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Fenwick Island, DE

This is a small community in a single neighborhood. As throughout the site, some neighborhood-level data are reserved for subscribers.





Overview


Fenwick Island is a tiny coastal town (i.e. on the ocean, a bay, or inlet) located in the state of Delaware. With a population of 376 people and just one neighborhood, Fenwick Island is the 39th largest community in Delaware.

Fenwick Island home prices are not only among the most expensive in Delaware, but Fenwick Island real estate also consistently ranks among the most expensive in America.

Occupations and Workforce

Fenwick Island is a decidedly white-collar town, with fully 95.07% of the workforce employed in white-collar jobs, well above the national average. Overall, Fenwick Island is a town of sales and office workers, professionals, and managers. There are especially a lot of people living in Fenwick Island who work in sales jobs (29.58%), healthcare (11.97%), and management occupations (10.56%).

Of important note, Fenwick Island is also a town of artists. Fenwick Island has more artists, designers and people working in media than 90% of the communities in America. This concentration of artists helps shape Fenwick Island’s character.

Also of interest is that Fenwick Island has more people living here who work in computers and math than 95% of the places in the US.

A relatively large number of people in Fenwick Island telecommute to their jobs. Overall, about 27.34% of the workforce works from home. While this may seem like a small number, as a fraction of the total workforce it ranks among the highest in the country. These workers are often telecommuters who work in knowledge-based, white-collar professions. For example, Silicon Valley has large numbers of people who telecommute. Other at-home workers may be self-employed people who operate small businesses out of their homes.

Setting & Lifestyle

Another notable thing is that Fenwick Island is a major vacation destination. Much of the town’s population is seasonal: many people own second homes and only live there part-time, during the vacation season. The effect on the local economy is that many of the businesses are dependent on tourist dollars, and may operate only during the high season. As the vacation season ends, Fenwick Island’s population drops significantly, such that year-round residents will notice that the city is a much quieter place to live.

In addition, Fenwick Island is home to many people who could be described as "urban sophisticates". Urban sophisticates are people who are both educated and wealthy, and thus tend to be older, richer, and more established than young professionals. "Urban sophisticates" is not just about being educated and well-off financially: it is a point of view and state of mind, one that you might call 'urbaneness'. But such people can and do regularly live in small towns, suburbs and rural areas, as well as in big cities. They read, support the arts and high-end shops, and love travel.

Fenwick Island is also nautical, which means that parts of it are somewhat historic and touch the ocean or tidal bodies of water, such as inlets and bays. Quite often, nautical areas such as these attract visitors and locals who come to enjoy the scenery and various waterfront activities.

As is often the case in a small town, Fenwick Island doesn't have a public transportation system that people use for their commute.

Demographics

If knowledge is power, Fenwick Island is a pretty powerful place. 57.61% of the adults in Fenwick Island have earned a 4-year college degree, masters degree, MD, law degree, or even PhD. Compare that to the national average of 21.84% for all cities and towns.

The per capita income in Fenwick Island in 2022 was $112,876, which is wealthy relative to Delaware and the nation. This equates to an annual income of $451,504 for a family of four.

The people who call Fenwick Island home describe themselves as belonging to a variety of racial and ethnic groups. The greatest number of Fenwick Island residents report their race to be White, followed by Native American. Important ancestries of people in Fenwick Island include German, English, Irish, Italian, and Welsh.

The most common language spoken in Fenwick Island is English. Other important languages spoken here include Italian and Polish.

Notable & Unique Neighborhood Characteristics

Many things matter about a neighborhood, but the first thing most people notice is the way a neighborhood looks and its particular character. For example, one might notice whether the buildings all date from a certain time period or whether shop signs are in multiple languages. This particular neighborhood in Fenwick Island, the neighborhood, has some outstanding things about the way it looks and its way of life that are worth highlighting.

Real Estate

is a neighborhood that is on the ocean, a bay, or inlet. Many times, such places have amenities that bring locals and visitors to the waterfront for recreational activities or to check out the scenery. In some densely populated areas that are less financially well-off, the neighborhood waterfront can be relatively industrial and less open to recreation. In addition to being coastal, is a very nautical neighborhood, meaning that it is somewhat historic, walkable, densely populated and on the water. This gives the neighborhood a very nautical feel, with some seaside and shipping feel, which some may really enjoy the sights and sounds of. One of the notable things about is that it is one of the quietest neighborhoods in America, according to NeighborhoodScout's exclusive analysis and quantitative rating of quietness. When you are here, you will find it to be very quiet. If quiet and peaceful are your cup of tea, you may have found a great place for you.

In addition, vacant homes and apartments are a significant characteristic of this neighborhood. In fact, with 79.3% of the residential real estate vacant, the neighborhood claims the distinction of having a higher vacancy rate than 99.9% of the neighborhoods in America. This can either be because much of the property is seasonally occupied, like in many vacation areas, or that much of the real estate is more permanently abandoned.

People

Of note is NeighborhoodScout's research finding that the neighborhood has some of the lowest rates of children living in poverty of any neighborhood in the United States. In a nation where approximately 1 in 4 children are living in poverty, the community truly stands out from the rest in this regard.

In addition, if you are an executive or professional seeking a neighborhood affording an executive lifestyle, or just wanting to find where other executives live in the area, the neighborhood should be on your list. It has an enviable mix of spacious homes, relatively stable real estate values, and residents that include a number of wealthy executives, managers, and professionals. NeighborhoodScout's exclusive analysis places it as one of the top 13.1% executive lifestyle neighborhoods in the state of Delaware.

Diversity

Did you know that the neighborhood has more British and Croatian ancestry people living in it than nearly any neighborhood in America? It's true! In fact, 3.8% of this neighborhood's residents have British ancestry and 0.9% have Croatian ancestry.

is also pretty special linguistically. Significantly, 9.8% of its residents five years old and above primarily speak Italian at home. While this may seem like a small percentage, it is higher than 97.8% of the neighborhoods in America.

The Neighbors

How wealthy a neighborhood is, from very wealthy, to middle income, to low income is very formative with regard to the personality and character of a neighborhood. Equally important is the rate of people, particularly children, who live below the federal poverty line. In some wealthy gated communities, the areas immediately surrounding can have high rates of childhood poverty, which indicates other social issues. NeighborhoodScout's analysis reveals both aspects of income and poverty for this neighborhood.

The neighbors in the neighborhood in Fenwick Island are upper-middle income, making it an above average income neighborhood. NeighborhoodScout's exclusive analysis reveals that this neighborhood has a higher income than 75.0% of the neighborhoods in America. In addition, 0.0% of the children seventeen and under living in this neighborhood are living below the federal poverty line, which is a lower rate of childhood poverty than is found in 100.0% of America's neighborhoods.

A neighborhood is far different if it is dominated by enlisted military personnel rather than people who earn their living by farming. It is also different if most of the neighbors are clerical support or managers. What is wonderful is the sheer diversity of neighborhoods, allowing you to find the type that fits your lifestyle and aspirations.

In the neighborhood, 50.2% of the working population is employed in executive, management, and professional occupations. The second most important occupational group in this neighborhood is sales and service jobs, from major sales accounts, to working in fast food restaurants, with 26.0% of the residents employed. Other residents here are employed in manufacturing and laborer occupations (16.2%), and 7.7% in clerical, assistant, and tech support occupations.

Languages

The languages spoken by people in this neighborhood are diverse. These are tabulated as the languages people preferentially speak when they are at home with their families. The most common language spoken in the neighborhood is English, spoken by 99.2% of households. Other important languages spoken here include Italian and Polish.

Ethnicity / Ancestry

Boston's Beacon Hill blue-blood streets, Brooklyn's Orthodox Jewish enclaves, Los Angeles' Persian neighborhoods. Each has its own culture derived primarily from the ancestries and culture of the residents who call these neighborhoods home. Likewise, each neighborhood in America has its own culture – some more unique than others – based on lifestyle, occupations, the types of households – and importantly – on the ethnicities and ancestries of the people who live in the neighborhood. Understanding where people came from, who their grandparents or great-grandparents were, can help you understand how a neighborhood is today.

In the neighborhood in Fenwick Island, DE, residents most commonly identify their ethnicity or ancestry as German (21.0%). There are also a number of people of English ancestry (15.5%), and residents who report Irish roots (15.1%), and some of the residents are also of Italian ancestry (6.0%), along with some Polish ancestry residents (4.8%), among others.

Getting to Work

How you get to work – car, bus, train or other means – and how much of your day it takes to do so is a large quality of life and financial issue. Especially with gasoline prices rising and expected to continue doing so, the length and means of one's commute can be a financial burden. Some neighborhoods are physically located so that many residents have to drive in their own car, others are set up so many walk to work, or can take a train, bus, or bike. The greatest number of commuters in neighborhood spend between 15 and 30 minutes commuting one-way to work (34.4% of working residents), which is shorter than the time spent commuting to work for most Americans.

Here most residents (69.8%) drive alone in a private automobile to get to work. In addition, quite a number also hop out the door and walk to work to get to work (9.9%) . In a neighborhood like this, as in most of the nation, many residents find owning a car useful for getting to work.


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