A recent issue of Wall Street Journal's SMART MONEY focused on three towns in Delaware and profiled their affordability for retirees. As a whole, the tax situation favors retirees because there is no sales tax, Social Security benefits are tax-exempt, income tax rates max out at 6.95% and seniors can exempt $12,500 of investment and pension income from state taxes.
Philadelphia is just a short drive from northern Delaware, and a couple of hours drive in either direction takes you to Baltimore, Washington D.C., and New York City.

If you choose to move to the beach, remember that Rehoboth Beach is called "the Nation's Summer Capital," and can be pricey. The median home costs $650,800 and the cost of living is 81% higher than the national average.

Historic Old New Castle, on the other hand (the main street is seen at the right) has a median home price of $210,000 and a population just under 5,000 for the whole city of New Castle. It has many historic homes, sits on the Delaware River with a view of New Jersey, but you will need to travel a mile or so down the road to get to a large grocery store, and it's about a 15 minute drive from Wilmington, the State's largest city.

Another town in Delaware that was profiled was Newark, which is the home of the University of Delaware. This brings many activities, plays, musicals, a walkable downtown with over 30 restaurants, parkland, walking and bike trails. One of my favorite activities is Ag Day, held each year in April near the Agriculture buildings at the University. The picture at the left is of Miss New Castle and a Paws for Life dog, who were attending the Ag Day festivities. The University Botanical Gardens hold a big plant sale that day in the greenhouses, and I always come home with some new specimens for my garden. Newark has a population of almost 30,000 and a median home cost of around $270,000. The University is in the process of developing the closed Chrysler plant location for high tech and energy saving companies, and utilizing the rail tracks and Amtrak station in town.

So what are you waiting for? Hop on I-95, cross those bridges, get those Amtrak tickets or tickets to Philadelphia International Airport, and come to DELAWARE!!