Sussex County (Wilmington, Dover, Laurel: transplants, real estate, lease)

[maryCh]

We are considering a move to DE... can't decide between Kent and Sussex County. I have read Cape Henelopen SD is the one to target, which is just as well as we have a son with autism so we'd want to be near the Sussex Consortium. Any insight on this or other school districts?

As far as homes, are the property values/prices substantially less in Sussex? We don't mind the rural bit; we are in a rural area in NC now. And hubby will be a weekend dad, as he works in NYC. We'd like to know neighborhood names to avoid because of "lot rent" type fees, or senior communities (as we aren't there yet).

Any info would be appreciated.

[rossc]

Real estate is expensive here. The closer you get to Rehoboth, Lewes and the beaches, the more ridiculous it gets. Many of these gated type communities are going the lot rent route. Bay Woods near Long Neck gets $1000/month and you're not even on the water. The Peninsula is even higher, I think. The waterfront communities, which are mobile homes, are all leased land. I live on a leased water front lot. I pay $1800/year for the lot. That same lot would be $600,000 to purchase with a $3500/month mortgage. Comparing apples to apples, leased waterfront land isn't such a bad deal. I would never lease a lot unless it had a dock in the back yard. I don't understand why someone would pay $500,000 for a house then $1000/month for lot rent and not be on a REAL NICE water front lot. Doesn't make sense but plenty of people are doing it.

[maryCh]

Is it possible to find 3 BR, 2 BA, garage, maybe an acre, for under $200K? Other than an older mobile home? We aren't concerned about being close to the beach, as we are 6 hrs away now from the beach. But would need to be careful of the school district for our son.

[rossc]

Possibly, but it would probably be a fixer-upper. For comparison, a small, fairly new doublewide on 1.5 acres with no garage in Laurel just comped at $210,000. This is out in the middle of nowhere in a corn field. Have an agent do an MLS search for you. I was shocked at the prices here. The prices will drop as you get further from the beach, but still nothing within reason considering the local economy.

You mentioned being around Cape Henlopen. That is near Lewes if I recall. That is near the beach. Prices will be much higher there. I would guess that at $200k you will be looking at a rundown, older or very small stick built house or a mobile home. The problem with mobiles is the quality. It doesn't take long for a new mobile to start looking like an old mobile. Some of the new communities are advertising new homes from the $280's. You wouldn't have any land to speak of and I'm sure some of those are leased land. I've just seen ads so I don't know if there is any bait and switch going on there.

"Oh, you want a roof? That will be an additional $50,000."

Not quite...But a lot of these builder advertise a low price on very, VERY basic house, then upsell when they get you in the door.

[maryCh]

We had been searching in Kent County; the school district I was told to stay in there is Caesar Rodney (because of the autism program). In looking on realtor.com, it looks like prices are comparable in that district to what was out there for Cape Henelopen.

Any pros and cons to Kent vs Sussex counties? I'd lean toward Kent and the proximity to Dover... mainly for availability of additional services for my son.

[rossc]

I think Kent will be better for shopping, job prospects (should the need arise), medical facilities....But it's not near the beach. Sussex County reminds me a lot of the deep south in the locals attitudes and the pace. True born and bred Sussex County people are sort of standoff-ish toward outsiders. The closer you get to the beach or larger town/city the less this is a factor because you have a higher population of transplants.

Personally, if I couldn't live on the water, I wouldn't live in DE. I'm already planning my 4 month winter RV trip to FL. Can't use the water here in the winter, so I'm off to somewhere that I can.

[maryCh]

Other than trying to hold out for the autism program, we have no other attachments to DE. We do know we do NOT want to go near Wilmington; just too busy for what we are looking for on a daily basis.

As far as being on the water; we will be happy to be in reach. We have been in central NC for 14 years; its anywhere from 4-6 hours to the coast from here.

Our highest priority is our son with autism; he is 12-1/2 now and we have to look at school and his life after school. I really hate getting cold feet after all this time; we've only been working toward this move for 2 years now!

[WhatIf]

Popular local family physician Heckert is moving to Maine (seeking better facility for autistic son)By Henry J. Evans Jr. CAPE GAZETTE Newspaper (South eastern Sussex County, DE)

By now, all of Dr. Jeffrey J. Heckert’s patients have heard news that has many of them feeling more than just a little bit sick.
Heckert is leaving Delaware for Maine, ending 16 years of practice in the Cape Region.
“I wouldn’t leave here if I didn’t have to, and if there weren’t extenuating circumstances. I was set up to live here the rest of my life,” he said on a recent afternoon, following a morning of seeing patients at his Mid-Atlantic Family Practice office on Route 24 near Lewes.
Letters telling of Heckert’s impending departure began arriving in his patients’ mailboxes late this summer.
Heckert has been caring for area patients since 1992, and losing a doctor such as him - whose professionalism, reputation and character are sterling - is far worse than losing a good, honest auto mechanic. New car – no problem. New body – no way.
Reason for Heckert’s departure by year’s end: To give Grayson, his 11-year-old son, the chance to catch up – maybe even to excel.
Grayson, born prematurely, weighed only two pounds at birth, Heckert said. “Since the time he started school he’s had a learning disability. There’s no real diagnosis of what’s going on with him, but what it comes down to is more of a reading comprehension problem than anything else,” he said.
The ties that bind
Heckert, 49, said he’s considered the Cape Region home since the late 1970s.

“

[debbiekr]

The John Charlton school in Kent County is a great school from what I understand. My Son has been tested numerous times for autism over the last 6 years. We had him tested at Charlton and the people there were great. We also had a tour of the school, complete with indoor pool. We were in Maryland for 3 years and the system there was horrible compared to here. I'm so glad we moved!!! The CR school district is so much more supportive than others I have dealt with (including Lake Forest). Also, Kent will be closer for commuting purposes if needed and shopping as well. You can buy a house on an acre in Kent and still be to Walmart in 5 minutes. We live on an acre just outside of Camden in a cape cod and paid $229,000 in 2007. Prices have dropped since then so I do believe you can get what you are looking for very close to $200,000. The people in this area are also very friendly. Our neighbors brought us homemade cookies on our first day here! Anyway, I love this area, originally from MD, I will live here for the rest of my life! As a military family this is our second trip here for a total to date of 8 years and retirement is only 2 years away! Good luck and let me know if you have any other questions.

[toobusytoday]

The OP was done in July of '07 and poster has since moved to Kent county. I suggest posting a new thread if you would like to continue a talk about Autistic services in Sussex county. The original title for this thread was not very descriptive and people that need these services may skip over this thread.