Cecil County (Baltimore, Elkton, Friendly: for sale, renting, insurance)

[restlessinmn]

Originally Posted by md1234

Best schools would be Montgomery County or Harford County. Some areas of Baltimore County would be OK also. Dont let them talk you into Cecil County, without visiting the area first. If you are redneck you will love it. If you like a little sophistication you will hate it. Depends on your outlook. There isnt much money in the county, which is why housing is still so cheap. It is under-developed, which seems to be changing now. The plus about it is the schools are smaller, and it is a cheaper area to live in. The down about it, 45 minutes to the closest "real" city (baltimore, philly), a lot of poverty, a lot of nicer neighborhoods inhibited with sec 8 housing, and lot of white trash.

Pick your poison, personally I would rather spend the extra 50k on a house to live in Bel Air, or Northern Baltimore County.

My Two Cents.

I sincerely appreciate your brutal honesty. Of course, we will visit the area first before making any decisions. However, from your description, it doesn't sound like a place that I'd want to live - mostly because of it being so rural. I don't want to have to drive a 30-45 minutes to get to a decent restaurant or to shop. We enjoy eating out at ethnic restaurants like Thai, Japanese/sushi, etc...we especially like to try new things. We don't do fast food or greasy spoons. I try to avoid Walmart if at all possible. I don't care if it sounds snobbish - I find those stores so depressing.

I don't know what to say about the "redneck" and "white trash" comments other than we once had a neighbor who would always work outside without his shirt. He wasn't a bad guy. In fact, he was very hard working. We used to joke that he spent so much time working outside to get away from his wife because she was always screaming the F-word at him. If these are the type of neighbors that we can expect in Cecil County, I think we'll pass.

I looked at Chesapeake City and it looks like a quiet little town but why is housing so expensive? It can't be for the schools because the testing scores are about average.

What areas surrounding Elkton would you recommend that are within a 30 minute commute?

[Soonami]

People seem to have the wrong idea about a lot of Cecil County because of what they think it is. Because of the considerably lower housing prices, many people are moving into the area and new blood is doing a very good job of washing away the backwardness of the past.

It is true that there are "rednecks" or hillbillies, but depending on how much money you are spending and where you live these kind of people are completely avoidable. In fact it is quite possible to find a nice single home for around 250k where you are surrounded by forest and don't even have to see your neighbors. But just like in any community, anywhere you go, there will be people that make poor neighbors it doesn't matter if they are poor or not--even rich people act boorishly.

As for ethnic food, in CC there isn't too much, but in Newark, DE which depending on where you are in the county is 5-45 minutes away is home to the University of Delaware which has significant international enrollment and these internationals often open up restaurants in the area.

Many of the towns do have a downtown area, but since these are rural communities, you'd probably have to drive to the middle of town and then walk, but most towns are really set up to be convenient for drivers.

The reason why Chesapeake City is so expensive is because there are several marinas, restaurants, shops and B&B's on the C & D Canal which often draw in more affluent visitors. Some of these people decide to stay and they build big expensive homes which drives up property values.

As for crime rates being high, you have to understand that some towns like Rising Sun have very small populations, less than 2 thousand in the incorporated town limits, so a couple instances of crime will cause the numbers to be higher when compared to larger towns and cities. The crime that happens in a lot of CC is perpetrated by young men, which is pretty much unavoidable anywhere you go.

Don't let people with wrong ideas about CC convince you one way or the other, go visit these towns and have a real estate agent take you around to show you where stuff is. Visit North East, Port Deposit, Chesapeake City and get a feel for area.

[restlessinmn]

Originally Posted by Soonami

As for ethnic food, in CC there isn't too much, but in Newark, DE which depending on where you are in the county is 5-45 minutes away is home to the University of Delaware which has significant international enrollment and these internationals often open up restaurants in the area.

Would Newark, DE be a good choice for a place to settle with regard to housing, safety, schools, etc...?

[EmJake]

Elkton, Cecil County, enjoys a Red Neck description. Cecil County has a multitude of personalities from druggies to lawyers and all things in between. Red Neck pertains to a very small corner (on the other side of the tracks). Elkton, the county seat, is a great place to live - good schools, great public library, great volunteer fire and rescue services. easy to get around on foot, bicycle, or car. The best thing about Elkton is close proximity to DE and that wonderful tax free shopping on everything! Close proximity to the Amish County, DE slots, Atlantic City. The culture of NY, Philadelphia, D.C., and Baltimore are a slight 1 to 2 hr drive away. Home prices are still affordable whilst property values are on the rise due to development. We have a Costco (15 min car drive and it's in DE); a Super WalMart (in Elkton); petrol is $3.05 a gallon today. We have easy access to the LGA, JFK, NWK, PHL, BWI, DCA airports. I think Elkton is a great place to raise a family and commuting into a city is do-able! I don't recommend Elkton as a place to retire as active senior services are very limited.

[enviroman]

Originally Posted by Soonami

The reason why Chesapeake City is so expensive is because there are several marinas, restaurants, shops and B&B's on the C & D Canal which often draw in more affluent visitors. Some of these people decide to stay and they build big expensive homes which drives up property values.

Very true. I like Chesapeake City. We know a few people that have summer homes on the C&D canal...you're correct in that it really draws the "rich folk" from the suburbs of Philly and DC.

[CATTY]

My husband and I have two younger children. Both our children attended Elk Neck Elementary School in Elkton, where the children test well. We moved to Elkton from Delaware, where our children attended a private Christian based school and we found the school to be comparable to a school we were paying tuition for. If you look @ the new homes they are building off of Old Field Point Road and off of Elk Neck Road (before you get to Northeast Middle School), you will be suprised @ the areas. We heard some of the red neck stories, but there are also people who are decent in this area. We were a little apprenhensive @ first because the minority rate was so low in the area, however, those fears were laid to rest after our children completing one year of school.

You have Elkton the City and Elkton the suburban area. You may be getting the two confused. Where the single family homes are Elkton is pretty nice. Many of the homes off of Old Field Point Road have water views, and allow for docking boaks.

Our oldest child will be attending Northeast Middle School this season, and what I heard from a parent who is a school teacher in the Bel Air area and moved to the Elkton area in our community, is that if your child is well rounded, and have a stable family life they will be fine in Middle School. The middle school consolidates various districts, where the Elementary school functions like a private school.

We go to Delaware Shopping and to dinner a lot because of not paying taxes, however close to Elkton in Maryland are some of the best restaurants for seafood around.

We love our home.

However, Maryland property taxes are higher then Delaware, but as you stated in Delaware you must put your children in private school for a good education. Delaware's state taxes are not lower then Maryland, PA and/or New Jersey, because their state income taxes are escalating and go up to a maximum amount based on your income. Between my husband and I both, we now save over $3,800 in state income taxes, because we don't work or live in Delaware. If you work in Delaware you still must pay the taxes. We also saved on Car insurance. For three vehicles we saved over $1,000 a year in car insurance. So these savings offset the increase in real estate taxes, and we have a home where the devolopment has a private area for the residents overlooking the water.

Check the scores for Elk Neck Elemenatary School.

Good Luck.

[CATTY]

Also, right next to Elkton is the little town of Northeast, which is similar to Georgetown, South Street in Philly and the little street in Greenwich Connecticut. It has little restaurants and is quite quaint. This is right around the corner from Northeast Middle School.

[sweetnshy_1]

I am an African American female and I am considering moving to Cecil county. I have also heard about racism in Cecil County and this has made me concerned. I was particularly looking at Elkton, MD. I would like to hear the full story from those who live in Elkton. Any thoughts or insight?

[jomercer]

Cecil County nearest Newark, DE is ideal. Lower housing prices than DE and PA, but all the advantages of tax-free shopping (especially now that MD has gone up to 6% sales tax) and the professional/academic-level residents and cultural perqs related to the University of Delaware. Also, MD and DE have reciprocity on income tax, so you get credit from one state for what you paid in another, unlike PA. I left Cecil Co. in 2006 for the Baltimore-Washington corridor and really miss the benefits of the area.

[DDJJ]

Have you looked into Harford County? I mean people move from Baltimore County to Harford County for the schools and lifestyle. Property taxes are lower in Harford, schools as a whole are better, too. The whole reason we moved here was because we had little kids.