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35 great towns: How does yours rate? Plus, check out our exclusive chart that shows home sales in more than 200 Delaware neighborhoods from 2006 through 2010.
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How much is your home worth now? Click here to download our exclusive chart that shows home sales in more than 200 Delaware neighborhoods from 2006 through 2010.
Let’s start with the assumption that we all love where we live. We may therefore have a fierce pride of place. We may all think we live in the best place in Delaware.
But do we?
If you rated your town on the taxes you pay, the value of homes in the neighborhood, the quality of the school district and the amount of time you spend commuting, what would be revealed? We decided to do the math.
Here’s a look at how 35 of our towns rate. Areas were ranked 1 through 35 for safety (1), property tax rates (2), median home prices (3) (higher is better), quality of school districts (4) and commuting times. (5) More subjective is the proximity to, and quality of, cultural offerings, shopping and dining, and nightlife (each ranked on a scale of 1 to 5, five being best). Weights were assigned to the criteria according to an in-house survey. The percentages are:
School district.......................21.3
Median home price.............. 15.9
Property taxes......................14.2
Safety....................................13.1
Commuting time.................. 12.1
Arts and culture......................9.2
Shopping and dining............ 8.6
Nightlife..................................5.6
Everything was calculated accordingly for a total score.
Herein, the results, from the best places on down. Of course, numbers don’t tell the whole story, so read on. You’ll see in-depth profiles of some of the best places, some of those that ranked low, and some in the middle. You may be surprised.
If you want to know more, please visit delawaretoday.com/Delaware-Today/Neighborhoods/ for information about average house size and prices, local income levels, utility costs and more.
(1) From a ranking of personal and property crimes at Sperling’s Best Places.
(2) 2010 rates are presented as a percentage of assessed value. Rates within the city of Wilmington vary. The figure presented is an average.
(3) From sales information at Sperling’s Best Places.
(4) Based on Delaware Today’s ranking of public high schools in January.
(5) From average commute times, in minutes, at Sperling’s Best Places.
Page 2: How They Rate
