2026-08-25 · Delaware · Legislation

A Delaware association lien that was paid off at settlement and never released used to sit on the record indefinitely, clouding title and surfacing at the next sale. Since June 24, 2026 the attorney who paid it can clear it administratively.

SB 316, sponsored by Senator Mantzavinos with Representative Bush, was signed and took effect on June 24, 2026, published as 85 Del. Laws c. 320. It retitles 25 Del. C. § 2120 and adds a new subsection (j).¹

The definition that does the work

From the current code:²

“‘Lien’ includes a homeowner association or condominium lien, UCC financing statements, judgments, and any other monetary lien recorded with a recorder of deeds office.”

And the exclusion: “‘Lien’ does not include a mortgage.”

An attorney who paid off such a lien at settlement may now use the affidavit procedure already in § 2120(a) and (b) — previously available only for mortgages — to satisfy or partially release it. The existing mechanism carries a 60-day period with a 15-day notice requirement.

Why this was a real problem

Association liens in Delaware arise by statute and attach automatically. The release does not. Getting one recorded depends on somebody at the association, or its manager or counsel, doing it — and associations are volunteer-run, change managers, and sometimes stop functioning entirely.

The state's own Common Interest Community Ombudsperson has documented what happens next. Its complaint records include false resale certificates with materially false information — referred to the Department of Justice's Consumer Protection Unit as potential consumer fraud — and homeowners who received no notice at all that a lien had been recorded against them.

1. SB 316, 153rd General Assembly — bill record (signed and effective June 24, 2026; 85 Del. Laws c. 320) ↩
2. 25 Del. C. ch. 21 — § 2120 as amended by 85 Del. Laws c. 320 § 1 (attorney satisfaction; § 2120(j) definition of “lien”) ↩