Retire in Newark or Lewes? (Middletown, Rehoboth Beach: sales, real estate, 2014)

[Fweetie]

We are active 59 year old retired teachers who are very young at heart. We currently live in a small town of about 15,000 people in upstate NY (near the Finger Lakes). It is a non-progressive, dead community with little to do, especially for young people. Currently we must drive at least 20 minutes to do any shopping or eat at a variety of restaurants. We are energized by young people and always thought we'd like to retire and move to a college town. We lived in Ithaca, NY and loved it. But, we want to relocate closer to our grandchildren who live in Middletown, DE. We thought Newark would be a perfect fit but, after reading many posts, I wonder if we would be out of our element and inundated with a majority of "rowdy" students. We'd like to meet people in our age group with whom we can share similar interests. The retired people around us seem to be at least 10 years older with whom we have little in common. We do love the beach and are seriously considering the Lewes/Rehobeth area (west of rt 1) but wonder if the community is too small, if there is enough to do year round and whether the demographic of "mostly retired" would offer a diverse enough community. We currently volunteer and work part time and would like to continue. We have visited the area, seen several 55+ communities and other real estate throughout all three counties, as well. We would like a small single level/family detached home in the $325,000 range. We have narrowed it down to the Newark or Lewes area. Each area has it's pros and cons. We have been advised to rent first, to be sure the community is a good fit. We know there is no "perfect" place but, we'd appreciate any helpful input from current residents. Thanks!

[Mary2014]

Since you are both retired teachers I think before moving anywhere in DE you should review how your pension would be taxed in DE vs where you live now. Many people were surprised to discover that a pension ( or IRA withdrawal) that might not be taxable in their home state is taxable in DE. Only the first $12,500 per year is excluded in DE. This is often overlooked when talking about DE tax advantages because no sales tax and low property taxes are usually what is discussed.

I have just retired and have lived in Lewes for just 3 months. There are many people 80+ that may not be prepared to join me on a kayaking trip. I have met many 70+ who could run circles around me. Those in the 60 - 80 age group seem to be very active in volunteer work in the community- be it physical work, political campaigns, the arts etc. There are a fair number of part timers in the 45 - 60 age group who have a second home here who are also active in the community.

The Lewes/Rehoboth area is more liberal than I expected when it comes to politics. Also, very much into the arts, the latest books and music. There are so many places to dine it might take you eating out every night for a year to get to them all.

Well, at least that is my impression after being here for just the past 90 days.

Mary2014

PS: I am staying - not leaving any time soon.

[longnecker]

There is plenty to do in the Lewes/ Rehoboth area year round. In reading your post I wonder why you are limiting yourself to 55+ communities???

[DelawareLiz]

I think you'd like Lewes/Rehoboth. I'm a teacher who's about to turn 40, and I absolutely love living at the beach! There are plenty of lovely homes in your price range too. Yes, there are many retirees in Lewes/Rehoboth, but many are very active like Mary stated--both physically and in the community. There aren't many "bumps on logs". There are plenty of young people in the area as well, and this will be very evident when you visit. There is a younger crowd in the Lewes/Rehoboth area compared to the Bethany/Ocean View area (where I live), although I don't mind all the retirees around me. Something I have noticed living here at the beach is there are many retirees who are young at heart. It's wonderful here, and there are plenty of places to dine and keep one entertained--come see for yourself .

[rdlr]

Originally Posted by longnecker

There is plenty to do in the Lewes/ Rehoboth area year round. In reading your post I wonder why you are limiting yourself to 55+ communities???

I was surprised to read that, too, longnecker. As Beachliz said, plenty to do around the beach areas, year round. And, being in Kent County, we have plenty to do here, too. The choices are endless, since Delaware is only 96 miles long.

I think the original poster may be surprised that there are tons of us living it up, well past 55+.

[Fweetie]

Oh, we are not limiting ourselves at all, Longnecker. Those are just the communities we have visited thus far. Any reason to avoid them? We thought, perhaps, being new to the area, the 55+ communities may be a good place to meet new people(?) Thoughts??

[Fweetie]

Yes! We have looked at the tax on pensions in DE. In NYS, our property and school taxes are so high that the tax on pensions is outweighed! But, thanks so much for that alert, Mary 2014.

[Mary2014]

Originally Posted by Fweetie

Oh, we are not limiting ourselves at all, Longnecker. Those are just the communities we have visited thus far. Any reason to avoid them? We thought, perhaps, being new to the area, the 55+ communities may be a good place to meet new people(?) Thoughts??

I live in a condo community which is not 55+, but, 90% of the people here are retired or soon to be retired. Maybe half live here full time and the others are part timers. In the past 3 months I have been invited several times to dinner, taught the art of "picking crabs", driven around the area by several individuals so I could become familiar with the area, taught the fine art of how to use the back roads and shopping center parking lots to avoid route 1, invited by a volunteer seining the bay and recording data to see if I might be interested in volunteering in the future and a few dozen other things. People often ask what you are interested in and connect you with people they know with similar interests. Believe me, meeting new people should not be a problem.

Mary2014

[sjdemak]

Newark is not a place one should retire in. Go for the Delaware beaches, most of my friends parents did so.

[EnjoyEveryDay]

Fweeti, my wife and I just bought our retirement home in Lewes this summer. We didn't consider Newark in particular, but we did look at several places in Delaware before deciding we wanted to be near the beach.

Because we are splitting time between Chicago and Lewes until we can sell our house in Illinois, we haven't had time to fully immerse ourselves in everything that the Lewes area has to offer. Our average age is 59, and what attracted us to the area was all the different activities that we can do (biking to Rehoboth Beach, Lewes, and Cape Henlopen State Park; eating out at lots of different restaurants, kayaking, volunteering, renting boats, etc.). We found that in our community it is 50% year-round residents and 50% summer home residents, most of whom plan to retire there when they quit working. It was important to us to find a place where there are lots of year-round folks so we can forge friendships, especially when winter comes and biking and walking along the beach won't be as attractive.

We started out looking at 55+ communities and found that there are several very nice ones out there. But in the end, we found lots of folks our age in all the communities and can't wait to sell in Chicago and become full-time residents, so we can join the locals and start complaining about the "damn tourists" (just kidding).

Hope that helps, and hope you find your perfect place no matter what you decide. I think you will find this forum a fountain of knowledge, and many of the true area experts have already posted to your question.