Hi from soggy seattle 57 and want to ER..lots of considerations and looking for input

[Golf cruiser]

Hi everyone, just joined and want to introduce myself. i am married and living in Seattle area and turned 57 in October. i have a house here and a condo I am renting out for 800. i need to raise it to 900. i also have a place in Eastern Washington which is arid and nice, but small. i live in a 2600 sq foot house with a view...I have a debt on this house of 310k. Worth about 550m. The condo is paid off worth about 150. and so is the second home in Eastern Washington worth aout 150. i have 1.5mm in retirement accounts and about 300m in cash equivalents. My wife is 58 and had brest cancer diagnosed in january of 2012 but is cancer free now and her hair is growing back again! Thank goodness. The plan is to retire at 59.5 and sell the house we are living in and get a place in either Palm Springs or Las Vegas. Than come back to the Eastern Washington house in the Summers. I Can get health insurance through my work so that should not be to big of an issue. my concern is with the California State Income taxes and the market and crime conditions in Las Vegas. I am amazed at how much house you can get in Las Vegas for cheap. i work in the investment business, and the portfolio is heavily weighted in fixed income securities. Any thoughts about where to live and downsizing, budgeting would be appreciated. We love to travel and cruise..we have Carrin Terriors too. So anyone traveling in motor homes or fifth wheels with dogs...how is that working out? Thank you.

 

[obgyn65]

I don't have a motor home but just wanted to welcome you to the forum. Happy to read that your wife is doing better.

 

[Golf cruiser]

Thanks for the welcome. Maybe I can help with your investment questions.

 

[rodi]

Welcome.

CA state income tax is an issue - especially coming from an income tax free state like Washington. (I used to live up the road in Bellingham, years ago.)

In general, CA state taxes similarly to the federal income tax. So there are deductions for common stuff like mortgage interest, etc. It's progressive, like the federal tax, so the lower the income, the lower the tax rate.

Palm Springs is starting to recover from the housing bubble/collapse. So purchasing there will need to be done prudently. I've read that some are seeing the formation of the next housing bubble.

 

[Accidental Retiree]

Re: CA taxes, my draft return for 2012 has our CA tax bill at under $900, and that is at the top of the 15% fed bracket. Standard deductions, nothing fancy.

If you contribute to an HSA, that will not be deductible in CA, IIRC.

There is a website called CityData dot com (or dot net? Now I cannot recall). It has discussion boards similar to this. I have found it a great resource for asking questions about various places we considered moving.