sale. What changes is the response: a cash buyer who purchases as-is typically prices a disclosed condition rather than sending a repair list.

Data Sources: 6 Del. C. ch. 25, subch. VII (Buyer Property Protection Act) on delcode.delaware.gov; Delaware Real Estate Commission forms published by the Division of Professional Regulation; EPA lead-based paint disclosure guidance; Zillow Home Value Index; Redfin. Propcash is a direct cash homebuyer, not a law firm. Delaware sellers should consult a Delaware-licensed real estate attorney.