Laws Affecting Real Estate Practice and Disclosures
Fair housing and advertising
Federal fair housing protects race, color, religion, sex (including sexual orientation and gender identity under current HUD interpretation), national origin, familial status (children under 18, pregnant women, and those securing custody), and disability. Prohibited practices include refusing to show or rent, steering, blockbusting (panic selling), redlining, discriminatory advertising, and refusing reasonable accommodations or modifications. Limited exemptions exist for owner-occupied buildings of four or fewer units, single-family rentals without a broker, religious organizations, private clubs, and qualifying housing for older persons (55+ or 62+). Delaware law and local ordinances may add protected classes - never assume the federal list is the whole list.
Disclosure duties
Lead-based paint disclosure with the EPA pamphlet is required for pre-1978 housing, along with a ten-day opportunity to inspect. Delaware sellers of residential property complete the seller's disclosure form; an "as-is" sale does not excuse fraud or knowing concealment of latent defects. Licensees must disclose known material facts, their agency status, and any personal interest in a transaction. Antitrust law forbids price fixing, group boycotts, market allocation, and tying arrangements - even casual conversation about commission rates can be evidence.
Traps
Blockbusting is inducing panic for profit; steering is channeling buyers to or away from neighborhoods. Puffing is opinion; misrepresenting a material fact is fraud.
Worked example
A licensee shows a single mother of two only units in one complex and steers her away from a family-friendly building. That is illegal steering based on familial status, regardless of the licensee's good intentions.