(a) A community owner may raise a homeowner's rent for any and all 12-month periods governed by the rental agreement in an amount greater than the average annual increase of the Consumer Price Index For All Urban Consumers in the Philadelphia-Wilmington-Atlantic City area (CPI-U'') for the most recently available preceding 36-month period, provided the community owner can demonstrate the increase is justified for all of the following conditions:
(1) The community owner, during the preceding 12-month period, has not been found in violation of any provision of this chapter that threatens the health or safety of the residents, visitors, or guests that persists for more than 15 days, beginning from the day the community owner received notice of such violation.
(2) The proposed rent increase is directly related to operating, maintaining, or improving the manufactured home community, and justified by 1 or more factors listed under subsection (c) of this section.
(b) The Delaware State Housing Authority shall monitor the CPI-U and report to the Authority findings and recommendations relevant to the cost of rent in manufactured home communities in Delaware.
(c) One or more of the following factors may justify the increase of rent in an amount greater than the CPI-U:
(1) The completion and cost of any capital improvements or rehabilitation work in the manufactured home community, as distinguished from ordinary repair, replacement, and maintenance.
(2) Changes in property taxes or other taxes within the manufactured home community.
(3) Changes in utility charges within the manufactured home community.
(4) Changes in insurance costs and financing associated with the manufactured home community.
(5) Changes in reasonable operating and maintenance expenses relating to the manufactured home community including costs for water service; sewer service; septic service; water disposal; trash collection; and employees.
(6) The need for repairs caused by circumstances other than ordinary wear and tear in the manufactured home community.
(7) Market rent. — For purposes of this section, market rent'' means that rent which would result from market forces absent an unequal bargaining position between the community owner and the homeowners. In determining market rent relevant considerations include rents charged to recent new homeowners entering the subject manufactured home community and/or by comparable manufactured home communities. To be comparable, a manufactured home community must be within the competitive area and must offer similar facilities, services, amenities, and management.
(8) The amount of rental assistance provided by the community owner to the homeowners under § 7022 of this title.
(d) A community owner shall not incorporate the cost of a civil penalty, criminal fine, or litigation-related costs for rent-related proceedings into rent charged under any circumstance. A community owner also shall not utilize as justification for any future rental increase the cost of capital improvements or rehabilitation work, once that cost has been fully recovered by rental increases that were incorporated into a prior rental increase in excess of CPI-U, where the prior rental increase was properly implemented under this subchapter.