# ESA Letter in Camden, DE: Two Codes, One Sentence

> Delaware wrote nearly the same pet-deposit exception into two different Parts of Title 25. Which one governs you depends on what you rent.

- Source: https://supportanimal.com/blog/delaware-emotional-support-animal/camden/
- Publisher: Support Animal (supportanimal.com)
- Updated: 2026-09-05
- License note: informational content; not legal or medical advice.

## Key facts

- Population: 4,191
- Households renting: 19.9%
- Typical pet deposit (as a pet): 1 month; waivable on a lot
- Typical pet rent (as a pet): $30-$50/mo for pets
- Breed/weight limits common: sometimes
- Pet fees, deposits, and breed limits with a valid ESA letter: none (FHA reasonable accommodation)

## A Kent County town, and a rent figure that will not hold still

Camden is a town in Kent County, run by a town council, on the 19934 ZIP.
The 2024 Census estimate puts it at **4,191** people. Its history, by the
town's own account, runs back to the 1780s and the Mifflin family. It is not
Camden, New Jersey, which is far larger and takes most of the search traffic
for the name.

The housing numbers need care. Of 1,779 occupied homes in Camden, the
2020–2024 American Community Survey five-year estimate counts **354
rented**: about 19.9 percent. The estimate for median gross rent is
**$1,836**, and the margin on it is **plus or minus $551**. Taken literally
that interval runs from roughly $1,285 to $2,387, which overlaps half the
state.

So a fact worth stating plainly: **$1,836 is not "Delaware's highest rent," and this page will not
use it that way.** The highest reliable median gross rent among the state's twenty largest places is
New Castle's $1,739, then Newark's $1,654. Camden's figure is the best estimate available for the
town, and it is an estimate with a wide mouth.

There is a second thing the census table does not tell you about Camden, and
it turns out to be the one that decides which law governs your animal. The
table counts rented homes. It does not ask whether the household rents the
**home** or rents the **lot underneath it**. In Delaware, that distinction
sends you to two entirely different statutes.

## The same promise, printed twice in Title 25

Delaware has two landlord-tenant regimes. The Residential Landlord-Tenant
Code is **Part III** of Title 25, chapters 51 through 59. The Manufactured
Homes and Manufactured Home Communities Act is **Part VI**, chapter 70. They
are not versions of each other. They are separate law.

And each contains a pet-deposit exception written in nearly the same words.

**Part III, 25 Del. C. § 5514(i)(3):**

> "A landlord may require an additional deposit from a tenant with a pet, but **shall not require any
> pet deposit from a tenant if the pet is a duly certified and trained support animal for a disabled
> person who is a resident of the rental unit.**"

**Part VI, 25 Del. C. § 7017(h)(4):**

> "A landlord **may not require a pet security deposit from a tenant if the pet is a certified and
> trained support animal for a person with a disability** who is a resident of a manufactured home on
> a rented lot."

Two sentences, near-identical, in different Parts of the same title. Neither
reaches an emotional support animal, but they fail to reach one for
different reasons, and the second is stranger than the first.

## Part III has a definition. Part VI has none.

The Part III sentence sits on top of a definition. **25 Del. C. § 5141**, which opens *"For purposes
of Part III of this title,"* provides at (38):

> "'**Support animal**' shall mean any animal **individually trained to do work or perform tasks** to
> meet the requirements of a disabled person, including, but not limited to, minimal protection work,
> rescue work, pulling a wheelchair or retrieving dropped items."

That closes the door on § 5514(i)(3) for an animal whose help is its
presence. Work and tasks are what the definition asks for, and the
illustrations confirm the register.

Chapter 70 has no such definition, and this is the part to get right. Section 5141's opening words
limit it to **Part III**, and chapter 70 is Part VI, so it does not travel. Chapter 70's own
definitions section, **§ 7003**, defines none of "support animal," "pet," "animal" or "disability."
Its thirty-two defined terms were checked one by one.

The result is a phrase operating in § 7017(h)(4) with nothing underneath it. Nobody should fill that
gap by importing § 5141(38), and nobody should fill it the other way either. What can be said is
what the text says: the sentence requires an animal that is **certified and trained**, and "certified"
names no certifier anywhere in the Delaware Code.

## Two ways Part VI is weaker

Reading the two Parts as interchangeable is not just imprecise. It hands a manufactured-home resident
two protections they do not have.

**The cap can be signed away.** In an apartment, § 5514(i)(2) caps a pet deposit at one month's rent
"regardless of the duration of the rental agreement," full stop. In a manufactured home community,
**§ 7017(h)(3)** says a landlord

> "may not require a tenant to pay a pet security deposit in an amount in excess of 1 month's rent,
> **unless the tenant agrees to do so and the full amount is specified in the rental agreement.**"

An escape hatch, written into the ceiling. Section 5514 contains nothing like it.

**Damage flows the other way.** Under Part III, animal damage comes out of the pet deposit first and
reaches the security deposit only if the pet deposit is exhausted. Under Part VI, **§ 7017(h)(2)**
runs in the opposite direction: where the non-pet deposit is insufficient, damages may be deducted
from the pet security deposit **"even if such damages were not caused by a pet."**

So the pet money in a manufactured home community is exposed to damage the
animal had nothing to do with. Never merge the two sets of numbers.

## Which Part your home sits in

Check the lease, not the building. The question is not what the structure is
made of; it is what the agreement rents you. A lot rented under a
manufactured home in a community is chapter 70 territory. An apartment, a
duplex or a rented single-family house is Part III.

If you are unsure, the Delaware Code is published free at `delcode.delaware.gov`, and Title 25's own
chapter list confirms the split: Part III is chapters 51 to 59, Part VI is chapters 70 and 71.

## The duty that does not care which Part

Here is the useful part. Both dead ends lead to the same live route, and it
is not in Title 25 at all.

**6 Del. C. § 4603A(a)(2)** makes it discrimination to refuse

> "reasonable accommodations in rules, policies, practices or services, when such accommodations may
> be necessary to afford such person equal opportunity to use and enjoy a dwelling."

And **§ 4603(b)(2)** reaches discrimination in the "terms, conditions, or privileges" of a rental
because of disability. Neither provision is indexed to Title 25's Parts, and neither mentions an
animal, a species or training. The word "animal" does not appear anywhere in the Delaware Fair
Housing Act. A no-pets rule is a rule. The accommodation is an exception to it. Federally, 42 U.S.C.
§ 3604(f)(3)(B) says the same thing.

Delaware also states the limit twice, at § 4603(c) and § 4603A(f): nothing
requires a dwelling be made available where the tenancy would be a **direct
threat** to the health or safety of others, or would result in **substantial
physical damage to the property of others**. That is an assessment of a
specific animal's behaviour, not a rule about size or breed.

## What both routes require of you

Neither § 4603A(a)(2) nor § 4603(b)(2) asks what kind of tenancy you hold. Both ask the same two
things: that a disability exists, and that this accommodation may be necessary for equal use and
enjoyment of the home. The Division of Human and Civil Rights describes the documentation as coming
"from a health professional or other person who can establish that the person has a disability and
explain the nexus between the disability and the accommodation request."

A clinician already treating you is the best source of that, when it is
available. In Kent County it often is not on a useful timetable: Delaware's
specialist mental-health capacity is concentrated in New Castle County,
downstate independent practices are thin on the ground, and a first
appointment can be months out. A prescriber may also decline to write a
disability determination for someone they have not assessed that way, which
is a professional judgement rather than a refusal to help.

A licensed evaluation covers that gap on purpose: a licensed professional
works through both questions and records the answer, including when the
answer is no. That possibility is exactly what makes the yes worth having.

Two Parts, two sentences, one of them weaker than it looks. Find out which
one your lease sits in before you rely on either, and understand that the
provision that actually removes the charge is in neither.

## What Camden landlords can and cannot do

**Cannot:**
- May not refuse a reasonable accommodation in rules, policies, practices or services where it may be necessary to afford a person with a disability equal opportunity to use and enjoy a dwelling: 6 Del. C. § 4603A(a)(2).
- May not discriminate because of disability in the terms, conditions or privileges of the rental, or in the services and facilities provided with it: 6 Del. C. § 4603(b)(2). This is where a charge attached to a required animal is met.
- May not require a security deposit above one month's rent where the agreement runs a year or more, or on a month-to-month tenancy once it has lasted a year, 25 Del. C. § 5514(a)(2)–(3), and those limits do not apply to furnished units at all, § 5514(a)(4).
- May not inquire whether an applicant for a dwelling has a disability, or as to its nature or severity, except by inquiries made of all applicants alike: 6 Del. C. § 4603A(a)(4).

**Can:**
- May require a pet deposit, capped at one month's rent regardless of the length of the agreement, 25 Del. C. § 5514(i)(2), but that deposit is a separate and additive ceiling from the security deposit, which § 5141(33) defines as "exclusive of a pet deposit."
- Must remit the deposit and provide an itemized list of damages within twenty days of the end of the tenancy; failure to itemize is an acknowledgment that no payment for damages is due, and failure to remit entitles the tenant to double the amount wrongfully withheld, 25 Del. C. § 5514(e)–(g).
- May charge an application fee of no more than the greater of 10 percent of the monthly rent or $50, on pain of double damages, 25 Del. C. § 5514(d).
- May decline where the tenancy would constitute a direct threat to the health or safety of others, or would result in substantial physical damage to the property of others, 6 Del. C. §§ 4603(c) and 4603A(f). The assessment is individualised.
- Is outside the state accommodation duty only in the case 6 Del. C. § 4607(e) describes: a dwelling of no more than four families where the owner occupies one of them. Discriminatory advertising under § 4603(b)(3) remains unlawful even there, and the federal Fair Housing Act runs its own exemptions on its own terms.

## How to get an ESA letter in Camden

1. **Check that you qualify**, Answer a short screening about how your condition affects daily life in Camden. No diagnosis paperwork needed up front. (About 5 minutes: free)
2. **Connect with a licensed professional**, You are matched with a provider licensed for Delaware clients who reviews your situation in a telehealth evaluation. (Telehealth evaluation)
3. **Complete your evaluation**, The professional evaluates whether an emotional support animal alleviates symptoms of a condition recognized in the DSM-5. Honest evaluations, not everyone qualifies. (Most of Our Applicants Qualify)
4. **Receive your signed letter**, Your letter arrives on the professional's letterhead with their license number: the documentation Delaware landlords may lawfully request. (Typically within days of approval)
5. **Send it to your landlord**, Submit the letter with a short reasonable-accommodation request. Pet fees, pet deposits, and breed limits no longer apply to your animal in Camden. (Protection under FHA + state law)

## Conditions that can qualify for an ESA

No fixed government list exists. A licensed professional evaluates whether an animal alleviates symptoms of a DSM-5-recognized condition, commonly:

- Generalized anxiety disorder
- Major depressive disorder
- Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
- Panic disorder
- Social anxiety disorder
- Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD)
- Bipolar disorder
- Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)
- Phobias with housing impact
- Chronic stress affecting daily function

## Housing help in Camden

- [Town of Camden](https://camden.delaware.gov/) (town government)
- [Charter of the Town of Camden](https://charters.delaware.gov/camden.html) (ordinance)
- [Kent County Levy Court](https://www.kentcountyde.gov/) (county government)
- [Delaware Code Online](https://delcode.delaware.gov/) (statute)
- [Delaware State Housing Authority](https://www.destatehousing.com/) (state housing authority)

## Frequently asked questions

### I rent the lot under my manufactured home in Camden. Does the Residential Landlord-Tenant Code apply to me?

Not the parts most tenants read about. The Residential Landlord-Tenant Code is Part III of Title 25, chapters 51 through 59; manufactured home communities are governed by chapter 70, which sits in Part VI. 25 Del. C. § 5141 opens "for purposes of Part III of this title," so its definitions do not reach chapter 70 at all. Which body of law governs you is decided by what your agreement rents you, not by what the home is made of.

### Section 7017(h)(4) says no pet security deposit for a certified and trained support animal. Does that cover an emotional support animal?

The text requires an animal that is "certified and trained," and nothing in chapter 70 says what either word means. Chapter 70's definitions section, 25 Del. C. § 7003, defines none of "support animal," "pet," "animal" or "disability," and § 5141's definitions expressly do not travel outside Part III. The safe reading is the literal one: the sentence asks for training and certification, and the Delaware Code names no certifier anywhere.

### Is the one-month deposit cap the same in a manufactured home community as in an apartment?

No, and this is the sharpest difference. 25 Del. C. § 7017(h)(3) says a landlord may not require a pet security deposit above one month's rent "unless the tenant agrees to do so and the full amount is specified in the rental agreement", an escape hatch written into the ceiling. 25 Del. C. § 5514(i)(2) caps the apartment pet deposit at one month's rent "regardless of the duration of the rental agreement" and contains no such clause.

### Can non-pet damage be taken out of my pet security deposit on a rented lot?

Under Part VI, yes. 25 Del. C. § 7017(h)(2) provides that if the non-pet security deposit is insufficient to cover non-pet damages, damages may be deducted from the pet security deposit "even if such damages were not caused by a pet." Part III runs in the opposite direction: § 5514(i)(1) takes animal damage from the pet deposit first and reaches the security deposit only where the pet deposit falls short.

### Camden's rent estimate is $1,836. Is that the highest in Delaware?

It should not be used that way. The estimate comes from 354 renting households and carries a margin of plus or minus $551, so read strictly it says somewhere between roughly $1,285 and $2,387: an interval that overlaps much of the state. The highest reliable median gross rent among Delaware's twenty largest places is New Castle's $1,739, followed by Newark's $1,654 and Smyrna's $1,534.

### So which statute do I actually rely on, whichever Part I am in?

6 Del. C. § 4603A(a)(2), which makes it discrimination to refuse "reasonable accommodations in rules, policies, practices or services, when such accommodations may be necessary to afford such person equal opportunity to use and enjoy a dwelling," together with § 4603(b)(2) for the charge attached to the animal. Neither provision is indexed to Title 25's parts, and 42 U.S.C. § 3604(f)(3)(B) states the same duty federally.

### Are there circumstances where a landlord can still refuse?

Yes. Delaware writes the same carve-out into 6 Del. C. § 4603(c) and then again into § 4603A(f): a dwelling need not be opened where the tenancy would be a "direct threat to the health or safety of other individuals" or would cause "substantial physical damage to the property of others." Printing it twice does not widen it. Both tests look at what this animal has actually done, not at what its breed or weight is taken to suggest.

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Get evaluated by a licensed provider: https://my.supportanimal.com/qualify?sa_source=blog&sa_medium=blog&sa_campaign=esa-guides&sa_content=markdown&ref=blog&sa_term=delaware-emotional-support-animal%2Fcamden