Photos from Kathy Sperl-Bell, ABR, CRS, SRES
Lewes, Delaware, Chamber of Commerce office and Visitor's Center in the heart of the Lewes Historic District.Located in: Lewes, DE
Bill couldn't create the kind of havoc the Weather Channel is talking about, could he? Back in 1996, I lived in Wilmington, North Carolina. I had escaped the Washington, DC, Beltway and was searching for a new place to call home. Then along came Fran and Bertha, two hurricanes in the same year and both caused a fair amount of damage. No one wanted to talk to this Northerner about new career opportunities for a burnt-out boomer. All they wanted to talk about was how hard it was to get their insurance agent to call them back!
If it weren't for those two hurricanes, I might still be living in Wilmington, North Carolina. But then I 
wouldn't have moved again to Coastal Delaware. I wouldn't have met my husband BILL to whom I have now been married for almost 7 years. I wouldn't be a Realtor in Lewes, Delaware, and we wouldn't be in the process of renovating our next home in Lewes, Delaware.
The beauty of living near the Coast in Delaware is that we usually don't see the kind of hurricane activity that our neighbors to the south can experience. AND, as many Baby Boomers are learning, Delaware is so centrally located in the heart of the Mid-Atlantic Region. We are within a short drive to Annapolis and Baltimore, Maryland, Washington, DC, Northern Virginia, Philadelphia, Pennsylvanie, all of New Jersey and New York City or Long Island.
So, let's hope Hurricane BILL passes us by this weekend and heads out to sea. And if you haven't yet visited Lewes, Delaware, come see us this fall. Lewes is a year round place to visit and a great town in which to live.
There's only one way to find out! First, mark your calendar for August 22, 2009, the day of the big annual race in the heart of Milton, Delaware. Hundreds of yellow duckies are being sold now and on race day for only $5.00 each. As the newest member of the Milton Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors, I believe I have sold the winning Duckie to one of my clients, but you never know!
RACE TIME is 1 PM in the Milton Memorial Park located behind the Milton Public Library at the head of the Broadkill River. FIRST PRIZE IS $500! and there are lots of other prizes donated by local businesses.
But come early and enjoy the BARGAINS ON THE BROADKILL with local vendors, great food and music all day beginning at 9 am.
This event benefits local businesses and the Milton Chamber of Commerce. I'll be there early helping to set up and hope to see you there.
For the latest event information in and around Milton, Delaware, visit the Chamber web site!
My Buyers are Baby Boomers coming to Coastal Delaware as they get ready to retire. For the past year now, they have been hesitant to be buyers until their homes sold back in PA or NJ, DC or MD. The bravest buyers, especially those who owned their homes outright and those who could pay cash, have been able to take advantage of the best home prices and the lowest mortgage rates we'll see in our lifetimes.
Lately I am getting calls like the one I received this morning - "Hey Kathy, we got a contract on our home Saturday!" The offer came from people who had SOLD their house and and want to settle quickly!
This call came from a client who did purchase an inventory home in a great new community in Lewes, Delaware, earlier this year. We got together for lunch on Saturday and they admitted to a little concern that they had not received any offers on their home back in PA - lots of showings, but no offers yet.
The news about these TWO SALES is exciting because this is the way the real estate market works when it does work. When trade up buyers begin to sell their homes, the retiring Baby Boomer can sell theirs. AND, when stories like this one start to spread, more people feel comfortable making a purchase decision with the knowledge that the homes they have had on the market for a while now are going to sell.
Right now is the perfect opportunity - you can still buy at a great price and with low interest rates. Don't wait too long or you'll miss out.
First thing I did this morning was read the great front page article written by Esteban Parra in the Wilmington News Journal on Boomers in Delaware. We are such an attractive place for Boomers from surrounding states that we Boomers are the majority and growing fast.
Both my husband Bill Bell and I were among those interviewed not only because we are both Boomers, but because in both our real estate and remodeling businesses, we focus on the issues identified in this terrific article.
You can read it online at DelawareOnline.
There is an active group of small business owners that make up the Milton Chamber of Commerce. Tonight the June Mixer was hosted by the Milton Garden Club. Kathryn Greig's personal garden was the site and what a beautiful garden for a party. If the other gardens on the tour - July 11th - are anything like Kathryn's garden we are all in for a treat.
I was the winner of two tickets to the Milton Garden Tour! That's what I call the "Grand Prize"!
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Boomers and Beyond at the Beach in Delaware! We cover all of Sussex County, Delaware from the Atlantic Ocean to the Maryland border - all of Sussex County and most of Kent County.
Delaware is ranked as one of the Top 5 Most Tax Friendly States for Retirees with no Sales Tax and low property taxes. Are low taxes alone enough of a reason to move to Delaware? NO, but we can show you all the other reasons.
If you are considering a move to Coastal Delaware, you need the help of a professional with the knowledge, background and experience to help you make an informed decision. There are as many ways to be a Realtor as there are people.
The way I choose to be a Realtor is to specialize in two disciplines:
• Represent Boomer Buyers from outside the immediate area and help them find the right home in the right community or town for them. And it doesn’t stop there. We will help them negotiate, get inspections done, pick an attorney, get financing and anything else necessary to complete the transaction and begin their new life in Coastal Delaware.
• Represent Boomer Sellers who may need to sell their homes here to downsize or move closer to family and friends elsewhere. It’s not easy selling the family home, but we’ll do our best to make it as stress-free as possible.
I don’t try to be all things to all people. I do focus on Boomers & Beyond at the Beach in Delaware and those who plan to live here at some point in their future. We use the term “beach” loosely these days. After all, Delaware is a small state and in Coastal Delaware, you can’t be more than an hour from the beach no matter where you live!
The beach is more a state of mind and I think that’s why Coastal Delaware appeals so much to Boomers & Beyond.
This is my full time career and I do my best to stay current with trends and technology that help me do a better job for my clients. After 30 years in the technology industry with companies like Wang Laboratories, Compaq Computer Corporation and a smattering of Beltway Bandits, you’d think that would be easy. With technology moving so quickly, however, I’m amazed at how much it has changed the real estate industry and how much there is to learn every day.
I moved to Delaware back in 2000 just before getting into real estate. I met my husband and partner, Bill, shortly after and we have become a great team. During the week, Bill runs our Construction business, Gotcha Covered, a full service remodeling company. On the weekend, he joins me and works with our real estate clients. He brings a wealth of knowledge to our real estate business and is a resource for our clients during the process of buying or selling a home and long after.
Bill is a Certified Aging in Place Specialist (CAPS), which basically means that he understands and applies the principles of Universal Design (UD) to every project and every real estate purchase. UD says that all living space should be designed to be usable by everyone regardless of size, age or ability. When I heard about the Seniors Real Estate Specialist (SRES) program about six years ago, it made perfect sense for me to take the classes and earn the designation. For us, it just makes sense to specialize and to become expert at everything Coastal Delaware has to offer Baby Boomers. We hate to be called seniors, so I just use the initials – SRES, but we are thinking about retirement, where we want to live and how we want to live the best part of our lives.
I also pursued the training necessary to become a member of the Council of Residential Specialists (CRS), the organization representing the top 3% of Realtors® who produce over 20% of all real estate transactions. Finally, I have been an Accredited Buyer Representative (ABR) for 5 years, working primarily with buyers coming to Coastal Delaware from surrounding states. We are surrounded by states with high populations, high incomes and even higher taxes.
I look forward to helping you find your next home.
Kathy helped us purchase our retirement home near the beaches in Delaware in 2008. After finding a description of the house on the Internet, we searched for local real estate agents and left a message on Kathy's phone. She called within an hour to discuss our interest and needs. Within a day or two, Kathy went to the property, shot many interior and exterior photos and reported on the condition of the home and its landscaping. She also checked other listings for similar properties for us to see. We soon traveled to Delaware and met Kathy. With all of the information Kathy had provided us, we were able to make a quick decision and write a contract on our dream home. Kathy made all the arrangements for the inspection and several other contingencies, and the closing could not have gone more smoothly. Kathy has since been a great help to us in finding contractors to do minor repairs and additional landscaping. Thanks to Kathy, we are looking forward to spending many enjoyable years in our new home. -Jean & Mike Bower
"My initial contact with Kathy was via E-mail and phone from Florida as I planned a house hunting trip to the Lewes - Milton area. With her assistance, we found a home and neighborhood that fit the very particular needs of a recently retired couple and an aging senior citizen. Kathy immediately impressed me with her grasp of the unique style, age and design of a home that would satisfy the contour of our needs while at the same time meeting our budget. Her knowledge of the market and its trends together with her vast experience and credentials were invaluable as were her guidance, patience and diligence. We are most grateful for our experience with Kathy during the home search as well as before and after the purchase since it was pleasant and professional at every turn. The entire process was certainly complicated by the fact that we were more than a thousand miles away and yet we hardly noticed. Kathy Sperl-Bell has left quite an impression in our minds and a very large footprint upon the real estate market of Sussex County Delaware." - Rick & Maureen Dailey
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