Chattanooga Recon mission

[rayinpenn]

I have to say I like the Chattanooga area so far .. maybe because:
Our trip to Rock City was a lot of fun.. if you fear heights or ‘caving’ stay home. We walked on swinging bridges 100ft above the rocks.. quite exhilarating. We walked through fatman’s crack in the rock were this guy had to turn sideways to slip trough.. all lots of fun. The view is simply awesome.. not cheap. Then we visited Ruby Falls 200ft below the earth.. now the falls aren’t all that much but waking 1/2 under the earth is unusual.. and even the drive up there.. Yikes. Oh did i mention a great meal at ‘State of Confusion’ downtown.

Then theres the two blue head catfish (1 was a monster) i caught sitting on the dock two nights, ago beer in hand. Cool Hand and I take two chairs and sit at the end of our floating dock and toss out a couple of live minnows and wait. Oh you think you’d be bored to tears? Our vista is a beautiful section of the lake and since Monday it is very quiet. The Osprey fishing provides a great show as do the many fish ‘busting’ the surface. Bragging rights achieved because DS caught only a small catfish the night before. Dam I’m good. Cool Hand cant understand what my secret is.. could it be that his attention is divided between fishing and his phone? Kids..

Met a gent working Part Time at Rock City. He was eight months retired having moved from Illinois. “Love it, cost of living, people, weather... but if i had my choice I’d do lookout mountain Georgia” (about mile away). “More tax but in retirement that wont matter much. “

People do seem friendly. Our rental home has a dock at the bottom of a steep hill. DS “Cool Hand” and I got a golf cart ride back to the house last night courtesy of our neighbor.

House prices and property taxes are significantly lower than our part of Pennsylvania. Bottom line: a tidy ‘retirement’, 1500 sq ft Ranch (off lake) home would be less than $225K. Taxes would be a couple of grand. Of course pricier homes are available. It’s quiet here, weekend the lake does get busy but compared to suburban philly traffic is almost nonexistent. We shopped in the local supermarket and all was as expected.

Unfortunately the area has been discovered and is growing. We are staying about a 35 minutes from downtown. I think Id be interested in looking a little further north and exploring around Nashville.

One trip simply isnt enough to make any decisions.. I’ll call this area a “taste of country”.

Consderations (there are many)
1. The city of Chattanooga does have crime — all cities do
2. Medical care is always a concern.. move away from a city and it may be sparse
3 this is a haul from my daughter
4 I believe they average 4” snow a year (good thing)

Last night I was ending the evening watching some TV.. Cool Hand comes in the room and yells “what is that? Its huge..” Im thinking snake, God knows what?? A huge wood spider (my guess) is on the other side arm of the couch Im sitting on. A regular mini tarantula.. Im convinced it was eyeing the dog sitting a few feet away. SIL dispatched it with a flip flop. Biggest one Ive ever seen.

[Bamaman]

If you are interested in looking closer to.Nashville, chances are you will find it too expensive to live if closer than Murfreesboro. Winchester is on the north.side.of Monteagle Mountain and they have the fine Time Ford Lake inside city limits.. This.is.Jack Daniels country--beautiful vistas. Two other big lakes are close by (Normandy and Woods Resevoior. The incredible Guntersville Lake is over the mountain in North.Alabama. Another nice town is.Manchester, TN.

[target2019]

In the general area, northeast of mountains, we intended to visit the Lake Norman NC area. Tracking the same river into SC, it's Lake Wylie. I always thought that the very long, wandering lake perimeter would have plenty of choices for retirees.

[folivier]

Can't you go to jail for that sort of thing?
"sit at the end of our floating dock and toss out a couple of live minors and wait."

[rayinpenn]

Quote:

Originally Posted by folivier Can't you go to jail for that sort of thing? "sit at the end of our floating dock and toss out a couple of live minors and wait."

Thanks... yikes that dam auto spell.
Sadly looking for typos in my work is like picking the low hanging fruit - all too easy

[frayne]

I live in a burb of Chattanooga just across the state line in N. Ga. I pay no state income tax because of the exemption on pretty much all retirement type income. Access to world class medical facilities is much better in Chattanooga than in cities of comparable size. I don't think I've seen 4" of snow total in the last ten years, summers can be hot though, especially July and August. Traffic is not good during the peak hours.

[rayinpenn]

Quote:

Originally Posted by frayne I live in a burb of Chattanooga just across the state line in N. Ga.... Access to world class medical facilities is much better in Chattanooga than in cities of comparable size.... Traffic is not good during the peak hours.

1. Thus my concern about possibly settling even further north of the city... far from big medical.
2. Traffic is a relative thing having lived on Long Island and spent time in Washington DC I suspect my perception is different than yours. 45 minutes north of the city minimal traffic...

[GravitySucks]

Quote:

Originally Posted by frayne I live in a burb of Chattanooga just across the state line in N. Ga. I pay no state income tax because of the exemption on pretty much all retirement type income. Access to world class medical facilities is much better in Chattanooga than in cities of comparable size. I don't think I've seen 4" of snow total in the last ten years, summers can be hot though, especially July and August. Traffic is not good during the peak hours.

Do you need to be 65+ to qualify for the IRA withdrawl tax exemptions in Georgia?

Just returned from a quick tour of that area. We found Ashville NC and Gatlinburg TN to be over crowded. The Smokey Mountains were beautiful though.

[frayne]

Quote:

Originally Posted by GravitySucks Do you need to be 65+ to qualify for the IRA withdrawl tax exemptions in Georgia? Just returned from a quick tour of that area. We found Ashville NC and Gatlinburg TN to be over crowded. The Smokey Mountains were beautiful though.

Here is a link that explains the exemptions. You can also google the GA. state income tax exclusions for seniors for additional information.

https://finance.zacks.com/pensions-t...rgia-8411.html

[COcheesehead]

Don’t overlook the services of everyday living:
What are the grocery stores like near where you might live?
Drug store nearby?
Recycling available?
What about trash pick up. Curbside?
How far is an emergency room? Home Depot?
What about dining options?

In and of themselves the small things may not matter, but they add up when you need them on a regular basis.

[copyright1997reloaded]

I'd rather pay $0 in TN regardless of income source. But, the $65K exemption in Georgia (single, Age 65+) on various retirement income sources does help.

Here's a quick blurb on it:

Quote:

Taxpayers who are 62 or older, or permanently and totally disabled regardless of age, may be eligible for a retirement income adjustment on their Georgia tax return. Retirement income includes: Income from pensions and annuities Interest income Dividend income Net income from rental property Capital gains income Income from royalties Up to $4,000 of earned income

Source: https://dor.georgia.gov/retirement-income-exclusion

Ray, I would love to here more of your thoughts on the area. I did a quick whirlwind trip last summer (one week) through various parts of TN (Tri-city area, Knoxville, Chattanooga, Nashville, Cookville). I wasn't crazy about downtown Chattanooga, but did like the area.

[Bamaman]

We have a place in the NE Georgia mountains, and are heading over there next week. There are a number of great lakes in the area like Blue Ridge, Nottley, Chatuge and Burton just south of the North Carolina state line. The mountain vistas are absolutely incredible. The cities are Blue Ridge, Blairsville, Young Harris, Hiawassee and Clayton. Very nice places to retire to. These are playgrounds of the rich and famous of Atlanta's Buckhead, but still affordable.

[fosterscik]

I mentioned in another thread that DW and I are building a new house just outside Chatt in the Signal Mountain township. For us the selling points were a pretty good airport served by several airlines (https://www.chattairport.com/airlines-destinations), low/soon no taxes for retirees, better weather (especially on Lookout or Signal Mountains), and easy access to our "must have" stores (REI, Costco, good grocery stores). New houses are a LOT more expensive than Ray listed but we want a worry free new home with great insulation on a large wooded lot. For us it helps that we will have access to city gas and cheap fast internet access (300 megabit is $58/month; gigabit is $68/month https://epb.com/home-store/internet)