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Old 03-18-2017, 07:57 PM
 
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Hello! - My husband and I are contemplating a move to Sussex County DE in about a year and a half from northern NJ. He will retire in his early 50's as a public school teacher, and I will begin my second career as a nurse. We have a five year old child, so schools are extremely important, as is a kid friendly neighborhood. Looking online it almost seems too good to be true; that we can afford a nice home with such low property taxes! We can't even pretend to do that in the part of Jersey we currently live. I keep thinking there had got to be a catch. I did spend a day in Lewes after Christmas, but when I drove by a few houses I liked online, I was mostly disappointed. For example, I would see what appeared to be the perfect home online, but when driving to the neighborhood, there were many derelict homes nearby, and I just did not get that nice neighborhood feel I would like from my daughter. I looked mostly in west Lewes where we can afford. The bayside was beautiful, but way out of our range. Also, it was pretty congested at the outlets for the winter, I can't imagine the summer I am planning a trip in May for a few days and will go further south this time. I am hoping someone from the area can give me insight as to where to look. We hope to spend about $300,000 for a home with a two car garage and more than 2400 sq ft, with schools being the most important ingredient for us. Both Indian River and Cape Henelon seem to be rated well, but I am hoping for locals point of views. There seem to be a development of very nice newer homes near Selbyville Middle School, but it also appears crime is higher in that area. Likewise, Fenwick Island looks great too, as well as some homes in Ocean View, but they are slightly more money. Since we do not really know the area, any feedback is appreciated. Moreover, do you know what the job market is like for RNs? I see Beebe Health currently has a sign on bonuses for experienced RN's and a new grad orientation starts in August as well; Atlantic hospital near Ocean City MD is currently advertising a new grad program too. My husband has a CDL B and is a behind the wheel driving instructor in NJ. He will be looking for part-time employment as well after we settle in. Oh, one more thing, my husband had a bad experience with septic in the past and it adamant on city water and sewer, but from what I have seen online, it appears most homes in the area are not spetic. Thanks so much!
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Old 03-18-2017, 08:54 PM
 
Location: Former LI'er Now Rehoboth Beach, DE
13,055 posts, read 18,096,128 times
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It is not too good to be true. I am attaching the link for the MLS site and you can peruse to your hearts content.

Sussex County Association of REALTORS® » SCAOR Just select residential in the property search and you will easily figure it out. Most homes in communities are connected to the city sewer and water. Now the decision is Home or Town home, and own the land or land lease (rent the land). You should be able to get a job fairly easily as a nurse there is a new hospital going in called BayHealth and Beebe is expanding the hospital, too. You can't go wrong in either school district. I live in Rehoboth and don't know about Selbyville, sorry. There are also many homes that have HOA so if that is not something you are interested in you may need to consider that.
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Old 03-19-2017, 06:04 AM
 
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Wow! A new hospital is great and I read that it will have a pediatric unit, even better. It does seem most homes have HOA fees, but they seem to be pretty low, and I would prefer a community pool, fitness center, and all the amenities they have to offer. Are there additional fees each month that perhaps we are overlooking? Where we live now we pay about $1,400 a month in taxes, fees, water, sewer, heat and electric. I am just wondering if DE does it differently, and we will have additional bills that perhaps NJ incorporates into its massive tax bill. Thanks so much for your response!
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Old 03-19-2017, 08:34 AM
 
Location: Delmarva
153 posts, read 319,131 times
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There are many things to consider that do add up. For example, you will probably have to choose between natural gas or propane heat. Propane can get expensive. Some communities have a community propane tank while in some each house has their own buried propane tank. Some people love natural gas and some don't. Then there are the electric companies. I happen to love Delaware Coop, speaking from personal experience. They are very responsive round the clock and good. There is also the question of sewer fees, some communities have leech fields while some have the typical sewer. I find the monthly sewer fees by Artesian to be expensive, IMO. Then there is the question of watering your lawn. Some people use the public water to their house to water their lawns, which can get pricey in the summer with the blistering sun. Neighbors of mine have drilled wells in their yards for this purpose. Then if you want a basement, there is the question of low water table. Some homes have their sump pumps going on frequently while their neighbor next door hardly has theirs going off. Then there is the question of lawn care. Some have it paid for in their monthly maintenance fee in their community, others do it on their own, or some hire local companies and pay $600-$1000 or more per year for services such as seeding, mowing, tick spray, and winterizing the sprinkler system, to name a few.

It is true that there may be a beautiful community with walking trails, clubhouse, pool, but the road that leads to the community has mobile homes and trailers.

The forums here have a wealth of information and there are even more things to consider that I haven't mentioned, such as buy new build versus existing house, which builders to consider, etc.

Last edited by Seaponies; 03-19-2017 at 09:08 AM..
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Old 03-19-2017, 04:03 PM
 
Location: Seaford, DE
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Plenty of homes with public water and sewer at or wear the beaches....don't worry. And yes, it's pretty common for nice communities to have mobile homes or dumpy houses on the way to them. We have this issue.

The crime in Selbyville is in the section eight apartments and on Polly Branch Road--don't buy homes near these areas. Otherwise, Selbyville isn't a bad area.

Plenty of nursing jobs here, especially at Beebe. Hope this helps!
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Old 03-20-2017, 06:34 AM
 
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You might want to look mid-state. Some nice little towns north and south of Dover. City services, etc..
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Old 03-21-2017, 06:10 AM
 
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Seaponies - Thanks for the information on the propane gas, we will definitely look out for that, and avoid it. We are not looking to build, I don't want that hassle and there are plenty of homes on the market.

Beachliz - I think we decided we are going to look closer to the water, but perhaps still in Shelbyville, very close to Fenwick Island up through Ocean View, which I've read is less crowded and what we are after. Do you know if that area close to Fenwick goes to Lord Baltimore Elementary School? According the Zillow, that area does goto Lord Baltimore. Also, what do you think the commute is to Beebe from way down by Ocean City in the summer? I think it must be awful! Atlantic Hospital in Ocean City is much closer, but also a smaller hospital.

NJBoy3 - My husband's dream is to love at the beach, so we are definitely only looking to be 15 minutes or less from the water.

CAN ANYONE SPEAK ABOUT THE K-8 SUSSEX ARTS SCHOOL IN SELBYVILLE, AND SUSSEX TECH? ARE THEY GREAT SCHOOLS AND HOW DIFFICULT IT IS IT TO GET INTO THEM? I READ THAT ADMISSION IS VIA A LOTTERY SYSTEM. THAT IS DIFFERENT THAN THE TECH HIGH SCHOOLS IN NJ, WHICH ARE PUBLIC, BUT STUDENTS MUST APPLY AND BE ACCEPTED. MOST IN NJ ARE EXTREMELY COMPETITIVE AND REALLY GREAT SCHOOLS. THANKS FOR YOUR REPLIES!
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Old 03-21-2017, 08:21 AM
 
Location: Seaford, DE
1,915 posts, read 3,910,003 times
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Selbyville is definitely less crowded than my area at any given time...much, MUCH quieter too so long as you stay away from the section eight and Polly Branch. Not sure where the cutoff line is for Lord Baltimore vs. Phillip Showell Elementary, but I know that if you live around Selbyville Middle then your kids will go to Showell. I believe the closer you are to west Fenwick/Fenwick, the more likely your kids will go to LB. Oh, I don't even want to imagine the commute from down near Fenwick to Beebe--pains me to think about it. Early mornings wouldn't be bad, but anymore the traffic is pretty sketchy on route one from Friday-Monday, year-round. Summer is a nightmare for anyone who must work and cannot make their own driving schedule. The section from from Dewey-Lewes is the worst part.

School of the Arts and Sussex Tech are excellent schools. School of the Arts is an option if you decide on Selbyville and determine you don't want your kids at Showell---which is not a bad school at all and has some wonderful teachers, but it is very different demographics compared to LB. My son attended LB and Sussex Tech. He excelled at Tech, it was a wonderful school for him and LB was like his second home. He loved his teachers and had such a great time attending both LB and Tech.

You have to apply for School of the Arts--am not as familiar with that school as I am with Tech since my son only attended Tech. Tech is also a supposed lottery, but let me say that they can still pick and choose who they want. Discipline issues are quickly given the boot at Tech.
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Old 03-21-2017, 11:48 AM
 
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Thank you for the quick response, beachliz! Having been an educator myself, I know discipline problems can change the culture of a school, and I am glad to hear the Sussex Tech deals with any issues that may arise. I suspected the commute would be terrible, and I did spend nearly ten years commuting an hour+ each way, and have no desire to do that again, perhaps I will narrow my search to stay closer to the larger hospital in Lewes and where the new one will be opening.
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Old 03-24-2017, 04:10 PM
 
Location: Long Neck , DE
4,902 posts, read 4,212,917 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by beachliz View Post
Selbyville is definitely less crowded than my area at any given time...much, MUCH quieter too so long as you stay away from the section eight and Polly Branch. Not sure where the cutoff line is for Lord Baltimore vs. Phillip Showell Elementary, but I know that if you live around Selbyville Middle then your kids will go to Showell. I believe the closer you are to west Fenwick/Fenwick, the more likely your kids will go to LB. Oh, I don't even want to imagine the commute from down near Fenwick to Beebe--pains me to think about it. Early mornings wouldn't be bad, but anymore the traffic is pretty sketchy on route one from Friday-Monday, year-round. Summer is a nightmare for anyone who must work and cannot make their own driving schedule. The section from from Dewey-Lewes is the worst part.

School of the Arts and Sussex Tech are excellent schools. School of the Arts is an option if you decide on Selbyville and determine you don't want your kids at Showell---which is not a bad school at all and has some wonderful teachers, but it is very different demographics compared to LB. My son attended LB and Sussex Tech. He excelled at Tech, it was a wonderful school for him and LB was like his second home. He loved his teachers and had such a great time attending both LB and Tech.

You have to apply for School of the Arts--am not as familiar with that school as I am with Tech since my son only attended Tech. Tech is also a supposed lottery, but let me say that they can still pick and choose who they want. Discipline issues are quickly given the boot at Tech.
Just has an AH HA moment watching the news.. Sussex Academy would also be available it is now MiddleSchool thru Senior High. Graduating it's first class this year.
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