Can you help me pick a town? (Newark, Bear: condo, how much)

[orangepekoe]

I don't know too much about Delaware. My husband has a friend who is a DE native, and he's been helpful in explaining some of the fun idiosyncrasies of DE. We find it all VERY endearing.

My husband is taking a job in Newark (pretty sure it's coming down the pike anyhow), and we're planning on taking a few more look-see trips in the coming month, to figure out where to buy a house. Smyrna is so pretty, but I don't know what it's really like.

People in Delaware seem very friendly, and being a Maryland native, living in upstate NY for a few years, I've been fairly battered by rudeness and I'm ready to be some place warmer and friendlier. My family are smiley, friendly people and up here we just get the strangest looks when we say hello to strangers.

I found these "forum noob" questions on the "new to Delaware" thread, so maybe it'll help (?).

When are you moving? A month or 2 or 3
Where are you coming from? Upstate NY, but we're Maryland natives
Why are you moving? Sick of cold winters and cold people.
Where will you be working? Newark
Have you been here yet? Yes, a couple times.

Will you buy or rent? Buy
If buying, are you looking for a house or a condo? How much can you spend? Up to 250K or so on a house, would prefer less.


Are you married or single? Do you have children? Married with 4 children.
Do you prefer public or private schools? Public schools
Do you have pets? A cat and a dog
Do you want or need a yard? Yes
Are you keeping a car? 2
Do you prefer bustling activity or calm and quiet? Not fussed about it, but quiet-ish is good.

What do you want to be closest to?
Some proximity to a Quaker meeting would be ideal. reasonable proximity to scenic beauty, maybe the water, perhaps (10 or 15 minute drive to something like a beach would be nice, the bay is fine).

Do you want to live with people of a similar age, race, religion or sexual preference or do you prefer a diverse neighborhood?
I just want to live near friendly people. My husband and I are very open and like a wide variety of people. Temperament is just about the only concern we really have.

We're late 30's, early 40's, and we have kids ranging from 1st grade to 10th grade. We're white, a religious mish-mash, don't care a bit about other peoples' sexual preferences.

Beaches or City? I think we're envisioning small town.

I'm a vegetarian (not for moral reasons, I have health issues - not that there's anything wrong with being a vegetarian for moral reasons. It's just not me), so I'd like to live somewhere where I won't be stoned to death for asking around for tofu, or for politely turning down a barbecue sandwich. My family eat whatever - I'm the only fussy one. Such a burden is theirs!

Any insights are very appreciated. Thank you!

[jdoll]

Appoquinimink school dist is considered on of the best in the state and you are more likely to find a home in your price range there. Interactive Maps of Delaware's Public Schools Depending on your location, Newark is a 20-35 minute commute, MOT (Middletown-Odessa-Townsend) are very small town-ish, I found them very friendly and there is enough here (Wal-Mart, groceries, etc) to make life convenient.

There is a very small, historic Friends Meeting House near me Appoquinimink Meeting in Odessa, Delaware but past that I can't help much in that department.

The MOT area is also 15-30 minutes away from several Delaware river beaches, 60-75 minutes to the Delaware Bay and 75-90 minutes to the Ocean beaches. And nature is always close, including Bombay Hook National Wildlife Refuge| Northeast Region | U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

I hope this give you a good start for the Middletown area. The four years I've been here have been great.

[camrynh]

We moved to Middletown a week ago.

I love it. So far, everyone has been very friendly. Extremely friendly. The town has a small town feel, but it's very convenient to everything.

[Sandee1213]

You can always move right above the canal in Bear/Glasgow and still be part of Appo School District. There is a great feeder pattern there. Plus you are close to People's Plaza which has everything you need.

[orangepekoe]

It seems like Newark schools aren't so good. Is that the Christina district? Maybe I'm wrong, but the more recent comments about the schools there aren't so good, but the older ones have good things to say.

Which of the MOT towns have the greatest sense of community?

Thank you! I'm filling up my list of houses I want to go see, so this is great!

[ConsideringDE]

We moved to Middletown 6 months ago and love it here. It has everything we need in town, the mall isn't too far away, and there are plenty of places to go within 30 minutes to an hour, depending on what you're looking for.

[queenofbavaria]

what makes middletown different to other 'towns' is that there is actually a walkable mainstreet (recently redone) with shops, a gallery, barber shop and bistros. Even a marketplace where town events are going to happen.

when we were house hunting I did not see many of those towns.
mostly you'll find suburbs, missing a kind of 'center'.
friends of mine live in brennan estates/bear and this 'mainstreet feeling' is something they really miss up there.

townsend has a main street too, but it appears to be kind of dead, actually (but I only passed it 3 or 4 times, so I am not sure). and odessa has a very nice main street, but mainly historical, so nothing else to do there.

[henrynash]

Beaches

[doctorjef]

Most of the Quaker meetings are in northern New Castle County, but the beaches are obviously downstate. You probably can't have close proximity to both and DE isn't quite as small as you are perhaps thinking. A 10 or 15 minute drive to a beach is going to put you at a much longer drive to work (or much longer drive for your spouse). My question is: how much do you/your husband not mind lengthy daily commutes? It's not what I would want to do but YMMV. I would think that Middletown fits the bill for you, except for the desire to be very near the beach.

[Gone-2-Beach]

YMMV ??