Delaware is a state with a lot of coastline. When you think of wind swept beaches on the Atlantic Ocean, you’re thinking of Delaware. The beach areas come in a variety of forms with sleepy little villages, laid back resorts and energized tourist areas. Much of the state is within a few hours of the major cities of Philadelphia, Baltimore and Washington, D.C.

Wilmington is a mid-sized city, but the largest in Delaware. Not the most striking of cities, Wilmington is a bit schizophrenic. Parts of the town are dreary and industrial while others contain pleasant parks and walking areas. In the pleasant areas, you’ll find brick paved walkways with little cafés on streets lined with trees. Wilmington is, however, a good launching spot for most of Delaware, which makes for good weekend getaways.

Delaware real estate prices fall all over the board and are primarily dependent on how close the location is to the popular beaches. Homes in Wilmington will run $370,000 on average, while locations in other inland areas are much less. Homes in the beach areas like Rehoboth can be much more, but depend on the quality of the home. On average, the appreciation rate for Delaware real estate was over 16 percent for 2005.

Tags :

Among the many business-friendly laws, Delaware does not require corporations to operate in the state, only to maintain a registered agent, who may be an individual resident, or an existing domestic corporation. Additionally, incorporations typically take 24 hours to process, however there are services that allow same day, and 2 hour filing. There is no corporate income tax for corporations incorporated in Delaware, but not transacting business in the state. Further, the cost to incorporate is one of the lowest in the country, and one person can hold all officer positions of the corporation. Officer names are not required to be listed in the articles of incorporation. Shares of stock owned by persons outside of Delaware are not subject to Delaware taxes.

Delaware maintains a separate corporate court system, called the Delaware Court of Chancery, that does not use juries, but only uses judges appointed for their expertise in corporate law. The Delaware Court of Chancery is a 210-year-old business court that has written most of the modern U.S. corporation case law. It is widely recognized as the nation’s most distinguished agency for dispute resolution involving corporate litigation. The state legislature takes seriously its role in keeping the corporation statute, and other business laws current. Their unique expertise in, and exposure to issues of business law are supreme. Currently the Court of Chancery has made docket information, and pleadings available over the Internet for civil actions filed in the Court. Delaware may make sense for large corporations, however it may not be worth the effort for small, privately held corporations who do business in their home state. Although Delaware does not tax out of state businesses, taxes must be paid in the state the business is operating. While incorporating fees are lowest in Delaware, appointing a corporate agent to receive official notices in Delaware may negate any realized costs savings. All factors considered, Delaware is a premiere legal home to companies all around the world.

Tags :