Baby Boomers are increasingly skipping Florida for retirement and choosing Delaware instead, drawn by its low taxes, sandy beaches, and slower pace of life. More than 40,000 people have moved to Sussex County since 2020, with the county's population jumping 17 percent, roughly five times the national growth rate. Delaware's population of residents 65 and older has climbed 23 percent over the same period, the largest increase of any state in the country.
Part of the appeal is financial. Delaware has no sales tax, doesn't tax Social Security benefits, and offers lower property taxes compared to other coastal states, all while Florida's cost of living has climbed above the national average. Towns like Rehoboth Beach, nicknamed the "Nation's Summer Capital," and nearby Lewes and Milton have become hotspots for retirees looking for beach life without Florida's steep prices or brutal summer heat.
But the sudden influx hasn't come without growing pains. Joe Pika, 79, who moved to southern Delaware full-time four years ago, says retirement there is anything but relaxing. Local roads now see traffic quadruple during peak season, and medical care has become harder to access, he waited nine months for a colonoscopy and 18 months for a dental appointment. Unable to find a local dermatologist, he now drives 40 miles just to see one.
Pika now leads the Sussex Preservation Coalition, a group pushing to slow the area's rapid growth, warning that without better planning, the very lifestyle drawing people to Delaware could start to disappear.