Thinking of relocating for retirement (Dover, Newark: employment, allergies, income)

[docfas]

We are looking into Delaware as a retirement location. Any suggestions for a single family dwelling in a nice area or community. We are expecting to pay in the 250K to 300K for a home. Is the Lewes area OK?
We may need part time employment to supplement income.

[outdoorsnut]

Good Day, docfas.
Gathering that you're in retirement, I'd recommend an area quite close to medical care facilities. For the 250K-300K range, the suburbs of Dover would be a good choice. There are a lot of retirees there (with Dover Air Force Base there- also convenient for the Armed Forces retirees for their BX shopping/groceries). New Castle county- especially the Bear/ Newark area may also be a good choice, but the prices of housing have gone up. Middletown is rapidly developing, if you don't mind a relatively rural area. Medical care, though is excellent- with Christiana Medical Center in Newark.
Only one issue- if you have environmental allergies, it may not be the place for you. I don't know what it is, but it could be the "drift" of smog from nearby big cities (drift is always eastward)- D.C., Baltimore, or Philly, or the acreages of farms around Delaware towns and cities. whatever the cause, all you need to do is ask anyone like me who had lived in DE for at least 5 years. Of course there are some that actually "lost" their allergies when they moved here- but they're more the exceptions.
Good Luck.
outdoorsnut

[rererun]

Hello docfas,
I am a 40 year resident of Delaware. I agree with outdoorsnut revue. I would like to expand a bit. I would not recommend the northern County of New Castle, as I consider it just one big city. I live in the central County of Kent, in the City of Dover. The county is in the midst of some terrible growing pains. Small, surrounding towns that had some housing bargains, find themselves suddenly needing a new Town Hall, Firehouse, Ambulance(s), etc.. The county is rather generous with tax breaks to us retirees. Dover is not as generous. The southern County of Sussex still has pockets of reasonable housing. The eastern side has the wealthy beach colonys. The western side is still quite sleepy.
As for myself, I am thinking about North Carolina.