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Delaware Notice to Vacate Letter

Fill in your details, review the delaware notice to vacate letter, and edit the wording before you send. Copy the finished text or download a Word file for free.

[Your full name]

[Date]

[Your landlord's name]

Re: Notice to vacate — [Rental property address]

Dear [Your landlord's name],

Please accept this letter as my formal written notice that I will terminate my tenancy at [Rental property address] and vacate the premises on [Move-out date].

Under Delaware Landlord-Tenant Code — Rental agreement; term and termination of rental agreement (25 Del. C. § 5106(d)), a month-to-month tenancy may be terminated by the tenant on 60 days written notice. This notice is given in accordance with that requirement and with any additional notice period my lease provides.

I will leave the unit clean and in good condition, ordinary wear and tear excepted, and will return all keys and access devices on or before my move-out date. I would like a move-out inspection during my final week; please propose a date and time.

Please send my security deposit, with any itemized statement required by law, to my forwarding address: [Your forwarding address]. Kindly confirm receipt of this notice in writing.

Sincerely,

[Your full name]

Know your rights

Notice to vacate law in Delaware

Tenant notice required: 60 days
Governing statute: 25 Del. C. § 5106(d)
How the clock runs: A tenant must give a minimum of 60 days' written notice, and the 60-day period does not begin until the first day of the month following the day of actual notice. Termination therefore lands on a month boundary — in practice about two full calendar months after a mid-month notice.
Delivering the notice: Notice must be written and, under 25 Del. C. § 5113, may be served personally, left at the rental unit with an adult resident, or sent by registered, certified, or first-class mail with a certificate of mailing.
Fixed-term leases: Either party must give at least 60 days' written notice before the term expires to end a fixed-term lease at its end date; if neither does, § 5108 converts the tenancy to month-to-month on the same terms.

Worth knowing: Delaware's 60-day floor is among the longest tenant notice periods in the country. Separately, 25 Del. C. § 5314 lets a tenant break any rental agreement on just 30 days' notice (also starting the first of the following month) for listed reasons: an employer-required relocation of more than 30 miles, serious illness of the tenant or death or serious illness of an immediate family member, admission to senior or governmentally subsidized housing, entering U.S. military service, or being a victim of domestic abuse, sexual offenses, or stalking. For federally subsidized units, conflicting federal rules control.

Last reviewed August 2026 · General information, not legal advice · Read the statute · Also for Delaware: security deposit demand letter

Field notes

Three tips before you send

Notice must be written and, under 25 Del. C. § 5113, may be served personally, left at the rental unit with an adult resident, or sent by registered, certified, or first-class mail with a certificate of mailing.
A tenant must give a minimum of 60 days' written notice, and the 60-day period does not begin until the first day of the month following the day of actual notice. Termination therefore lands on a month boundary — in practice about two full calendar months after a mid-month notice.
Date math is unforgiving — the clock usually runs from the day your landlord receives the notice, not the day you write it. Build in a few days of cushion, and photograph the empty unit when you hand back the keys.

Straight answers

Questions people ask

How much notice does a tenant have to give in Delaware?

A tenant must give a minimum of 60 days' written notice, and the 60-day period does not begin until the first day of the month following the day of actual notice. Termination therefore lands on a month boundary — in practice about two full calendar months after a mid-month notice. The governing statute is Delaware Landlord-Tenant Code — Rental agreement; term and termination of rental agreement.

What happens when a fixed-term lease ends in Delaware?

Either party must give at least 60 days' written notice before the term expires to end a fixed-term lease at its end date; if neither does, § 5108 converts the tenancy to month-to-month on the same terms. Check your lease for a renewal or notice clause — where the statute allows it, the lease controls.

Anything else Delaware renters should know before moving out?

Delaware's 60-day floor is among the longest tenant notice periods in the country. Separately, 25 Del. C. § 5314 lets a tenant break any rental agreement on just 30 days' notice (also starting the first of the following month) for listed reasons: an employer-required relocation of more than 30 miles, serious illness of the tenant or death or serious illness of an immediate family member, admission to senior or governmentally subsidized housing, entering U.S. military service, or being a victim of domestic abuse, sexual offenses, or stalking. For federally subsidized units, conflicting federal rules control.

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When to use this letter

Moving out should be the easy part — but in Delaware, when you give notice and how you deliver it decide whether you owe another month of rent. The rule that matters: for a month-to-month tenancy, Delaware law generally requires 60 days written notice from the tenant, under Delaware Landlord-Tenant Code — Rental agreement; term and termination of rental agreement. This generator writes a tenant's notice to vacate that cites 25 Del. C. § 5106(d) by name, states your move-out date, and asks for the move-out inspection and your deposit instructions in the same letter — so nothing gets renegotiated later. No blank template to fight with: fill in your landlord, the address, and the date, then send it in a way you can prove, because notice clocks here run from delivery, not from the day you write it.