Delaware Deceased Tenant Estate and Landlord Coordination Packet
DELAWARE DECEASED TENANT ESTATE AND LANDLORD COORDINATION PACKET
Before use: 25 Del. C. § 5719 covers the death of a sole residential tenant. Its no-action return-of-possession route requires valid register-of-wills documentation from an affiant or personal representative and the statutory access-completion or 30-day condition. A different summary-possession route has separate service rules. The seven-day storage and disposal rule in subsection (c) applies to property remaining when a writ of possession is executed; do not apply it merely because the tenant died or thirty days passed.
Identity and authority record
| Fact | Document and result |
|---|---|
| Sole tenant, unit and date of death | [LEASE / OCCUPANCY / RECORD / DATE] |
| Affiant or representative's register-of-wills documentation | [NAME / DOCUMENT / COUNTY / DATE] |
| Representative's current service and deposit address | [ADDRESS / WRITTEN PROOF] |
| Access requests and written continued-access notice | [REQUESTS / DATES / COPIES] |
| Thirty days after death, if relevant | [DATE / REVIEWER] |
| Summary-possession case or writ, if any | [COURT / CASE / JUDGMENT / WRIT] |
| Deposit, rent, property inventory and storage | [LEDGER / INVENTORY / DATES] |
A. Estate affiant or personal representative: access request
Date: [__/__/____] To landlord: [NAME / ADDRESS]
I am [NAME], the ☐ affiant ☐ personal representative of the estate of [DECEASED SOLE TENANT]. The register of wills for [COUNTY] issued the attached documentation on [DATE], evidencing my role under Title 12. My mailing and service address is [ADDRESS]; my phone and email are [DETAILS]. Under 25 Del. C. § 5719(a)(1), please allow access to [UNIT ADDRESS] on [DATE / TIME] or [ALTERNATE] to remove the deceased tenant's belongings. I will coordinate an inventory and receipt and identify any other supported claim to an item.
☐ I give written notice that further access to the unit is still needed by me or my agents. I request [DAYS / TIMES / REASON].
☐ I inform you that neither I nor my agents need further access to the unit. My final access occurred on [DATE], and the remaining-property status is [DETAIL / INVENTORY].
This notice records my actual access position; it does not transfer ownership of estate property or make me personally responsible for rent.
Affiant or representative signature: ______________________________ Date: [__/__/____]
Delivery record: [METHOD / DATE / PROOF]
B. Landlord: access and possession acknowledgment
Date: [__/__/____] To affiant or representative: [NAME / ADDRESS]
I received valid register-of-wills documentation for [NAME] on [DATE] and arranged access to [UNIT] on [DATES]. The deceased person was the sole residential tenant according to [LEASE / OCCUPANCY RECORD]. I received ☐ written notice that no further access is needed on [DATE] ☐ no written notice of continued access, and thirty days have elapsed since the death on [DATE]. Based on both conditions in § 5719(a), I record return of possession without an action for summary possession as of [DATE], subject to review of any conflicting court order or occupancy claim.
Property and keys status: [INVENTORY / RECEIPT / KEY RECORD]. This acknowledgment addresses possession only and does not decide title to remaining items or start subsection (c)'s writ-specific seven-day disposal route.
Landlord signature: ______________________________ Date: [__/__/____]
C. Conditional summary-possession and property decision record
| Gate | Evidence and decision |
|---|---|
| If valid register-of-wills documentation is absent, or subsection (a)'s second condition is unmet, no-action possession route withheld | [FACTS / REVIEWER] |
| If landlord sues: action against estate; service on documented affiant/representative at provided address, or register of wills in the county if required | [PLEADING / ADDRESS / SERVICE] |
| If register of wills will be served as estate agent: county-circulated newspaper notice before suit, with all § 5719(b) identifying details | [PUBLICATION / DATE / COPY] |
| If writ of possession exists: final judgment, appeal or motion period and writ execution checked | [COURT RECORD / WRIT / DATE] |
| Only if property remains at writ execution: remove, inventory and store for seven days at estate expense; then check documented representative's claim and reimbursement | [ITEMS / STORAGE / COSTS / START / END / CLAIM] |
| Deposit clock: twenty days after possession, or after required storage ends; representative documentation and address checked | [DATE / DOCUMENT / ADDRESS] |
| Itemized damages, repair estimates, rent and tender; any ten-day written objection after representative receives tender | [STATEMENT / PAYMENT / RECEIPT / OBJECTION] |
| If representative documents or address missing: unused deposit retained for a timely written representative claim within one year from landlord's receipt of possession | [FACTS / CLAIM / DATE] |
Reviewer and authorized next step: [NAME / DATE / DECISION]. This log does not replace a pleading, writ, service, deposit statement or lawful property transfer.
D. Conditional pre-suit newspaper notice
Use only if the register of wills will be served as the estate's registered agent under § 5719(b). Publish before filing in a paper circulated in the county of the unit.
Landlord [NAME] gives notice of an intended [TYPE OF SUMMARY-POSSESSION ACTION AND/OR MONEY CLAIM] against the estate of deceased sole tenant [NAME] concerning the residential rental unit at [FULL ADDRESS]. The action will be brought in [COURT NAME]. The amount of the claim, if any, is [AMOUNT OR NONE].
County and newspaper: [DETAIL]. Publication date and copy retained: [DATE / PROOF]. Landlord or counsel contact: [NAME / ADDRESS / PHONE].
About this template
- Last updated
- October 3, 2026
- Citations checked
- October 3, 2026
- Jurisdiction
- Delaware
- Category
- Landlord & Tenant
Legal authority
- 25 Del. C. § 5719
Landlord-tenant paperwork governs who can stay in a property, on what terms, and what happens when something goes wrong. Leases, notices to quit, security deposit demands, and habitability complaints all have state and often city-specific requirements for timing, content, and service. Getting the paperwork right is what makes an eviction actually succeed or a security deposit actually come back, because judges regularly dismiss cases over small procedural mistakes.
Not legal advice
This template is provided for informational purposes. We recommend having an attorney review any legal document before signing, especially for high-value or complex matters.
Checked against the law it cites
A reviewer verified this template's legal citations against the official source on October 3, 2026.
25 Del. C. § 5719(a)(1) (checked October 3, 2026): "An affiant or personal representative of the deceased sole tenant’s estate presents the landlord with valid documentation issued by the register of wills evidencing such representation pursuant to Title 12, in which case the landlord shall allow the affiant or personal representative access to the residential rental unit of the deceased sole tenant to remove the deceased sole tenant’s belongings"
25 Del. C. § 5719(a)(2) (checked October 3, 2026): "An affiant or personal representative informs the landlord that further access to the deceased sole tenant’s residential rental unit is not needed by the affiant or personal representative and/or their agents or 30 days have elapsed since the death of the deceased sole tenant and the affiant or personal representative has not provided the landlord written notice that access to the deceased sole tenant’s residential rental unit is still needed"
25 Del. C. § 5719(b) (checked October 3, 2026): "the landlord shall bring the action against the estate of the deceased sole tenant and serve the complaint upon the affiant or personal representative at the address provided by the affiant or personal representative"
25 Del. C. § 5719(b) (checked October 3, 2026): "If an affiant or personal representative of the deceased sole tenant’s estate does not present the landlord with valid documentation issued by the register of wills evidencing such representation pursuant to Title 12, the landlord must serve the register of wills in the county in which the residential unit is located in order to bring an action for summary possession"
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