do you love where you live? retirement location

[Eileen]

Just a note to say that I was looking at those lists by Bankrate and others rating retirement cities and states, and Boise, Idaho, was listed as one of the best. Also, Phoenix and Tucson were listed as very favorable. (I was only looking at the USA). I believe Honolulu was also listed as one of the top places, also North Dakota (don't remember why, since, because of the snow, I personally would not consider that one!).
Thanks for all the interesting replies. I too would probably not want snow.

 

[freebird5825]

1. Where are you living? upstate NY, just east of Syracuse

2. Is there snow? December - early April with a few surprise light flurries to end of April

3. why do you love your location?
PROS: open spaces interspersed with forests, plenty of natural lakes, inexpensive docking at a local lake for my boat, Adirondack state park close by as a day trip getaway destination, clean air, little traffic, 4 season weather variety, access to rural mom-n-pop industry (cheese, produce, meats, labor and trades), low crime, slower pace of life, no earthquakes, no tornadoes, no hurricanes, no floods, no smog, few bugs and snakes, no bears or mountain lions or alligators or pythons running amok in populated areas
CONS: not much culture close by, small town mindsets, lived here 30 years but sometimes treated like an "outsider" by generational locals, limited music and entertainment venues close by, medium level of welfare and social services dependent population, 3 prisons located within 30 miles.

4. Is it expensive (taxes, etc.) housing costs, etc. - low housing prices, rural district school and property taxes (versus urban), high state gasoline and county sales taxes (8.75%), food prices average, low costs for services (contractors, repair, snowplowing)

 

[Helen]

1. Where are you living? (state)
2. Is there snow?
3. why do you love your location?
4. Is it expensive (taxes, etc.) housing costs, etc.

1. Portland, OR

2. We usually get snow, but it doesn't stick around long. I don't own a snow shovel. We get a lot of overcast days in the winter and drizzle/rain.

3. It is absolutely gorgeous in every direction (there are mountains, ocean beaches, the Columbia River Gorge, waterfalls, rivers, lakes, deserts, rain forests.) The hiking and backpacking are fantastic and the beauty can bring a person to tears. And I love Portland; the restaurants are excellent and not too expensive, mass transit is excellent, it's quirky and there is always something going on.

4. I relocated from Boston 25 years ago so it doesn't seem expensive comparatively. We bought our house at the bottom of the housing crash in 2011 for $365k and I think our first year's property tax was close to $5k. Our income tax rate goes as high as 9%. We have no sales tax.

I am enjoying reading the responses to the OP.

 

[SJ1_]

hi!
I cannot believe the wealth of information I learn from this website. I always thought Florida was the plan for our retirement.....however, you all post amazing things about your location.

my questions are:

1. Where are you living? (state)
2. Is there snow? lol -- hoping never to see snow again when I retire
3. why do you love your location?
4. Is it expensive (taxes, etc.) housing costs, etc.

TN, the Carolinas and Georgia are sounding pretty good right now....

thank you all for your input

1)Forsyth County Georgia outside of Johns Creek with a Cumming Mailing address. Also a home in Hiawasse Ga where we spend a lot of time
in the summer.
2)Just moved 26 miles from Atlanta (Dekalb Co.) where there was no snow
but they actually get a little here. The winters in this part of GA are usually
very short.
3) Yes so far. Close to Lake Chatuge where we have a house and w/in 1 hour
of where the Grand children live
4) Cheap. Was paying $5200 in Atlanta with an est. of $7500 for this yr as
homes values were taking off. Will pay $2800 here and about $700 when
I reach 65 . Feel like we are out in the country but close to everything.
Can buy a real nice house in the mid $300's that is cheap for us but that
is coming from Atl.

At one time we though of moving to FL but spending a lot of the winter in Fl works for us. We about 8 hrs of actual driving from
our area (Clearwater Dunedin area of FL)

 

[Brat]

1. Portland, OR

Our income tax rate goes as high as 9%. We have no sales tax.

I am enjoying reading the responses to the OP.

9% is the top marginal rate. When DH & I were both working I budgeted 6%. Lots of deductions for seniors. As always download the state tax return and take it for a spin to see your personal bite.

Boise has snow but no more than Spokane.

 

[redduck]

...so much to do, community theatre, inexpensive entertainment, some of the best churches in the country...

Churches are ranked? What are the rankings based on?

 

[TwoByFour]

Live in Maui in the winter, Washington state (Columbia River Gorge) in the summer.

No Snow either place while we are there.

I like to surf, and Maui is great for that. My wife is an artist and both Hawaii and Washington have lots of great stuff to paint.

Maui is very expensive. Washington state is cheap.

 

[travelover]

Churches are ranked? What are the rankings based on?

I think that they are ranked on the percentage of members who actually enter Heaven, upon dying.

 

[Mulligan]

I think that they are ranked on the percentage of members who actually enter Heaven, upon dying.

Finally.... Someone actually typed it! Any other ranking would be totally immaterial wouldn't it?


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[Ed_The_Gypsy]

1. Washington State.
2. Very little where we live, but cloudy and light rain common.
3. We grew up here, but after living and visiting many other places including in Europe, never saw anywhere else that suited us better. What is left of family is within a few hundred miles of us but that was not an issue. We have ocean, mountains large and small, desert not far, Seattle and Vancouver, BC nearby, very moderate weather, great scenery, no varmints and no income tax. Also inexpensive for us. When we lived in Chicago, we always figured these were the folks who were not smart enough to stay on the wagon train. Also, top notch health care. Shopping is so good, shoppers down from Canada (Welcome to 'the Lower Mainland!') crowd the stores. Where we are has amusements enough for us. Be aware that WA State is hostile to small business (despite their vigorous protestations).
4. Housing not bad. $300k will buy a nice little house in town but will be less in the county. RE taxes about $2,800 on $330,000 house. Sales taxes a little over 8% (TANSTAAFL).

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[Jack_Pine]

Currently living in Wisconsin. Hope to eventually move further north, to UP Michigan.

Yes!! We have snow, and we love it!!

Love most everything about Wisconsin [MOD EDIT]. Low crime, best public radio in the country, natural scenery, festivals, Lake Michigan, and great people.

Home prices are low, property taxes are high. General cost of living is low. 5% state sales tax.

It truly is the best public radio in the country.

 

[TrvlBug]

Where are you living?

San Francisco Bay Area, CA

Is there snow?

No. Maybe once every couple of years in the high elevations. Snow is about 5 hrs away in the Sierra's when we are not having a drought. Otherwise we have seasonal rain. It is supposed to rain between Oct - April.

why do you love your location?

It is physically beautiful. You can choose your climate from cool summers to blistering hot summers. Tons of cultural activities. Great restaurants. Wine country, etc. Great universities and all the activities they support. Easy to get to parks near and far.

Is it expensive (taxes, etc.) housing costs, etc.

Yes. It is very expensive to move here from somewhere else. One of the highest housing costs in the nation. It only works for me because I've lived here all my adult life and my finances and retirement were built around this cost of living.

+1. We live on the Peninsula and have no intention of moving. We've looked around with the idea of moving to a less expensive area, however, there is no area that meets all of our criteria. A few years ago, I found a web site where you enter all of your criteria and guess what...yup, the SF Bay Area met them all .

 

[Mulligan]

+1. We live on the Peninsula and have no intention of moving. We've looked around with the idea of moving to a less expensive area, however, there is no area that meets all of our criteria. A few years ago, I found a web site where you enter all of your criteria and guess what...yup, the SF Bay Area met them all .

I have no desire at all to live in that area. I feel better about myself stating it that way than using the truth.... That being I have never considered it because I am not wealthy enough to consider locating there and may actually like it if I had the money!


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[Ed_The_Gypsy]

...no varmints....

Except for all the damn deer in the back yard and the front yard who eat the flowers.

 

[iac1003]

my questions are:
Where are you living? (state) Jalisco MX in PV
Is there snow? lol -- hoping never to see snow again when I retire: Never
why do you love your location? Weather, social activities, lots of other pursuits
Is it expensive (taxes, etc.) housing costs, etc. Cheaper than Florida or AZ

We pay no income tax. Our sales tax is 16%. Medical costs are low. Property tax is under $300.yr. Fresh fruit and vegetables are extremely cheap. So is fish and shrimp.

Beef is about half price to get a good cut. Arrachera is dirt cheap and edible if prepared right. Milk and eggs also dirt cheap. Good cheeses need to be imported (e.g. Tillamook).

That's where we're headed too


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[kaudrey]

1) northern VA - just outside of DC
2) Yes, it snows. This year was VERY cold
3) There is so much to do in DC - history, culture, restaurants, museums (free!), etc. You can be hiking within 1/2 an hour; lots of great bike trails. Mountains and ocean about 2-3 hours away. 3 airports to choose from. We won't retire here, though. I want to be closer to the ocean, and probably somewhere warmer. Traffic is a nightmare pretty much all the time.
4) Yes, it is expensive. Housing is very pricey; as are property taxes.

 

[Big_Hitter]

Just a note to say that I was looking at those lists by Bankrate and others rating retirement cities and states, and Boise, Idaho, was listed as one of the best.

for a reason...low crime

one of my friends doesn't lock his house or cars...even when they are out of town

 

[BBQ-Nut]

1. Where are you living? (state)
San Diego, CA (north/inland community of Penasquitos)


2. Is there snow?
No. The temp does dip to freeze windshields on occasion - SO cold

3. why do you love your location?
The weather, 20 minutes to the beach, 1hr to the mountains, 2hrs to the desert, 30 minutes to pretty much anywhere within the greater SD area.

The view behind my house to relax, enjoy - and to hike in right out my back gate! I am always in the PQ preserve on Sundays. Penasquitos is tucked away in a slower/quieter part of the overall city...for now.

Best listener supported jazz station, jazz8.org - voted #1 in the nation for 2014...always have this on.


Craft beer breweries galore - all close, all tasty!

Plenty of outdoor activities and open spaces, trails and parks to explore.

4. Is it expensive (taxes, etc.) housing costs, etc.
Unfortunately, yes.

Although DW and I bought into our current home new in '95 and while at the time the price seemed high, we have been smart about our finances and are in great shape compared to new buyers in the neighborhood. We pay $5200/yr in property taxes based on original value of $280K (2500 sq ft home). Comps are now in the low $800k range - so property taxes would be higher. Thank g*d - no HOA and rule Nazis!

Sales taxes are high as are the CA state income tax - although we are working on strategies to minimize them, so for us - manageable.

I do foresee us possibly relocating out of state when the boys are done with in state college.

 

[TrvlBug]

Except for all the damn deer in the back yard and the front yard who eat the flowers.

Yup, and unfortunately, they don't read the Sunset book . The back yard is protected by a deer fence so i can have my roses and flowers. The front has been populated with drought tolerant, deer resistant plants, but as I mentioned, they don't read the book. Same complaints from the neighbors.

 

[RobLJ]

Sounds like a nice town a lot of people like it. I have thought about Reno, Spokane, Boise or Amarillo but not much love out there for Amarillo. Of these what do you guys think?

Personally, Amarillo is a hell-hole. Think Austin or San Marcos or the Hill country if you're considering Texas, if you can stand the summer heat. My best friend in HS is in Amarillo, and I'm semi-familiar with it.

 

[Big_Hitter]

shameless plus for ID


17 things only someone who's been to Idaho will understand

 

[Hyper]

1. Where are you living? North
2. Is there snow? Yes, lots of snow and extreme cold but we play in it so we like it. ABSOLUTELY CAN NOT STAND THE WIND. If we could figure out the months to leave in we would be "wind birds" for those months! Those months seem to change yrly!
3. why do you love your location? Has everything we like to do and very low population
4. Is it expensive (taxes, etc.) housing costs, etc. -- Yes I believe so because we are partial retirement community and the retirees (lots of teachers) seem to never fight high taxes or whatever the current politicians might want. Although sounds much cheaper than California and NY!

 

[ElizabethT]

1. Where are you living? California
2. Is there snow? No, but you can drive to it within about 90 minutes if you are so inclined.
3. Why do you love your location? It is often 80 degrees and sunny in the middle of winter, we can bike to the beach from our home, we have an almost endless array of dining and entertainment options within a short drive, we are within two miles of a massive hiking wilderness area, and I could spend the rest of my life going up and down the California coastline and never, ever tire of it. (Re: traffic. Yep, we've got it, but primarily because 12% of the USA population has elected to live in our state. In ER though, it's relatively easy to avoid.)
4. Is it expensive? Yes, if looking to live in the most economically robust, coastline adjacent counties. No, otherwise. (If you don't mind the heat, the central portion of the entire state is much, much less expensive.)

 

[Mango1956]

shameless plus for ID


17 things only someone who's been to Idaho will understand

Our first introduction to Idaho was a wilderness trip down the Middle Fork of the Salmon river on a private trip with a bunch of fun interesting former river guides. What an amazing trip! Loved soaking in the hot pools, and the hiking. Idaho is on our list for more exploration once DH retires in September.

 

[Big_Hitter]

Our first introduction to Idaho was a wilderness trip down the Middle Fork of the Salmon river on a private trip with a bunch of fun interesting former river guides. What an amazing trip! Loved soaking in the hot pools, and the hiking. Idaho is on our list for more exploration once DH retires in September.

we plan on living out our days here; I have no reason to travel - kinda sux for DW since she loves travelling

when we lived in Houston every time I travelled I wanted to move; now when I travel all I want to do is get back home