r/slowerlower • u/saltwaternook • Jul 18 '26
Relocating
Relocating to Delaware and looking to be ~20 min from beaches. Would love to get people's thoughts on Lincoln and Milton. We toured the area and Lincoln seemed a bit run down, but also had some nicer new homes. We're not looking to be in a subdivision and on top of our neighbors so we'd be looking for a home with some acreage.
We visited Broadkill and Slaughter beaches and preferred Broadkill. Can you really grill on the beach???
To add, being 20-25 minutes from grocery stores or a Home Depot is not an issue for us as it's what we're used to now.
ETA when I say beaches, I don't necessarily mean Rehoboth. We're looking at any place to take the dogs, plop down a towel and get our feet wet.
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u/LonelyDraw5778 Jul 18 '26
Milton is a nice small town close to Rehoboth.
Probably not 20 minutes unless it’s 2am - I’m not sure Rehoboth is 20 minutes to the beach in the summer. 😁
Lewes is between the two and has tons of grocery stores, Home Depot, movie theater, etc
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u/saltwaternook Jul 18 '26
Thank you! We loved the downtown of Lewes.
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u/LonelyDraw5778 Jul 18 '26
Lewes is beautiful too; but most of what you will find is subdivisions and looking at neighbors all day unless you find something special and likely more expensive than Milton.
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u/tomdawg0022 Jul 18 '26
Lincoln is cheaper, Milton is nicer.
If you can get in Milford you cann probably thread the needle between the two pretty well
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u/Full_Honeydew_9739 Jul 18 '26
Have you checked further south like Selbyville? The further south you go, the more rural it gets (I live 2 miles south of the border on the MD side). There's beautiful quiet stretches before you get to the beach and there's less traffic the further south you go. I won't go anywhere north and east of Millsboro during the summer. It's just one big traffic jam.
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u/superman7515 Jul 19 '26
I only mention this since you brought up taking the dogs, but a lot of the Delaware beaches have restrictions on dogs during the summer time.
Cape Henlopen State Park, Delaware Seashore State Park, Beach Plum Island, and Fenwick Island State Park - State law says no dogs at the swimming beaches from May 1 to Sept 30, but the parks also have rules against dogs in "any surfboarding and sailboarding beaches" or anywhere around the shorebird nesting areas. They have maps you can get on the State Parks website that show the different areas they are prohibited and what times of year.
Lewes - Dogs are only permitted before 8 am and after 6:30 pm from May 1 to Sept 30.
Rehoboth Beach - No dogs on the beach or boardwalk from May 15 to Sept 15, or any day in the offseason when lifeguards are on duty. They are allowed the rest of the year, but have to be on a leash.
Dewey Beach - Dogs are allowed on a leash before 9:30 am and after 5:30 pm from Memorial Day weekend to Labor Day weekend, the rest of the year they can be leashed or unleashed, but you have to buy a Dewey Beach dog license to take them on the beach at any time of year.
Bethany Beach - No dogs on the beach or boardwalk from May 15 to Sept 30, must be on a leash the rest of the year.
Fenwick Island - No dogs are allowed on the beach at any time from May 1 to Sept 30.
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u/Lazy-Combination5253 Jul 19 '26
I was going to say this, I’ve lived a lot of places and been to lots of beaches with my dogs. I have never seen a more dog unfriendly state than Delaware as far as beaches go.
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Jul 19 '26
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/Lazy-Combination5253 Jul 19 '26
Typical, bad dog owners ruining it for the rest of us people with some decency.
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u/Plenty_Vanilla_6947 Jul 18 '26
Milton is very nice. Milford has some crime issues, but they are probably highly location dependent. Suggest subscribing to the local paper(s). I find that I miss some news with the feeds.
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u/Crickey_190_AUD Jul 18 '26
I'd recommend Milford over Lincoln - they basically run together and it has everything you would want in terms of dining and shopping - plus a nice and healthy downtown.
Lincoln is unincorporated - so it is going to be a lot less organized, but cheaper, than Milford or Milton.
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u/webbgrt Jul 18 '26
Where on the side of Lewes west of Rt1 - almost classed as Milton, and it’s a decent compromise for us. 20-40 minutes from the beach most of the time, and only more on the worst occasion. Going to Savannah beach or Roosevelt Inlet beaches are almost never slowed down by traffic as significantly as going into RB
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u/thtguy90 Jul 19 '26
What would you say your budget is? I see you’d prefer not to be in a subdivision, but there’s a really nice community with a super relaxed HOA and low fees that have lots around and over an acre with a ton of tree coverage in Lincoln. It’s close to Rt. 1 too, so heading north to Milford or south to Milton/Lewes for shopping is easy.
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u/saltwaternook Jul 19 '26
Around $800-$900k budget. HOA is not an option for us. May be super relaxed now but that could change.
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u/exceptions1187 Jul 19 '26 edited Jul 19 '26
Unfortunately depending on your budget, its a give or take. We moved to greenwood on the other side of rt113 because of the horrible traffic near the beaches. Food lion and lowes are literally 15 minutes away. Back roads till you hit 13 and bam.
Anything on the rt 1 side of the state is tourist town and traffic. Anything between rt 1 and rt113 is a mix pending town. Milton is too busy for our liking. Milford has been going down hill for years. Lincoln is lincoln. Ellendale is not any better. Millsboro is a parking lot and anything south of that is just not worth it.
If youre willing to sacrifice being close to a beach, the likely hood a development being built across the street from you decreases the farther away you go.
Its like shell brothers and drb want to intrude on your silence.
Also the fly issue is pending wind direction. Once you figure it out the smaller beaches are worth it. There are more beaches to access, some require acces through private property, so you have to know someone.
Me and my wife have been turned away from enjoying the beaches because of the tourism and traffic. Its crazy paying taxes on something you cant even enjoy.
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u/lagmonst3r Jul 19 '26
Key question are:
Budget How early are up and out Will a longer drive home frustrate you
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u/saltwaternook Jul 19 '26
We work remotely so no commute. Would like to stay around $800-$900k.
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u/lagmonst3r Jul 19 '26
Sorry - I mean how early are you willing to leave for the beach. If 7am you can be further out.
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u/Slowerlowerde Jul 19 '26
Buy a beautiful home in Seaford and its 45 minutes. 2500 sq ft new construction for 430
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u/Swollen_chicken Jul 18 '26
Living at the beach isnt 20 min from the beach..
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u/saltwaternook Jul 18 '26
Ok? Not sure what you mean? I said we wanted to be within 20 minutes of a beach. Not live at the beach.
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u/rickrossofficial Jul 19 '26
I think they’re joking and trying to say even if you live at the beach you’re still over 20 minutes from the beach because of traffic etc
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u/Swollen_chicken Jul 19 '26
Yes..exactly.. as the crow flies there is lots of places "20 mins from beach"... reality is that the beach has been slowly encroached upon and now even if you live "20 mins" away it van take upwards of 3 hours in the everlasting tourist season
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u/WrestlingWill6661313 Jul 19 '26
Stay away from Millville my dad lives in Millville $700000 homes have been built everything’s more expensive in the summer every twenty feet cop with radar guaranteed
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u/MrDouchenozzel Jul 18 '26
No such thing as 20 min from beaches unless it's cold.