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Charlie, I want to congratulate you and Marlene. What splendid news that you’ve sold your NY house. (I love how you’re ticking off the days.) I’m SO happy for y’all. From the sound of it, you should be in your beautiful new home at CC around the end of summer/early fall. Yeaaaaa!!!
Judy,
We're actually closing on June 27.
Thanks so much for your kind comments, but I have to say that the beauty of this thread has been the collaborative efforts of so many people. The early contributions from people like Elizamary, FromPA, JoycieM, Sanddollar and others really set the right tone for what this thread should be. Then add in the amazing knowledge of people like RDLR, Summering, Peeweeaz and others who shared what they knew. Finally, top it off with so many people who shared their entire experience from "first thinking about relocating" to actually completing the journey. This thread, almost five years old now, is the cumulative result of everyone's willingness to share, to ask and answer good questions, and to be helpful to each other. We also have to give a nod to the three moderators who have managed this thread and kept it on track, Marka, Christina0001 and Toobusytoday.
My hope is for that spirit of openness and honesty to continue for as long as there are folks interested in the 55+ communities of Delaware ... and that once we arrive, we do our best to honor the state by respecting it's laws, it's tradition and it's history.
"My hope is for that spirit of openness and honesty to continue for as long as there are folks interested in the 55+ communities of Delaware ... and that once we arrive, we do our best to honor the state by respecting it's laws, it's tradition and it's history."
Amen to that!
Between bleary eyes from reading c-d and Books I and II of "The Hunger Games" (Book III awaits me), I must've missed your June 27th date. That's excellent!
That means y'all will be all settled when I get there in late summer! Yep, the building permit was obtained this week and they're starting! Yeaaaa!!! (And, might I also say, FINALLY!)
As you may be aware, I chose Noble's Pond and that's why some of what I've recently read in this forum has struck a chord... and not a pleasant one. I have some facts to share with everyone, but more on that as I move along. Bottom line is, I'm so happy to finally be moving forward and I'm anxious to get in and settled in my new home with my new friends (at CC, SM et al, as well as at NP). The beauty of DE for me, as for so many others, is its mid-point status between my daughter and grandsons in MD, my family & friends in Va Beach and the dear friends I've made since coming to NJ. Gonna love it there!
congratulations and I didn't forget about you. will get back tomorrow morning.......promise
hugs
Quote:
Originally Posted by Hey Jude, na na na na
"My hope is for that spirit of openness and honesty to continue for as long as there are folks interested in the 55+ communities of Delaware ... and that once we arrive, we do our best to honor the state by respecting it's laws, it's tradition and it's history."
Amen to that!
Between bleary eyes from reading c-d and Books I and II of "The Hunger Games" (Book III awaits me), I must've missed your June 27th date. That's excellent!
That means y'all will be all settled when I get there in late summer! Yep, the building permit was obtained this week and they're starting! Yeaaaa!!! (And, might I also say, FINALLY!)
As you may be aware, I chose Noble's Pond and that's why some of what I've recently read in this forum has struck a chord... and not a pleasant one. I have some facts to share with everyone, but more on that as I move along. Bottom line is, I'm so happy to finally be moving forward and I'm anxious to get in and settled in my new home with my new friends (at CC, SM et al, as well as at NP). The beauty of DE for me, as for so many others, is its mid-point status between my daughter and grandsons in MD, my family & friends in Va Beach and the dear friends I've made since coming to NJ. Gonna love it there!
OK. As promised, it's time for me to get busy, with thanks to "toobusy...' for indulging me in praise of and happiness for Charlie.
As I've been doing my c-d catch-up, I found, as always, much of interest and help, some pleasant news from old c-d friends, some good (kind of) new ideas for things to consider and a bit of info that's way off-target on the truth meter. The latter may simply be a matter of perception or the result of misunderstandings. In any case, I'd like to put to rest (hopefully) some of what I see to be mis-information.
First, water in DE is, indeed, high. If we don't already know that (I didn't, initially), we learn about it here as we read through the posts. Heck, I didn't even budget in water early on because, having enjoyed my well for almost 20 years, I simply forgot that most people pay for it! Once I learned about it though, and once I got to know more and more people who had the good fortune of selling their houses a lot quicker than I had and who had moved into their communities of choice, I started reaching out to them. As 'rdlr' and (I believe it was) 'Retired and LI' stated, their water bills have never reached anywhere near the $600 mentioned in one post. I mean, yikes!
Seriously, I'm aware that water is going to cost me significantly more than it does now (free) and I agree, wholeheartedly, that the ability to have a well for watering would be wonderful. But, then, you'd need to balance the cost of putting one in with the cost of watering your lawn. Maybe over a LOT of years, that would work out. Maybe not. Besides who of us knows the lot of years we have left? I fully expect to live a long time and hope to heaven that I can regret being unable to have a well. In the meantime, though, I'm OK without one because, while I know that I won't like my water bill (who does?) I don't anticipate outrageously high bills, either.
Hey Jude - the cost of a well is approx 2500 - 2700....it pays for itself in 3 yrs. The reality is if you want green grass in Delaware you need to water. If a nice lawn is not important for you, then don't worry about water. You will be paying over 1,000/qtr to properly water your lawn to have it look good. In the worst times, 600/month to properly water is not out of line.
My point was, this is something that you might want to consider if having a nice lawn is important for you. The fact is, a community that allows for an agricultural well is much more valuable than a community that does not.
Once again, I will state that my quarterly (that's 3 months!) water bill for a 1500 sq. ft. home on a 1/3 ac. lot with an irrigation system (watering up to 3X per week when needed), use of my dishwasher 1-3 times EVERY day, 8-10 loads of laundry per week (my partner is a runner and produces tons of sweaty, stinking jogging clothes), lots of toilet flushing (you know us old women with old, weak bladders!) and taking a couple of long, hot showers a day has NEVER been over $437 a quarter. I had my irrigation system installed in September of 2010. I am just not sure where NH 123 is getting $600 a month or over $1,000 a quarter for water. Yes, I think the water in Delaware is high (but not a great deal more than I paid in Maryland) and, yes, I would love to have a well for watering. But I don't have a watering well so I pay to have green grass. The $$$$$ I save annually on my DE property taxes more than comps. me for my high water bill. Sometimes in life it just "is what it is!" Certainly it is with my water bill. Oh well........life is good and that's all that counts for me!
Once again, I will state that my quarterly (that's 3 months!) water bill for a 1500 sq. ft. home on a 1/3 ac. lot with an irrigation system (watering up to 3X per week when needed), use of my dishwasher 1-3 times EVERY day, 8-10 loads of laundry per week (my partner is a runner and produces tons of sweaty, stinking jogging clothes), lots of toilet flushing (you know us old women with old, weak bladders!) and taking a couple of long, hot showers a day has NEVER been over $437 a quarter. I had my irrigation system installed in September of 2010. I am just not sure where NH 123 is getting $600 a month or over $1,000 a quarter for water. Yes, I think the water in Delaware is high (but not a great deal more than I paid in Maryland) and, yes, I would love to have a well for watering. But I don't have a watering well so I pay to have green grass. The $$$$$ I save annually on my DE property taxes more than comps. me for my high water bill. Sometimes in life it just "is what it is!" Certainly it is with my water bill. Oh well........life is good and that's all that counts for me!
OMG - I stand behind my statements.......you might see differently and thats ok....at least we are asking the questions. Everyone is saying that the water in Delaware is high but your all so quick to dispute me. I didn't say everyone's bill was 600/month or 1000/qtr. MY POINT WAS THAT HAVING THE ABILITY TO INSTALL AN IRRIGATION WELL IS VALUABLE AND IT MIGHT BE SOMETHING TO ASK ABOUT. WILL IT BE A DECIDING FACTOR WHERE TO BUY? NOOOOO...BUT ITS WORTH ASKING.
Retired/Loving It: You had your irrigation installed after you moved in. Did they recommend a well? Most companies do....I am curious to why you did not put in an irrigation well??? Please educate us. This is good information and thank you for posting.
Life is good for me too!! I am trying to make it good for others.
OMG - I stand behind my statements.......you might see differently and thats ok....at least we are asking the questions. Everyone is saying that the water in Delaware is high but your all so quick to dispute me. I didn't say everyone's bill was 600/month or 1000/qtr. MY POINT WAS THAT HAVING THE ABILITY TO INSTALL AN IRRIGATION WELL IS VALUABLE AND IT MIGHT BE SOMETHING TO ASK ABOUT. WILL IT BE A DECIDING FACTOR WHERE TO BUY? NOOOOO...BUT ITS WORTH ASKING.
Retired/Loving It: You had your irrigation installed after you moved in. Did they recommend a well? Most companies do....I am curious to why you did not put in an irrigation well??? Please educate us. This is good information and thank you for posting.
Life is good for me too!! I am trying to make it good for others.
Well, when I was younger, I thought I knew everything. Now I know I don't and can always learn from other people, learn what they did right and from their mistakes. I know now that nowhere is perfect, but Delaware seems like the best option for me. Even with water and sewer charges higher than I now pay. Just for comparison, I went to an open house in my neighborhood yesterday. It was an 80-year-old converted cottage, nicely updated and renovated, but small. Had electric heat, taxes 4000+ a year, homeowners insurance kind of high (probably due to the river right outside the door) and cost $215,000. I could probably swing the cost of the house, but the heating bill and taxes would be a burden and I would have little or no money left for furniture and repairs if needed later on. A new house in Delaware would hopefully have no repair issues for several years. Just keeping things in perspective, at least for me.
ok. As promised, it's time for me to get busy, with thanks to "toobusy...' for indulging me in praise of and happiness for charlie.
As i've been doing my c-d catch-up, i found, as always, much of interest and help, some pleasant news from old c-d friends, some good (kind of) new ideas for things to consider and a bit of info that's way off-target on the truth meter. The latter may simply be a matter of perception or the result of misunderstandings. In any case, i'd like to put to rest (hopefully) some of what i see to be mis-information.
First, water in de is, indeed, high. If we don't already know that (i didn't, initially), we learn about it here as we read through the posts. Heck, i didn't even budget in water early on because, having enjoyed my well for almost 20 years, i simply forgot that most people pay for it! Once i learned about it though, and once i got to know more and more people who had the good fortune of selling their houses a lot quicker than i had and who had moved into their communities of choice, i started reaching out to them. As 'rdlr' and (i believe it was) 'retired and li' stated, their water bills have never reached anywhere near the $600 mentioned in one post. I mean, yikes!
Seriously, i'm aware that water is going to cost me significantly more than it does now (free) and i agree, wholeheartedly, that the ability to have a well for watering would be wonderful. But, then, you'd need to balance the cost of putting one in with the cost of watering your lawn. Maybe over a lot of years, that would work out. Maybe not. Besides who of us knows the lot of years we have left? I fully expect to live a long time and hope to heaven that i can regret being unable to have a well. In the meantime, though, i'm ok without one because, while i know that i won't like my water bill (who does?) i don't anticipate outrageously high bills, either.
jude, your title says 'first' - what is second? I look forward to hearing from you and your understanding.
Last edited by toobusytoday; 05-04-2012 at 09:03 PM..
Reason: removed off topic/rude comment
I'm new to the forum and have read many of the posts. My wife and I are interested in some of the 55+ communities in Delaware and would love to hear from those currently living in the various communities. We have the same questions you probably had when you considered choosing your community. We'd like to know more about land lease, to know the real story about socialization within the 55+ communities (not what the website or the sales person says), the true costs of heating / maintaining /etc, for a house of around 1600 square feet, etc ... in essence, anything you can share will be helpful to us, and all others seeking the same information.
We were hoping that we could make a clean getaway from the Hudson Valley in New York for a nice 55+ community in Delaware. I do admit I'm a bit nervous having read some of the messages here, so hopefully, future posts will put some clarity into the issues related to the 55+ crowd.
Thanks in advance for the information you share.
Charley
The OP ^
Please, let's keep this an open forum about all 55+ communities and not so much a one on one discussion where people feel they perhaps can't state an opinion without getting jumped on.
Lurkers, we know you're out there. Where are you looking to move to?
Please, let's keep this an open forum about all 55+ communities and not so much a one on one discussion where people feel they perhaps can't state an opinion without getting jumped on.
Lurkers, we know you're out there. Where are you looking to move to?
Hey, here's a question ... As some of you may know, we're trying to sell a house that would allow us to move down to DE. We're probably all looking for sort-of-similar active communities, friendliness, retirement/leisure lifestyle, etc. NJ has the highest taxes, lots of people, wall-to-wall highways ... however, our township provides one of the best senior centers (indoor pool, walking track, indoor boccee court, weekday activities from 8:00 am until at least 4:30 or 5:00pm. We've been members there for about six months. Actually, we were totally amazed how much is provided for seniors. Does anyone know if the counties or townships, locals (whatever they're called) in central Delaware have anything similar? That is, in addition to 55-communities? Do 55 communities ever co-operate in joint-activities, challenges, etc? so to speak? ... () ... Jim
Last edited by Billie & Jim; 05-09-2012 at 03:06 PM..
Reason: fix typo
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(I love how you’re ticking off the days.) I’m SO happy for y’all. From the sound of it, you should be in your beautiful new home at CC around the end of summer/early fall. Yeaaaaa!!!
