Huston55
Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
Help me out here.
I live in CA and like it but having lived here for over two decades I'm due for a change or is CA as good as it gets?
What are the main options for retiring locations. I can think of:
a) Island living i.e. Hawaii
b) Big City living i.e. DC
c) Off-the-grid i.e. a shack in Montana
d) Europe
e) Beach-side i.e. Florida
Or maybe I'm thinking about it all wrong! Help me out!
I don't have family in the US so am not tied to any one area.
You've already received lots of good advice in the posts above. FWIW, here's my advice after moving 32 times in 60 yrs, living in multiple US states and most regions (except New England) and in Europe multiple times.
1. Write down your criteria first; they will lead you to a list of places to investigate. I'd suggest a list of more than five places means you didn't do this step well enough.
2. Slow travel to as many of these places as you can but, don't take forever. You should be able to do this in 1-2 yrs.
3. Keep your California house until you select your location. It's very difficult financially to return to Cali after you sell real estate.
4. Purge your stuff until it hurts; then purge a bit more. Your retired life (well, actually all your life but, you know...) should be about experiences versus stuff.
Everyone has an opinion on the five places you list in your OP. I will just say that I've lived in one or more versions of all five of them, and they each have a "fatal flaw" so, be wise with your criteria.
We decided to return to the SF Bay Area after FIRE, despite COL, and I'm happy we did. We could afford it (with some adjustments) and, our closest relationships are here, which is what brought us back. Been here 6 yrs now and plan to stay for the foreseeable future.
Finally, as pointed out above, any decision is not final. You can always move again if it doesn't work out. But, deciding to return to California after selling your real estate would be very punitive financially.
Best of luck.