Some people think when you retire you have to move all the way to the Carolinas or even Florida to get the tax benefits. Not anymore. Just ask my parents who made the move from Maryland to Delaware, ranked the #1 state to retire. They love it and haven’t looked back.
My parents wanted to leave Maryland because of the high taxes. Not just the property taxes, but the sales tax as well as other taxes that just don’t make retiring easy. Both of my parents have pensions and decided that they needed to start looking for a place that truly catered to retirees.
Like many of their friends, the first thing they thought of was, “we need to go south.” They looked in the Carolinas and found a place that they thought looked nice. They wanted my opinion, as well as my brothers, so we all took a family trip down there and what a long trip it was. As we were driving down, I remember thinking, “is this how long its going to take every time we want to come visit?” I admit that my brothers and I really didn’t want them to move so far away, but they worked hard all their lives and deserved to relax, and retire to a place that would protect their hard earned savings.
We walked homesites together and I will never forget my Dad and Mom asking us, “Are you sure you will come and visit as much as you can”? My heart sank. I couldn’t lie to my parents. My brothers and I looked at each other and said, “of course, but obviously you are not around the corner anymore. It is not an easy weekend trip. The chances of us all coming down at the same time would be difficult, but we want you to do what is best for you.”
My parents looked at us, their three sons, and their grandkids, and decided they just couldn’t do it. Why were they moving so far from home? They didn’t want to be those grandparents who didn’t get to see their grandkids grow up. They wanted to be a part of their lives and making memories!
After they returned home, they decided it was time to start thinking about Delaware and were so surprised they hadn’t considered it before now. After doing some research, they found out that the average property taxes were around $1,000 to $2,000 a year. Yep, a year – not a month! But that wasn’t all. Individuals 60 and over can exempt $12,500 of investment and pension income from state taxes. There is no personal or sales tax, and no taxes on your social security or inheritance. All of this hit home with my parents, including the fact that they would only be about 2 hours away from family.
They did it! They made the move to Delaware and they haven’t looked back since! It makes me so happy to see how happy they are now, and it’s fun to see everyone in the family come visit them almost every weekend!
You always hear location, location, location. Well, that’s only part of the story. Not only did my parents find a state with amazing benefits for retirees, but a state that is close enough to their family.
I am so proud to be their son and so very happy that they are living close enough to us all, and living out their dream!
Well everyone, I guess you’re wondering what all the noise is coming from the Peninsula on Indian River Bay. It’s the construction of my new model, the Avalon, part of our Coastal Series that we’re offering exclusively at the Peninsula.
We’re so excited to be part of this gorgeous community where we have the opportunity to build some of our most sought-after homes. Be sure to check out the Peninsula page on the Schell Brothers website often to see my video updates of the model construction – things are happening every day!
This gated community is a must-see. With the grand amenities, no-maintenance resort-style living, and spectacular views of the Jack Nicholas Golf Course and Indian River Bay, it’s a lifestyle that most just dream of. Relax by the pools – yes I said pools – indoor, outdoor, and even a wave pool! To top it off, we offer our very own private beach.
If the pools and beach aren’t your thing, than enjoy our 8 tennis courts, sand volleyball courts, basketball, state-of-the-art fitness center or, better yet, enjoy a relaxing massage from our private masseuse.
We have a HUGE holiday incentive that you don’t want to miss – and it ends on December 23rd. So come on out and visit me at the Peninsula. I look forward to seeing you soon.
Cape Henlopen Fishing Pier. Photo by Why Love DE?
I’m a new resident here at the beach as of only 60 days ago. As a native from Baltimore, Maryland, I used to come down here to vacation all the time and loved it but who would have thought I would actually be able to live here! I’ve always loved this area and am so excited to call it my home.
Funny story how I got here… my parents were looking to move here this time next year. They plan to retire here and enjoy the relaxing beach life. Between the low taxes, no sales tax, and break-off taxes when you’re 65, this area really attracted them. They knew that the low cost of living here would free them up to travel more and enjoy life. Because I’ve been selling homes for years, I went with them to look at houses in the Delaware Beach area so I could make sure that they would find a good quality home. WOW! Did we ever find a good builder!!
Schell Brothers’ quality, craftsmanship, and energy efficiency really amazed me, with 2×6 construction, tankless water heaters, 16 SEER AC system, R23 in walls, R38 in ceilings, and more. I thought the big national builder I worked for back in Maryland had everything until I saw that Schell Brothers really takes pride in their homes and is always looking to be a step higher than the average builder.
The funny thing about this is that I met the Director of Sales that day when we were at the model and, after talking with her, found myself wanting to work for this builder and move down here myself. I knew that I eventually wanted to purchase a second home in the beach area and later retire here but not this soon.
After meeting the Director and falling in love with this company, I found myself wanting to move here right away. I thought long and hard because I’ve always lived in Maryland but I did a lot of research on this builder and realized that I not only wanted my parents to build with Schell Brothers, but I wanted to move down here and work for this company.
So this is my story… I am now working for a great builder, living at the beach, and loving it!!! I wasn’t sure how it would be all year round down here but, after starting out on the “off season”, I see already that there is so much to do and there are so many places to eat. Every season is better at the beach. That’s my story… what’s yours?
