Has anyone considered retiring to the town you grew up in?

[eta2020]

I have a vacation cottage in my hometown in Europe.

Spending there 4-6 weeks every Summer made me realize that it is different town now with different people.

I think I miss my youth more (which I experienced there) then my hometown . Living there is no longer possible for us.

[ExFlyBoy5]

I spent almost 20 years in the Air Force "away from home" and was lucky in that my last assignment brought me home...that was in 2012. At first, I was excited to be back home, but that excitement quickly waned as I came to the realization that A LOT had changed since 1994. I knew of most of these changes on a smaller scale since I visited quite often (at LEAST every 6 months) but when I came back and was in-it full time...well, it wasn't as charming.

Of the friends that I kept in touch with over the years while I was not "home", there are only two that I see on a regular basis. All the others I saw more often when I visited...it's kinda odd like that. Initially, when many of those friends found out that I was moving back, I got all sorts of messages/emails/texts saying something like, "Great! We will get together soon!!!"...well, almost 4 years later, I haven't seen most of them.

Anyway, my Dad is the only thing keeping us here (he is almost 90 and I am his "go to" for just about anything) so when he is gone, we will leave and most likely not be back. I can't remember the saying exactly, or who said it, but nonetheless I think it rings true: "You Can Never Go Home."

[athena53]

I went back to Ohio... but my city was gone.

Seriously- I grew up in an area about an hour south of Cleveland. I went back for my 40th HS reunion and am looking forward to attending my 45th in a few weeks. HS was not a high point in my life but it's been like meeting new friends with whom I strangely have a lot in common.

That would be the only reason to go back. Most of my family migrated to the Carolinas years ago. I already live in a LCOL area. My only son lives 3 hours away now. I'm not going to Ohio unless I can take the 2-year old granddaughter with me and that ain't gonna happen.

You may have better reasons to move, starting with the lower COL. Still, you might want to rent first to test the waters. And DO work on your health. I'm still riding my bicycle and I'm on zero prescriptions. It's possible!

[fosterscik]

I grew up in Newcastle upon Tyne in England. I don't see any way I would return "home". Too many ties this side of the pond (children especially).

[CountryBoy]

As a matter of fact, this is just what I'm doing--in 18 days! I grew up in a small rural town on the PA-WVa border, after finishing school I moved to Pittsburgh in 1987 and have been here ever since. I left my job in Jan 2015 (sort of an 'ER experiment') but since then I've realized most of my friends were tied to my former workplace, so I began making visits back home to visit family a little more frequently. Then one weekend around 2 months ago, my sister commented on how nice it'd be if I just lived there instead of the city, what was holding me here--so we looked at a couple apartments for the heck of it, and the next thing I know I'm signing a lease for a place I move into on Sept 24.

Truth be told, I've been a little nervous about the move--but I have both a sister & brother there who never left, and this past Labor Day weekend I took down some furnishings & other odds n' ends I don't plan to be moving into my new (smaller) place, to the town's annual Yard Sale (an annual thing held every Sat before Labor Day) and was surprised to see some old friends I haven't seen (in person, just on FB) in many years. Made me feel better about what I'm doing.

I was also surprised someone bought my old microwave, coffee table & dinette set--made $275.00 which will go towards the U-Haul renter and my brother-in-law's son for helping me with the move in a couple weeks

[Chuckanut]

It's an idea that I thought of and then rejected.
The town where I grew up has a very high cost of living and my children would never be able to rent a descent place there much less buy a home. Heck, I'm not sure I could buy a home there and keep my current lifestyle of wine, good cheer and song.

[marko]

While we lived in Europe for many years--and a few in Asia--my hometown was always "headquarters and home".

Like 9 generations of my family before me, I'm still living in the same town, in what was my grandfather's house. My brother lives in our great-grandfather's house which is the house we grew up in, as did my father and his father before him.

I see positives and negatives. A short walk around the neighborhood can bring back all kinds of memories from childhood; "oh, right here is where my friend Ricky got into a fight in the 6th grade..."

[Just_Steve]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Souschef I grew up in the northeast Bronx and left the day I graduated. I never looked back.

I grew up on 198 st and Valentine Ave, where did you?

[38Chevy454]

For sure you have some familiarity with the place you grew up. But it has changed over the years, some you may be aware of, some you may not. This does not make it a bad choice as long as you realize it is not the same as when you grew up there.

As to whether it is good for you? Only you can answer that question. Do you have family in the area? That may be a good or bad factor. Certainly getting out of where you are at seems a good decision. That 'where to relocate to" is a short question with a long answer and many variables.

[W2R]

Not sure what town that would be, but anyway the answer is "nope".

[MRG]

Quote:

Originally Posted by W2R Not sure what town that would be, but anyway the answer is "nope".

You make me think. I grew up in a small town in PA. However my birth certificate says Camden, NJ. Nope I will not be going there either.

[gamboolman]

Don't believe you, or anyone else can go home again pawdnaahh...
Thank God for that....

I am near to your age....lots of ghosts.....regrets - too many to recall for GD sure.....

But - Life's a dance and you learn as you...go...

Suggest you move to Texas....and to hell with the rest....Drive a stake in the heart of the past - put it all in the rear view mirror

Live each remaining day that God gives you to the fullest...

[ivinsfan]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Persn Of course you can go home again, but here is a caveat: having grown up in Minnesota myself, in both urban and small town settings, I can tell you that while lots of Minnesotans are healthy, outdoorsy types there is a fairly prominent, unhealthy, drinking culture there that, because of the nasty winters is easy to fall into. And I think it is worse in rural areas and small towns. And even if you don't drink, staying indoors for months on end is also bad for your health. I would be hesitant to return there myself for this reason alone. Its just a suggestion but it seems to me you have an opportunity to concentrate your efforts on getting healthy. Maybe you do need a new start somewhere other than DC Metro, but you should choose it based on where you can have a healthy lifestyle. It isn't all about weight, its about getting outside. If that's Minnesota, great! But it sounds to me from your other threads that you are already getting out and doing a lot of walking. That is a great start in and of itself. Just keep doing it and let it build; you may find that your unintended retirement was the best thing that could have happened to you.

I don't know where you hung out in MN, but I disagree with your comments about the heaving drinking to call it prominent is incorrect ,you find pockets of drinking cultures everywhere, except maybe in Utah.Blaming it on winter is also wrong....if you drink too much and blame it on weather, I'm calling foul.

[Walt34]

The place where I grew up has changed so much I wouldn't consider moving back there. It's about 8 miles from the center of Washington, D.C. and in the '50's and '60's it was middle suburbia. There was a cornfield behind the house, where a builder put houses around mid '70's. It had an "Andy of Mayberry" feel to it. Then the stupid idiot moron greedy politicians allowed overbuilding of houses and commercial building and today you will spend your life planning around traffic.

I'll put it this way. I hate cold weather, but I'd move to North Dakota before I moved back there.

[Sunset]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ivinsfan I'm not sure if this is a serious question either, but whatever. I live about an hour south of St Cloud. The state of MN has a lot of senior friendly benefits and a lot of support for lower income seniors. St Cloud has an extremely highly rated hospital. A lot of the smaller towns outside of St Cloud have exceptionally low prices housing, especially for smaller, older homes that would be suitable for a single person. Having said that, you can make lots of enemies anywhere, including the town you grew up in. The same with friends, you can make them anywhere, it just depends on the person.

I'm sure the OP is not looking for a magic answer.

I've been back to my small town, it changed a lot, it grew a lot, lots of new faces.
It's fun the first time back to say: "look that's where I fell out of a tree" , except maybe the tree is gone now..
You can remember playing down the by the river, but when you look at it, it is a tiny stream, and probably always was that small.
All your friends are gone, dead, in jail, too busy, or changed so much you don't know them and can barely recognize them now.
All your old friends from the town who will talk to you, are only interested in hearing once about some great adventure you fondly remember, what will you talk about the next day ?

[LOL!]

I'd have to move back to Washington, DC. Not only can I not afford it, but I don't think my dog would like it anyways.

[bingybear]

When we graduated college we moved to the Balt/DC area and worked for 5 years. We spent our years away using our vacation to help my parents (both paralyzed on a side) or appeasing DW's parents. We moved back to our metro area of youth, but not the same town. We have some friends from youth... but many others that we did not know when we were young.
Can you move back and find friends... sure why not. They may not be your friends from youth.. but some may. Everyone grows and changes. You can make friends anywhere. You need to decide what you want for your future and work toward it.... be it in DC or elsewhere.

[Rushmore]

I moved back the state I grew up in, but I grew up in the eastern part and now live in the western part. IT is a 5 hour drive that I just made this weekend to see cousins. I love where I live and enjoy visiting, but would not want to live where I grew up.

[aaronc879]

I think moving back to a familiar place with a lower cost of living is a great idea. Looking at Craigslist i'm seeing lots of apartments for $600-750/mo. Don't be temped into leasing one of the $1200+ luxury apartments though. You need to remember you don't make that big income anymore.

I never moved far from the town I grew up in--small town Wisconsin. I lived 20 miles away for 7 years then 6 miles away for 8 years and now I moved back earlier this year. I'm 1 mile from my parents house(house I grew up in), my grandmother is 1-2 miles in the other direction. I like being in a familiar place and having family close by is a big plus but I will likely stay here even after they are gone.

[pb4uski]

That is sort of what we have done. My childhood was spent in one town during the school year and at the family's lakeside home in the summer (about 25 miles apart).

I left for college at 17 and when I was about 31 we moved back to our hometown (DW was in my HS graduating class) and lived there for 25 years and raised our children. About 4 years ago we sold our home in our hometown and moved into our new lakeside home which is just a few doors down the road from my family's lakeside home, but I have been part of this community since I was 6 years old.