Did you regret moving away after retiring?

[Brdofpray]

One more thing. After moving to SC, both of our kids and families moved to within 30 minutes of our new location. Go figure, they apparently like us.

 

[Willers]

Adapting to relocation is not universal, so the experiences of others may not provide any insight. DW and I moved all our lives, so we know we adapt easily, we welcome change (where we are now has gotten stale, someplace new has a lot lf appeal to us - but we'll rent first for 6-12 months). Folks who've lived their lives in one (or few) locations may not adapt easily.

+1

I think this is important. We've lived in many different homes in different areas so a relo would be no big deal. For someone who spent his or her whole life in one city, that may be a more difficult adjustment.

One other thing to keep in mind - you can always move back. We were torturing ourselves about where the perfect spot might be only to realize that we should just give it a try and look for another spot if it isn't the right place. They say you can't go home again...sure you can...that's the freedom FIRE gives you.

Best of luck!

 

[SumDay]

We plan to move (maybe) in 3+ years, when I retire. DH is concerned about making new friends, as I'm a bit of an introvert. So, out of curiosity, for those of you who have wonderful new friends, how'd you unearth them? Neighbors? Church? Clubs? Activities?

 

[Meadbh]

We plan to move (maybe) in 3+ years, when I retire. DH is concerned about making new friends, as I'm a bit of an introvert. So, out of curiosity, for those of you who have wonderful new friends, how'd you unearth them? Neighbors? Church? Clubs? Activities?

Is there a newcomers group, or meetup, in your area?

I am a strong introvert. I joined a newcomers group, which has about 25 different activities. It's been wonderful. I now have a large circle of friends and the time to get together with them. I am now making friends one step removed from that group as well.

 

[ICNTR]

It can be a lot of changes all at once. Was in our case anyway.

 

[48Fire]

We're considering retiring to a favorite vacation location that's several hundred miles from where we live now. For those of you who've done such a move, what was your experience?

A friend of mine retired from Midwest to Cape Cod after many years of owning a home there and vacationing. They moved back to Midwest after a few months. Wife was very unhappy, trapped on the peninsula, and dreading the cabin fever of winter that was approaching.

In our case we moved to Florida for seven months, but we still miss the family and friends back home, so nice to be here in the summers. You should consider a backup plan if all does not go well.

 

[AnIntentionalRoad]

For years my parents discussed moving from a cold northern suburb for years. When my DF passed away after 20 years of RE, my DM moved into an active retirement community.

She says how much she wishes they had made that move while DF was still alive to enjoy it.

 

[MRG]

We'd like to move, just don't know where. We have no family in the area, just some friends. We moved to this area 36 years ago for economic reasons; great plan now what? So the whole world is open.

House hunting for 4 years, we still can't agree on location. I'm going with my Sister's advice, in retirement you can vacation as long as you like where you want, given enough funding.

 

[haha]

and I think the two major threats, burglary and hurricanes, are sufficiently remote on a daily basis that they are not big motivators to move...

Definitely true. I was living in Venice during the 1971 San Fernando Quake. Even way down at the beach where I was, it shook things plenty hard. But those who left were often out in the Valley, closer to epicenter, and they mostly took off right away. Once the aftershocks had died down, people's motivation to go was wavering. Another factor that may have played a part was the aerospace recession starting, and losing a job will move people right now.

Ha

 

[48Fire]

For years my parents discussed moving from a cold northern suburb for years. When my DF passed away after 20 years of RE, my DM moved into an active retirement community.

She says how much she wishes they had made that move while DF was still alive to enjoy it.

I think your key word there is "active". My wife and I are very active, but outside of our four walls, there is little interaction. We are not in a retirement community. If the area is not socially conducive, it may be an issue. My wife is very social, so the lack of social activities is a problem.

 

[48Fire]

and I think the two major threats, burglary and hurricanes, are sufficiently remote on a daily basis that they are not big motivators to move...

And both you can mitigate your risk somewhat as well.

 

[grasshopper]

Ms G. and I had finished 7 moves in 11 years when we bought our first retirement home. We weren't retired yet (8 years later), but we bought a big house on a lake in one of the East Valleys(Phoenix) boomtowns. It really had everything Starbucks and Sprouts we could walk to, beautiful tropical location, party boat to cruise the lake. I may have over done it, but the Hay Capitol of the nation turned into the bedroom community of the nation. We were out of Dodge in 6 months bought some acreage in the cooler mountains, in a birders hamlet. We both became involved in the community, I helped build the new firehouse, and became a firefighter, Ms G became the town advocate for animals, and short term shelter for cats and dogs, and we hooked up with the 30 year old thursday hiking club. Now after 9 summers(only summers count in AZ), we are a part of a small community of neighborly, loving folks, just down the road from Paradise.

Paradise, Arizona - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

[kcowan]

And both you can mitigate your risk somewhat as well.

I think that not ever moving before is a powerful obstacle too. We had moved all over and learned the drill about making new friends and acquaintances several times.

In W2Rs case, she has moved around (Hawaii, SF, NO - all great places!) whereas Frank has strong roots in NO. She might be fine in Springfield and Frank might have regrets.

We were 2000 miles from family during the kids formative 8 years and we overcame that by inviting them out for a month each year. After the month, the kids considered them extended family, and the grandparents had a much better relationship with the kids than any amount of Sunday dinners could achieve.

YMMV

 

[want2er]

While there still might be burglaries in Springfield, we think/hope that they would be less frequent. From what we can tell, burglars up there seldom murder and are just after stuff (which I can afford to lose).

@W2R - Are you talking about Springfield, MO? I can't imagine moving from NOLA to Springfield, LA (pop. 242) unless you like to watch bumpers rust!

from BR

 

[W2R]

@W2R - Are you talking about Springfield, MO? I can't imagine moving from NOLA to Springfield, LA (pop. 242) unless you like to watch bumpers rust!

from BR

from NOLA! Yes, good guess! There are Springfields in a lot of states and I am really not interested in Springfield, LA. We'll probably stay put.

 

[steelyman]

from NOLA! Yes, good guess! There are Springfields in a lot of states and I am really not interested in Springfield, LA. We'll probably stay put.

We've got one. It has Frank Lloyd Wright's Dana Thomas home. And another place I've never been: the Abraham Lincoln Museum, which I hear is great.

Can you tell I'm still a Yank at heart?

 

[ggbutcher]

One take on it:

Stock Market Crash - Business Insider

Edit: Oops, wrong thread.

 

[Chuckanut]

Some retired people I know have commented that moving away from friends and family to a warmer climate was a big mistake for the. They would rather have the cold and be near family and old friends than be far away and warm.

Another regret has been moving solely to be near the grandchildren (no other interest in the new area, etc.) As the grandchildren grow up they develop lives of their own and leave dotting grandparents for short weekend visits. At least that was the complaint I heard from some. YMMV.

 

[iac1003]

We moved 1800 miles away when DH retired, from NYC to Austin TX, where DH did his Ph.D. 30 years ago. I am still w*rking, hoping that changes soon. DH moved down here 2 days after he retired. I miss the ability to walk everywhere as one can in NYC and miss my circle of friends/acquaintances which I haven't yet been able to recreate because - still w*rking and have little time to pursue interests which would put me in touch with others. Few family left in the Northeast with parents, aunts and uncles all gone so no close family there. DH has gotten himself involved in the neighborhood association and a retired persons' organization at the local mega state university. It's not what he envisioned but it's all good.

Can't go home again - way too expensive and too much cold and snow. The killing we made selling our condo apartment has given us a big after-tax cushion even after purchasing our current house for cash. Moving to a place where the COL and taxes were lower than where we came from made it possible to live and save on my salary and bank/invest DH's SS and now RMDs. In addition I will be able to REarlier by 4-5 years than I originally thought would be feasible.

It's true that lots of "friends" are there only when you are physically present so staying in touch has faded away. But it's ok. I have hundreds of Facebook friends.

What I've found after being a lifelong New Yorker is that I am singularly unattached to a place, a house, my belongings. I really don't care. My only son (no grandkids) is in Los Angeles. Maybe I'll move there one day? I have lots of other acquaintances there. A big question mark.

As we get older though we have to think about mobility, being in a more walking-friendly and public transportation environment with less dependence on acuity of vision and brisk reflexes for lots of driving. Maine, while beautiful, isn't somewhere I'd want to live in my 80's with those harsh winters, making it hard to get around. It is such a personal decision. Good luck!


Sent from my iPhone using Early Retirement Forum

 

[panacea]

Has anyone relocated to Colorado for retirement? We returned last week from vacationing from there and found certain aspects to be attractive as compared to Wisconsin. Namely the dryer air and almost no bugs. We love Wisconsin but the bugs and humidity keep me from going outside as much as I'd like... and there aren't that many warm months in the year to begin with in WI! If we ever moved to CO, I don't have any idea where we'd go though... didn't spend enough time in any one place. Started in the NE corner (Estes Park touristy area) and traveled down through Boulder and Colorado Springs and eventually to Durango in the SW corner. It was all really nice... But I can't even decide if I'd want to be away from everything or in the middle of everything! I can already see us never moving out of indecisiveness.

 

[sgfgrover15]

One more thing. After moving to SC, both of our kids and families moved to within 30 minutes of our new location. Go figure, they apparently like us.

We made the decision several years ago where we were moving to in Florida after retirement. In the last several months two of our kids beat us there. Now they are waiting for us to get there the end of September so I think our like us too. I am seriously jealous they got there before I did.

So hopefully no regrets. We did the pros and cons for years and the pros really outweigh the cons. We are not buying anything right now so nothing is permanent if it turns out to be a disaster.