Suppose real estate is the most significant investment a majority of people make in their lifetime. In that case, it’s best to understand the places in Delaware with best potential return on investment.
After working in real estate adjacent roles for over a decade, I had the hypothesis that the best place to buy for a return on investment would be up-and-coming cities. Smaller cities where crime might be high now, but people still move to.
To test my hypothesis, we are going to look at places in Delaware that are growing faster than average, but where home prices are below average, and crime rates are higher than average.
In everyday terms, these might be “deals”. The best deal in Delaware at the moment according to Saturday Night Science? That would be Millville.
Table Of Contents: Top Ten | Methodology | Summary | Table
The 10 Best Places To Buy A Home In Delaware For 2024
- Millville
- Kent Acres
- Delmar
- Woodside East
- Greenville
- Selbyville
- Townsend
- Riverview
- Ocean View
- Long Neck
The methodology that wen’t into this can be a bit complicated, so we’ll break it down for you in as much detail as we can below.
For more Delaware reading:
- Best Places To Raise A Family In Delaware
- Best Places To Retire In Delaware
- Richest Cities In Delaware
The 10 Best Cities To Buy A House In Delaware For 2024
1. Millville
/10
Population: 2,052
Median Home Price: $526,843
Population Change: 14.6%
Home Price Change: 9.2%
More on Millville: Real Estate
2. Kent Acres
/10
Population: 2,124
Median Home Price: $306,484
Population Change: 21.0%
Home Price Change: 5.8%
More on Kent Acres: Real Estate
3. Delmar
/10
Population: 2,398
Median Home Price: $303,261
Population Change: 7.0%
Home Price Change: 1.9%
More on Delmar: Real Estate
4. Woodside East
/10
Population: 2,002
Median Home Price: $0
Population Change: 7.2%
Home Price Change: -100.0%
More on Woodside East: Real Estate
5. Greenville
/10
Population: 2,824
Median Home Price: $1,145,551
Population Change: 2.2%
Home Price Change: 6.0%
More on Greenville: Real Estate
6. Selbyville
/10
Population: 2,907
Median Home Price: $555,892
Population Change: 3.6%
Home Price Change: 2.7%
More on Selbyville: Crime | Real Estate
7. Townsend
/10
Population: 2,728
Median Home Price: $451,746
Population Change: 2.1%
Home Price Change: 3.2%
More on Townsend: Real Estate
8. Riverview
/10
Population: 2,270
Median Home Price: $319,873
Population Change: 8.6%
Home Price Change: 4.3%
More on Riverview: Real Estate
9. Ocean View
/10
Population: 2,660
Median Home Price: $522,372
Population Change: 4.1%
Home Price Change: 1.6%
More on Ocean View: Crime | Real Estate
/10
Population: 2,983
Median Home Price: $145,808
Population Change: -1.3%
Home Price Change: 16.5%
More on Long Neck: Data | Real Estate
Methodology: How do you determine the best places to buy a home in Delaware for 2024?
We were in real estate for almost five years and have worked on this site for another 9. Suffice it to say we’ve put a lot of thought into finding an excellent place to buy a home.
So all that thinking has come to this moment where we get to spell out how we’d approach finding an up-and-coming place to live in Delaware. Put differently, the analysis will try to find places in Delaware with undervalued homes relative to pent-up demand using Saturday Night Science.
To do that, we looked at the most recent American Community Survey Census data for 2018-2022 and compared it to the previous vintage. Specifically, we used the following criteria:
- Y-o-Y Change In Population (People want to live here)
- Y-o-Y Change In Median Home Prices (People are willing to pay for it)
- Home Prices Relative To The State Average (It’s still kinda cheap)
We want places that are growing, have seen home prices increase in recent years, and are still “cheap” for Delaware with the following caveats:
- Home prices had to be within 20% of the state average (Much lower than that, and you get to some of the more dangerous places)
- Home prices increased in the last year, and
- Above 5,000 people (Bigger cities have more data points)
So of the 0 cities and towns in Delaware, only 41 places made it through our initial filters to even be considered.
We then ranked each place from 1 to 41 for the above criteria, with 1 being the best. We averaged the rankings to create a “best place to buy” index, with the place having the lowest index being the best.
Turns out that Millville is the best potential gem in the not-so-rough in the First State.
Summary: The Best Places To Purchase A House In Delaware for 2024
There’s our analysis of the best places to buy a house in Delaware. And, to be clear, we aren’t necessarily saying these places are the best places to live, just that it looks like they might be in a couple of years based on the data.
In fact, every place in the following table meets our criteria, so even though it may not look super long, remember we started off with all 0 places in the state.
The best cities to buy a house in Delaware are Millville, Kent Acres, Delmar, Woodside East, Greenville, Selbyville, Townsend, Riverview, Ocean View, and Long Neck.
So if we’d could rent or buy in these cities, we’d definitely buy.
For more Delaware reading, check out:
Best Places To Buy A Home In Delaware
| Rank | City | Population | Median Home Price | Population Change | Home Price Increase |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Millville | 2,052 | $526,843 | 14.6% | 9.2% |
| 2 | Kent Acres | 2,124 | $306,484 | 21.0% | 5.8% |
| 3 | Delmar | 2,398 | $303,261 | 7.0% | 1.9% |
| 4 | Woodside East | 2,002 | $0 | 7.2% | -100.0% |
| 5 | Greenville | 2,824 | $1,145,551 | 2.2% | 6.0% |
| 6 | Selbyville | 2,907 | $555,892 | 3.6% | 2.7% |
| 7 | Townsend | 2,728 | $451,746 | 2.1% | 3.2% |
| 8 | Riverview | 2,270 | $319,873 | 8.6% | 4.3% |
| 9 | Ocean View | 2,660 | $522,372 | 4.1% | 1.6% |
| 10 | Long Neck | 2,983 | $145,808 | -1.3% | 16.5% |
| 11 | Milton | 3,349 | $451,950 | 3.9% | 2.1% |
| 12 | Lewes | 3,339 | $574,392 | 2.5% | 1.1% |
| 13 | Clayton | 3,978 | $369,829 | 3.5% | 3.3% |
| 14 | Bridgeville | 2,590 | $313,458 | 3.6% | 2.5% |
| 15 | Camden | 3,914 | $362,602 | 3.4% | 4.3% |
| 16 | Dover Base Housing | 3,262 | $0 | 4.1% | nan% |
| 17 | Harrington | 3,770 | $243,428 | 1.1% | 7.6% |
| 18 | Highland Acres | 3,892 | $345,928 | -0.5% | 6.8% |
| 19 | Rising Sun-Lebanon | 4,060 | $500,177 | 7.6% | 21.6% |
| 20 | Laurel | 3,954 | $279,527 | 1.7% | 2.3% |
| 21 | Millsboro | 6,876 | $370,896 | 5.1% | -0.3% |
| 22 | New Castle | 5,523 | $256,759 | 0.7% | 6.3% |
| 23 | Elsmere | 6,194 | $211,158 | 0.4% | 8.5% |
| 24 | Edgemoor | 6,485 | $351,188 | -2.9% | 4.8% |
| 25 | Pike Creek | 6,975 | $486,966 | -5.7% | 6.9% |
| 26 | Georg | 7,247 | $314,613 | 2.4% | 3.9% |
| 27 | North Star | 8,370 | $621,521 | 4.5% | 2.0% |
| 28 | Seaford | 8,055 | $284,380 | 2.6% | 2.7% |
| 29 | Wilmington Manor | 8,260 | $243,055 | 0.6% | 5.1% |
| 30 | Claymont | 10,191 | $285,144 | 7.2% | 5.2% |
| 31 | Pike Creek Valley | 11,452 | $344,705 | -2.3% | -0.8% |
| 32 | Milford | 11,714 | $325,839 | 4.1% | 4.7% |
| 33 | Smyrna | 12,870 | $381,842 | 2.0% | 5.3% |
| 34 | Brookside | 14,331 | $296,877 | 0.9% | 1.5% |
| 35 | Hockessin | 13,878 | $554,626 | 3.1% | 3.7% |
| 36 | Glasgow | 15,405 | $391,432 | 0.4% | 4.7% |
| 37 | Bear | 23,070 | $391,987 | 6.7% | 4.5% |
| 38 | Middl | 23,573 | $445,009 | 2.5% | 5.8% |
| 39 | Newark | 30,655 | $333,102 | -2.4% | 4.9% |
| 40 | Dover | 38,879 | $307,836 | -0.2% | 6.2% |
| 41 | Wilmington | 71,034 | $294,430 | 0.2% | 5.9% |