Where to retire

[Accidental Retiree]

Humidity leads to rain showers, something California could use these days.

We have rain in the forecast for this week. I hope it comes! ️

 

[Jackanory]

And get off my freeway and my lawn!!!!

What, you can afford the water for a lawn?

My relocation musings usually have me doing a 'Shirley Valentine': falling in love with a vacation destination, and refusing to come home! I hope that doesn't happen when I make my pilgrimage to Las Vegas in June!

After much research, I moved to San Diego decades before I was due to retire; back when houses were cheap, jobs plentiful and, um, the weather was lovely. I'm still awaiting that magical transformation when I feel like I fit in!

 

[daylatedollarshort]

Paradise to a skier is different than paradise for a sailor. Even traffic is subjective. There is a lot of traffic around us but we are rarely in it. When I work, I work at home. I usually shop before or after the peak commute times. Yesterday I took the train into the city mid-day to meet a friend at a museum followed by happy hour at a restaurant with water views. There was a lot of traffic on the bridges but we weren't in it. At the peak rush hour we were drinking pomegranate margaritas, discussing the merits of the five spice calamari and watching a pelican.

 

[rayinpenn]

I just spent the weekend in Seaside (FL). It's west of Panama City, east of Destin. Cheapest house in town was $1 million, and most expensive place was $21.5 million. Restaurants were crazy expensive. The beaches are fantastic, however.



You can go off beach 5-10 miles, however there's absolutely nothing there but raw land. I didn't see much shopping inland, and very little society.



Consider moving where Floridians go on vacation--No. GA, Western NC, East TN. I personally prefer east of Knoxville in the mountains. It's a straight shot on interstate highways back to Pennsylvania. The whole region has fantastic vistas and beautiful lakes. Weather has 4 seasons, but Summer's pleasant at higher elevations. Remember that Tennessee has no state income taxes for most people.

Hey can you please provide a name of a town(s) or lakes in east TN.


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[kramer]

Well, I lived there (Philippines) for the first 20 years of my life while I've only lived in the US for 10 years. Aside from bemoaning slow internet, I don't really have to adjust much if I go back right now (particularly if I live in a nice area such as where my grandma is right now). 25 years from now? Who knows. But yeah, CA taxes are killer. I think I'm in the 9.3% marginal for CA state income tax. It's the primary reason why relocating is looking mighty attractive.

You can get fast, reliable internet in the Philippines now, especially starting about two years ago. I live here and am streaming USA Hi-Def Netflix on my big screen TV right now as I am typing this. The cost for a 10 Mb/sec up/down symmetric fiber internet line plus cable TV (about 110 regular channels and 18 HD channels) is around $90/month. Also, no one is tracking file sharing here and so you can easily download whatever you want whenever you want almost instantaneously. Overall, though, I don't think the Philippines is cheaper (quality-adjusted) than a low cost area of the USA.

 

[haha]

Paradise to a skier is different than paradise for a sailor. Even traffic is subjective. There is a lot of traffic around us but we are rarely in it. When I work, I work at home. I usually shop before or after the peak commute times. Yesterday I took the train into the city mid-day to meet a friend at a museum followed by happy hour at a restaurant with water views. There was a lot of traffic on the bridges but we weren't in it. At the peak rush hour we were drinking pomegranate margaritas, discussing the merits of the five spice calamari and watching a pelican.

Yes, it may be that many retired people overemphasize traffic. If I leave downtown on a rainy day at 5:30pm, my bus will be in a slow crawl for about 10 blocks, then free. If it isn't raining, and raining hard, I will walk.

For a retired city dweller traffic hardly exists. I am on I5, usually in a loser cruiser, maybe once every 3 months. I found the same to be true in Boston. What does the MBTA care about traffic? And I was not retired, Really different being a working stiff in LA. Traffic really matters there unless you can just stay in your hood, and that is hard to do. But so much shopping can be outsourced to Amazon..

Ha

 

[Options]

I happen to think that Sonoma County, California is paradise on Earth, but your paradise may be somewhere else. It's all good. Sure, we have state income tax here, but I sleep well knowing my property taxes (my second largest expense category) will never shoot up. Traffic congestion is a problem in and around urban areas, but I left the city and now traffic never touches me. I live within a short walk or drive to redwood forests, a scenic river, vineyards, farms, and the stunning Pacific coast. Hiking, fishing, and boating opportunities abound. Yes, I lived other places, including Pennsylvania and Massachusetts, but THIS part of California is definitely for me, and many others. COL is higher here, so one needs an adequate ER budget to make it work. But California is a big state and one's negative experience of a part of does not wash over the whole.

I haven't been to Sonoma County in decades, but I recall how beautiful it was. I also agree in that more rural area traffic is not at all the same as in urban areas. In fact, there are parts of Sonoma (Guerneville, Russian River, etc.) I would recommend as retirement locations. Anything north of Santa Rosa is also worth investigating.

You are also quite right that the income tax is offset by property tax capped by Proposition 13.

 

[hnzw_rui]

You can get fast, reliable internet in the Philippines now, especially starting about two years ago. I live here and am streaming USA Hi-Def Netflix on my big screen TV right now as I am typing this. The cost for a 10 Mb/sec up/down symmetric fiber internet line plus cable TV (about 110 regular channels and 18 HD channels) is around $90/month. Also, no one is tracking file sharing here and so you can easily download whatever you want whenever you want almost instantaneously. Overall, though, I don't think the Philippines is cheaper (quality-adjusted) than a low cost area of the USA.

I guess fast is relative. I get 100 Mbps at home and 10+ Mbps on my cellphone (mobile data). Even now, I'm dreaming of moving to a location with Verizon FiOS or Google Fiber. Sure, there are places in the Philippines with 50+ Mbps internet (e.g. Bel-Air, White Plains, McKinley) but it's gonna cost $200-500/month not to mention houses in those areas are just as expensive if not more than houses in Los Angeles.

True, there are places in the US where cost of living would be the same as a comfortable lifestyle in the Philippines. However, I don't think I'll be able to stand the winters and I'm definitely going to miss the Filipino stores and restaurants in CA. Also, we've got family in CA and the Philippines. I reckon that more than anything will be the primary determining factor for whether or not we relocate and where. My grandmother moved from San Francisco and currently lives in Eastwood, Quezon City which I think would be considered somewhere upper middle class. From what I've seen during vacations, I like it and can easily imagine retiring there. Traffic is even worse than LA but the nice thing is apart from a hospital, everything you need is already inside the compound and within walking distance of your condo unit.

FL is a definite lower cost option since there are plenty of Filipinos living there, too. Even in SoCal, there are a number of lower cost areas. In both cases, I'll need to drive farther although that's somewhat offset by less traffic.

Again, though, these are just musings. A lot can happen in 20 years.

 

[Mango1956]

I happen to think that Sonoma County, California is paradise on Earth, but your paradise may be somewhere else. It's all good. Sure, we have state income tax here, but I sleep well knowing my property taxes (my second largest expense category) will never shoot up. Traffic congestion is a problem in and around urban areas, but I left the city and now traffic never touches me. I live within a short walk or drive to redwood forests, a scenic river, vineyards, farms, and the stunning Pacific coast. Hiking, fishing, and boating opportunities abound. Yes, I lived other places, including Pennsylvania and Massachusetts, but THIS part of California is definitely for me, and many others. COL is higher here, so one needs an adequate ER budget to make it work. But California is a big state and one's negative experience of a part of does not wash over the whole.

+1

 

[Bamaman]

Hey can you please provide a name of a town(s) or lakes in east TN.

It all depends on what you're looking for in retirement.

West Knoxville is nice in a mid size college town, and I understand the Tennessee River west and south of there is incredibly beautiful and the waterfront houses are simply stunning. Loudon, TN and the Little Tennessee River have a bunch of waterfront resort communities.

North of Knoxville is Norris Lake--with 18 marinas, condos and the lake is simply immense. I's very beautiful water and a fine fishing lake.

East of Knoxville is Douglas Lake, with Dandridge, Sevierville, Pigeon Forge and Gatlinburg close by. Living here brings major Smoky Mountain vistas. Pigeon Forge/Gatlinburg have bunches of condos, as they're resort towns.

A little farther northeast, you'll find Morristown, Greenville and Jonesborough--all cities with very nice societies and lifestyles. Housing costs are low.

45% of the population of Johnson City is from elsewhere, and they refuse to leave after living there. It's got East TN State University and a medical school--good culture and a youthful population.

My sister lives 1/2 time in Banner-Elk, North Carolina on a Jack Nicklas Golf Course in an equestrian community. It's expensive real estate, but they have a neighborhood 4600' runway and the highest two ski slopes on the East Coast (Beech Mountain and Sugar Mountain resorts.) It's hard to beat it as a retirement location.

But what the region has is real people, including authentic hillbillies. The locals are quick to laugh, tell a joke and it's a very happy, safe place to live.

 

[JoeWras]

Stop it Bamaman!

We want people from Florida and California to keep thinking GA/TN/NC are full of characters from Deliverance. "Keep paddling/hiking, I hear banjos."

On a serious note: it is funny how perceptions work. Perhaps one thing that does irritate me a bit is that some people from a certain West state that is the center of the tech world actually DO think the Southeast is nothing but scenes from Deliverance and cannot imagine internet access or educated people live here. But that's another matter. Sometimes that perception helps keep it a secret.

I lived in FL for a while, and unfortunately it isn't a secret there and I do fear we'll get run over by FL expats some day.

 

[rayinpenn]

As a former New Englander (NYC area) I can tell you what I've noticed about the south.
1. Strangers say hello in the street - this can make a LI/ NY born person extremely uncomfortable.
2. Service at a restaurants can be slower - OMG a cardinal sin. In NY you don't see a waitress in 1 minute we trash the joint in a nasty review in Yelp.
3. The overall pace can be slower. - if I get behind a whitehead who can barely see over the steering wheel and drives 30mph or an older pickup truck that smokes a bit- I'll just die.

My wife, my son and daughter and I have decided to move to East Tennessee based on all the wonderful descriptions and Joes suggestions/ objections. With my influence I'll have the Yankee retiree baby boomer hoards move with us. My Yankee brothers and I will have a Starbucks on every corner and a Mall on every Block within a year or two. We will change the culture so when people pass on the street will make nasty gestures to each other. And so i feel at home we will set up police arrest and activity email alerts. With all us Yankees moving in the alerts will no doubt pick up. Oh and Bagels/ NY style pizza / decent Chinese food we will import some Brooklyn/Chinatown guys to fix those cultural holes in the god forsaken place. I promise you service will be fast and appropriately rude.. Every rock, old wall and formerly beautiful vista will be tagged with incomprehensible graffiti and litter.

We will build obscene tacky and inappropriate oversized houses on small lots because we can. We will outlaw deer, heavens yes bear and any other thing that scares us. Oh by the time the locals have figured out what is happening it will be too late. That's when they will learn the meaning of gentrification.



Pretty soon they will be calling it Bronx south.. Won't it be great? When things look like they can't get worse the Kardashians will build a mansion (omg aren't they classy?).

Hey don't tell me you have snakes do you?
Happy Thursday...

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[JoeWras]

Copperheads! Terrible, terrible snakes. You do not want to come here. Please see result of actual copperhead bite below. Stay away, please!

 

[Accidental Retiree]

Stop it Bamaman!



On a serious note: it is funny how perceptions work. Perhaps one thing that does irritate me a bit is that some people from a certain West state that is the center of the tech world actually DO think the Southeast is nothing but scenes from Deliverance and cannot imagine internet access or educated people live here. But that's another matter. Sometimes that perception helps keep it a secret.
.

Ignorant people live in EVERY state.

 

[rayinpenn]

Hey if a person was to risk snake bites what would the property taxes be like in 'snake country'?
I'm paying $9k presently.


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[Dash man]

Hey if a person was to risk snake bites what would the property taxes be like in 'snake country'?
I'm paying $9k presently.


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Well, I'm in Southeastern PA paying over $7k in property taxes. Last year we had a copperhead in our vegetable garden. I didn't pick any peppers or tomatoes that day.

 

[HFWR]

On a serious note: it is funny how perceptions work. Perhaps one thing that does irritate me a bit is that some people from a certain West state that is the center of the tech world actually DO think the Southeast is nothing but scenes from Deliverance and cannot imagine internet access or educated people live here.

I'm pretty familiar with the states on the I-65/I-75 corridor, and one doesn't have to venture far off the interstate to find some "interesting" characters...

Then again, there's plenty of modern if that's your thing.

And yes, there are coppermouth rattle mocassins in them there parts...

 

[JoeWras]

Yeah, there are "characters" everywhere. I'm kind of glad, because it makes life interesting. Someone was complaining about a vanilla world. The characters help make it rocky road.

It is amazing what a TV show or movie can do for perceptions, however. Not just the South, but anywhere. I suppose some people watch Twin Peaks and imagine that backward talking dwarfs are everywhere in Washington, Idaho and Montana.

 

[aja8888]

We have BIG snakes in Texas.....then again, everything here is Big....so please don't relocate here.

 

[kcowan]

Nice to see the active discussion about places to live in retirement. We have friends who relocated from MN and WI to Hot Springs and to Branson. Aside from the weather and the golf, they wish they didn't.

SoCal needs rain. Wish they could import it from Washington!

Florida has bugs and hurricanes.

Everybody has Home Depot.

These debates break out regularly and are very entertaining...with no definitive conclusions.

 

[HFWR]

Yeah, there are "characters" everywhere.

Indeed, no shortage of characters in Texas, DFW included...

 

[MBSC]

Hey if a person was to risk snake bites what would the property taxes be like in 'snake country'?
I'm paying $9k presently.

Here is a map I have used in the past. I use the "percent of home price" option.

Property taxes: How does your county compare? - CNNMoney.com

 

[rayinpenn]

Well, I'm in Southeastern PA paying over $7k in property taxes. Last year we had a copperhead in our vegetable garden. I didn't pick any peppers or tomatoes that day.

I live in Southeastern Penn close to De. I thought we didn't have poisonous snakes!!!!
I looked it up... Dam you are right I'll pay attention from now on...

I looked up Knoxville....
"What is not special about this retirement community
Knoxville has had its ups and downs but is in a good phase now. Crime rate is high, about double the national average"
I assume crime is centered around the city...


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[MBSC]

I looked up Knoxville....
"What is not special about this retirement community
Knoxville has had its ups and downs but is in a good phase now. Crime rate is high, about double the national average"
I assume crime is centered around the city...

Comparing Knoxville’s crime rate to the rest of the nation is difficult, mainly because Tennessee switched to an incident-based reporting system that counts every charge against a person during one incident, while many states use uniformed crime reporting, a system in which only one charge is counted per incident, even though several other charges may be filed.

Source: How Bad is Knoxville Crime? - Memphis Daily News

 

[Rosie]

Here is a map I have used in the past. I use the "percent of home price" option.

Property taxes: How does your county compare? - CNNMoney.com

That's a really interesting map, thanks! Who knew the property tax rate in CA was so low?