How is South Eastern DE to live in? Considering either Delaware or Maryland...help! (Wilmington: fit in, sales)

[krystalg]

My boyfriend and I are planning out where we want to relocate to from Massachusetts, and are considering either eastern DE or eastern MD. We just need to get away from our New England winters! We are thinking of maybe living somewhere in the southeast section of the state, and would love any input as to how it would be to live there.

What is the weather like, how are the people, how calm/fast paced is it there (we're not really big city kind of people), and how is the job market? I am a dental assistant, so hopefully there are dental offices all over. Also, if you have any Maryland info to consider as comparison that would be great! Thank you so much!

[doctorjef]

By eastern MD I assume you mean what is commonly called "the Eastern Shore" of Maryland -- all the bit over here on the DelMarVa Penninsula. I'm not quite so sure what you have in mind by "eastern DE" since DE is a long, narrow state. Judging by your thread title, I would assume you mean Sussex County (South) along the Atlantic or Delaware Bay coastlines (East). It's very beachy with some very good restaurants in the lovely old historic town of Lewes and in the premier DE Atlantic beachtown of Rehoboth Beach. It has some lovely old historic places like the aforementioned Lewes and the less restored town of Milton, amongst others. Away from the immediate coast it is largely agricultural, as is the Eastern Shore of MD. It definitely has a more Southern feel than the rest of the state, although Lewes has a somewhat New England feel to it IMO. Did you have some more specific quesitons? There are lots of threads on this forum talking about the different parts of DE and communities in various parts of the state.

[debbiekr]

I now live in Delaware but am orginally from the eastern shore of MD. I lived there for about 20 years before moving to Delaware. The eastern shore of MD is beautiful. The Centreville, Queenstown area is where I grew up. I also lived on Kent Island for about 5 years. The homes in these areas will be alot more expensive than in DE though and the taxes can sometimes be as much as double in MD as they are in DE. Easton would probably be a good area for alot of dentist offices. There are a few between Centreville and Kent Island but not alot. Easton is also a nice area but very congested in my opinion. The taxes there are also very high and so are the home prices. Not sure what you are looking to spend.

[doctorjef]

The infrastructure is rapidly expanding in lower Delaware - Sussex County - along with the population base. I imagine this means there will be new dental practices moving in, as well as expansion of some existing dental practices. You could certainly do a focussed job search in the area. Sounds like you really need to visit in order to get a feel for it. Distances are small enough that you can easily live in one community and work in another. DE does get cold weather in the winter, but nothing like New England. It really should be a piece of cake for you coming from MA if you don't like the winters there.

[toobusytoday]

This site will give you an idea of the weather Weather History & Data Archive : Weather Underground Having lived in upstate NY and grown up in Delaware, the biggest difference I found was the length of winter in the NY. As with any move, your biggest obstacle will be finding a job in this economy, which is something I am sure you will want to do before you move.

[doctorjef]

Unless you specifically want to be at the beach I would encourage you not to write off Delaware's other two counties, New Castle in the north and Kent in the middle of the state. There's not any very radical weather difference; indeed, at times it can be cooler at the beach than in upper DE. You might take into account that DE is only about 90 miles north to south, and no more than about 40 miles east to west at its widest point; at its narrowest point it is only about 9 miles east to west. Even in the most urbanised areas of New Castle County (home to Wilmington and Newark and suburban sprawl) it is hardly what most people would consider big city and is generally pretty relaxed. I'd suggest giving the whole state a look, which would also improve your chances of finding employment.

[Sweetpea79]

I live about 10 minutes from the MD/DE border, and I've lived MD all my life. Normally the further towards the coast the less snowfall. Personally I recommend Newark or Wilmington, DE. Even right over the border in Cecil County isn't that bad and is fairly quiet. But with DE you get no sales tax and lower property taxes to deal with.

[checking out]

Md = $$$$$$$

(So if ya ain't financially endowed best consider somewhere else. I'm working on getting up and out of this overpriced rat trap.)

[krystalg]

Thank you so much everyone for the input. At this point, from what I've heard in a similar post I started in the MD forum, I may be leaning towards DE. Other than just the weather, what can you tell me about how the towns are around this area? I would consider the middle region as well. I am looking for a low crime area thats not run down. Not a slow to a crawl type of pace either...I'm getting the impression that the negative descriptions I just gave describe much of MD on the eastern shore Also I've heard that in MD, the people aren't too welcoming to newbies...is this true of DE? Thank you so much!

[debbiekr]

If you are considering central Delaware, the Camden/Magnolia area is nice. Also, Smyrna/Middletown, which is north of Dover is a nice area. I'm not sure of anything over the canal. I only go up that way for Christiana Mall, which has been years. As far as the people, I am orginially from MD and have not had a problem with feeling that I don't fit in. There are so many Military and retirees coming from all over so I don't consider that an issue. You are right about areas of MD being like that though. The Eastern Shore of MD was definitely like that.