Need information on Townsend, DE (Wilmington, Dover: relocating, real estate, vacation)

[lmarcos1]

We are relocating from Virginia to Northern Delaware due to my husband's job transfer. We would like to purchase new construction or a home less than 3 years old. After doing research online it appears that you get more house and land for your $$$ in Townsend than in Newark, DE or Wilmington. Is there sufficient shopping and restaurants in Townsend. Do they have any good pizza and bagel shops? Is it a growing area or is most of it already established? I'm a NYC native and I am hoping that some of the population living there are from NYC or New Jersey so that my strong "New Yawk" accent won't be an issue like it is here in Richmond Virginia. (They don't like us Yankees). Also how are the schools? Here they are extremely overcrowded and my kids have to attend a school that takes them 45 minutes by bus to commute.

Appreciate any feedback.

[hc7612]

Hi,
I am not from Delaware, but am moving there @ the end of this year. What price range are you talking about? That might help me guide you to certain neighborhoods. I do not know much about Townsend, but I highly doubt that there will be the type of shops you desire. We have purchased a house south of Newark. I am going to have to deal with the fact that I will be driving at least 15 minutes to arrive at anything retail that I am used to. Just one of those things to get use to I guess. Good luck and if you post a price range I may be able to help more.

[lmarcos1]

Price Range - $400,000-$475,000.

[hc7612]

Have you looked around Middletown or Bear? St. Augustine Creek Development, in Middletown, close to the 1, is around that price range. Most of the houses are on 1/2 -3/4 acre lots. It seemed like a nice development, and reasonable pricing. Hopefully, more locals will join in and give you ideas. Good luck.

[maryCh]

We are officially local, but very new to DE (just since Labor Day). We chose to be in central Kent Co and are just south of Dover. From what I have seen of "north of Dover", I understand there are several lovely towns and developments in Northern Kent Co and southern New Castle Co. My understanding is that if you stay south of the canal, you get more for your money. You may lose some of the conveniences that you may be familiar with in northern VA or NY, but my experience has been that its easy to get used to.

As far as other Jersey-ites & New York natives, there are PLENTY in DE. My husband is a Long Islander, and I have run in to tons of folks from PA, NJ and NY since we've moved here. So you will be just fine on that front. I understand the commute to Newark can be hairy, as there are 2 main ways to get there... route 1 and route 13. If you get a little off the beaten path, hubby may find a back way in. The problem will come in when he needs to cross the canal, as obviously there is limited ways to do that.

Good luck, and keep us posted.

Mary

Mary

[jjmck172]

I don't think you want to live in townsend. It might have 1 pizza shop, if you are lucky. There is a drug store in town, and 1 pizza place, and not much else. There might be one other 'sandwich shop' type place. It is a growing area that just started growing. The population in 2000 was 346........there has been growth, but this is a one traffic light town. House sales have slowed to a crawl here.

[jdoll]

First, my address is Townsend, yet I live only three miles from Middletown and just south of Odessa on Route 13. Middletown is where a the "stuff"is at. If the Townsend developments your are looking at include Spring Creek, Sycamore Farms, Stonefield, Pine Tree or anything around Odessa National you'll likely find as we have; the influence is more from Middletown and the only reason to go to Townsend is to put up your mail after a vacation.

1) Pizza (National Chains) Domino's & Papa John's plus at least 6 local/Delaware pizza shops all deliver.

2) Bagels come from the grocery store bakery (2-options), Amish Bakery (Dutch Country Farmers Market), Dunkin Donuts or the local shop Sunset Cafe. All Middletown. Sunset is the closest you'll find to a NYC bagel, but it will participially depend on your expectation level.

3) Jersey accents everywhere. They are fleeing the real estate taxes of New Jersey in droves from my personal experience.

4) Appoquinomink school district is considered the best in the state. See delawareonline.com for the most recent results of state testing.

5) Shopping for basics is OK (Lowe's, Home Depot, Kohl's and the soon to open Wal-Mart) and Middletown has some good local Merchants. But you will have to travel 20 miles for local/regional malls, plus Sam's Club, Costco, Target, Best Buy and others.

Feel free to e-mail me privately if you have any other questions. For this transplanted Chicagoan this is a great place to live.

[Delawaremommy]

I have lived in Delaware my whole life and in Middletown for 3 1/2 years. Townsend is probably not the best place for you. It is growing, but there is really not much there right now. Middletown might be better for you. We don't have much here either, but we at least have a Kohl's, Home Depot, lots of local shops and restaurants and Walmart this fall. There are plenty of nice houses in your price range.
Check out the commute before you buy. My husband works in Wilmington and it takes him 45 minutes most days to get to work.

[Dovergirl]

I have read with great interest all the previous posts. Basically, Middletown, Odessa, and Townsend are so close together and form a growing area we call MOT. Just wanted to clarify that for lmarcos1. I live in Dover. I am a native Delawarean and have seen the growth of the MOT area. It is definitely changing and new businesses are always popping up. Part of the fun of living in a place like MOT is watching the growth. I think you'd adjust nicely. As far as pizza goes, I hate chain pizza and prefer to find the real "local" places. With a little snooping, you should be able to find a pizza parlor that suits your taste. Bagels? There is a shop in Dover. If you really wanted to make a 20-25 minute drive down, you could buy in bulk and freeze.

Keeping an open mind is the best thing. Just know that you will get a beautiful home for the price range you posted. I am sure you will be happy. Remember, Philly is a short drive away........about an hour.........and Washington D.C./Baltimore area isn't far, either. When I travel to NYC I drive to the transit in Hamilton, NJ. It's a safe place to park and then I hop the train into the city. The drive to Hamilton from Dover is about 1 1/2 hrs. Not bad.

Hang in there and let us all know your decision. Best of luck!