If you are a renter in Delaware who is facing financial hardship as a result of the pandemic, you may qualify for rental assistance from DSHA's Delaware Housing Assistance Program (DE HAP). Eligible renters can receive up to $5,000 in assistance for rent arrears and current rent due.

Eligibility Information

There are requirements for both tenants and property owners. The tenant must:

Be a Delaware resident; Provide documentation showing an impact on employment and/or income beginning March 10, 2020 or later that is related to the COVID-19 pandemic. This includes such instances as a layoff, reduced work hours or needing to take unpaid leave due to childcare or other issues arising as a result of the health crisis; Not be receiving federal or state housing subsidies (such as Housing Choice Voucher, State Rental Assistance Program (SRAP), or project-based rental assistance through HUD or USDA); Have a maximum current household income (at time of application) at or below 60% of Area Median Income for the county of residence.

Income eligibility per county is as follows:

Maximum Income Eligibility for the DEHAP Program 60% of County Area Median Income (AMI) County 1 person 2 person 3 person 4 person 5 person 6 person Sussex $31,920 $36,480 $41,040 $45,540 $49,200 $52,860 New Castle $40,620 $46,380 $52,200 $57,960 $62,640 $67,260 Kent $28,740 $32,880 $36,960 $41,040 $44,340 $47,640

Please note: Rent arrears prior to March 1, 2020 cannot be covered by DE HAP. If you owe rent to your landlord that was due prior to March 1, 2020, please visit http://destatehousing.com/covid19/renters for a list of other resources for rent and utility assistance in Delaware that may be able to assist.

How to Apply

Applications must be submitted by the landlord using the DEHAP Portal. Please see the DEHAP User Manual and how-to video for instructions on applying. The Portal is available in Spanish. Applications must be submitted by the property owner/manager, including documentation from the tenant to confirm their eligibility.



Tenants, property owners or managers can find required forms at this link. Applicants are encouraged to review the document checklist to ensure all required documents are submitted.



Property managers who already work with DSHA (LIHTC sites) and have existing MITAS logins, please see these special instructions.

Frequently Asked Questions

Please see our Frequently Asked Questions and FAQs for Property Owners and Managers for other important information about the program. Spanish language versions of the General FAQs and FAQs for Property Owners and Managers are also available

Due to the anticipated high volume of applications and inquiries, we are not able to reply to individual emails or calls requesting information about status of applications. Questions may be emailed to dehap@destatehousing.com, but please be aware we are receiving a very high number of inquiries and messages and response may be delayed. If you are a property owner emailing with a question or issue about the portal, please include identifying information in your email to assist us in looking into your issue.

Please note the application is property-based. If you are a property owner or manager with multiple tenants at one property, please add all tenants to one applications, do not create a separate property entry for each tenant. If you already submitted and need to make edits or add tenants, please email dehap@destatehousing.com and the application will be reopened for you to make edits.

For Previous Applicants (March – April 2020)

Previous applicants may receive DEHAP assistance again; however, as eligibility requirements and program documentation have changed, you will need to work with your landlord to apply again under the new program.