Poll:Relocate after ER?

[Gumby]

The young wife and I live in coastal Connecticut and plan to stay. Neither one of us was born or raised here, our families are not here, and we did not come here for work. Rather, we made a deliberate choice to move here in 1989, and we have never regretted it.

 

[Hermit]

Retired the end of June in Virginia and was in Colorado on July 4 with the Ryder moving truck. It had a lot to do with DW passing away four years prior and the kid's camp I help here in the Colorado Mountains. I also was born and raised in Colorado and spent the majority of my life here.

 

[OnIslandTime]

Moving to the sun.

Both DH and I grew up in this area of the Midwest...we both hate winter. We already have the house in Florida where the "worst weather season" is summer, because it is hot and humid. It is usually a bit cooler there than here mid-summer and the humidity is high here, too. And we have a pool and a beach there!

Our kids are still here, but no guarantee they will stay. My in-laws are still here, but they could move South, too.

We are "graduating" to year-round summer vacation!!!

 

[Urchina]

I think it's really interesting that, other than family and Athena, nobody has talked about the social impacts of moving. DH and I aren't from our town and moved here for work, but I really can't imagine leaving now since we've invested so much time and energy into building our community here. I'd be really loathe to give up our friends and community here and start over.

We live in a HCOL area; family is not nearby, but I think we're going to stick around for the long haul unless unforeseen circumstances arise.

For the OP -- do you like Arizona? What part? I've spent some time in Phoenix in both summer and winter and loathe it. As someone who likes to be outside every day, I find that part of the country not at all pedestrian or bike-friendly, and the weather is horrible. Plus, no water.

 

[VanWinkle]

[/B][/I]
FIFY.

My advice is pick #4.

+1

 

[VanWinkle]

Currently living in Illinois and have been here for 60 years in the same area. 2 kids in this area and 2 on the west coast. DW and I have been discussing a move to Tennessee and are currently taking trips there to check out locations we may be interested in renting a home. Illinois is in fiscal trouble and property taxes are eating up half of my pension. I just think we could use some new scenery with DW healthy for the foreseeable future. We will try our first 2 month stint in Florida this year for the winter.

VW

 

[bbbamI]

MegaCorp relocated us almost 24 years ago...and we're still here. We thought we'd move back to our home state to be closer to family and friends, but that would mean dealing with ice and snow in the winter. Even with the winter woes, I think we would be happy.

However, our area has excellent healthcare facilities close by. I think the biggest reason we'll stay is because of our doctors, specialists and dentist. Kinda sad, but that's the way it is. ...sigh...

 

[FlaGator]

OT, But.....

I think it's really interesting that, other than family and Athena, nobody has talked about the social impacts of moving. DH and I aren't from our town and moved here for work, but I really can't imagine leaving now since we've invested so much time and energy into building our community here. I'd be really loathe to give up our friends and community here and start over.

We live in a HCOL area; family is not nearby, but I think we're going to stick around for the long haul unless unforeseen circumstances arise.

For the OP -- do you like Arizona? What part? I've spent some time in Phoenix in both summer and winter and loathe it. As someone who likes to be outside every day, I find that part of the country not at all pedestrian or bike-friendly, and the weather is horrible. Plus, no water.

Maybe you're not reading what I have. I've seen comments about lifestyle and friends, longstanding relationships, feeling comfortable in a place one has been for many years. What is not social about those things?

I automatically discount anyone's assessment of weather when they use the word "horrible" to describe any place. I lived in AZ for decades, and there was little activity I could not do year round.

For me, the only place in CA with "good" weather is San Diego. Everything else has periods that are too foggy, too cold, not hot enough or too hot for the installed AC. Personal preferences.....

 

[MRG]

We've lived long term 3 different areas of the U.S.

We left PA. at 20 for KC. Spent 38 wonderful years there. We moved there for opportunities we didn't have where we grew up and were mildly successful.

Pre and post retirement we looked all over the country and gave up. We looked for over ten years in most areas and didn't find home. Decided we'd just stay in the Midwest and travel.

Our first vacation resulted in moving to the four corners area and loving it. A big change but for us it's been an adventure, not knowing a soul, finding dentists, doctors.... seems like 1978 all over.

 

[43210]

The place we are living is horrible in almost every way, and the only reason to be here is for a job. As soon as I am (financially) able to leave this job, we are leaving this place.

 

[Ronstar]

Relocate after ER?

......For the OP -- do you like Arizona? What part? I've spent some time in Phoenix in both summer and winter and loathe it. As someone who likes to be outside every day, I find that part of the country not at all pedestrian or bike-friendly, and the weather is horrible. Plus, no water.

Yes I like Arizona - Scottsdale. We have had a vacation condo there for 15 years. I bike, hike, or run every day. And I like the weather -except when it is very hot. I can handle up to 110-112. We haven’t had a problem getting water.

 

[Katsmeow]

I guess it depends on what you mean by relocate...

We are conflicted about this. Almost 6 years ago we downsized to our current house. We moved about 50 miles or so from our prior home. Basically from one county near Houston to another county near Houston.

We know we won't stay at this house long term. We no longer need as much land/house as we have (yes, we can downsize again). More importantly, we don't like the long drive to get to stores, etc.

But, I am very conflicted about where to move. Our options:

1. Move within our current county -- that is easy to do and we could find something closer to amenities. But, I don't much like this county and don't have good friends here. We currently have one child in this area but don't know if she will stay here long term.

2. Move back to the area we lived in before -- In general, I like that area better and it is closer to amenities. We have a son in grad school about an hour away but he will probably end up on the West Coast. If he ends up in Houston then we might lean this way. But who knows what will happen.. not even he knows at this point.

3. Move somewhere else in Texas - One option would be the Austin area (my husband has a daughter in that area). And, it is centrally located to most other family in the state. Another option would be DFW area. I grew up in that area and still have people I know there. I also have a fair amount of extended family there. DH has a daughter and grandchildren in that area. So, it is fairly high up on the list.

4. Move out of state - This is one we have talked about endlessly. I don't love the climate in this state and there is a lot I don't like about the state. I think I could enjoy living other places more. But, I don't know anyone elsewhere. And, I am leery about moving somewhere and not knowing anyone particularly as we get older. Our son may end up on California but I think the cost of living is too high there so I wouldn't want to live there. And, I am leery to follow a child someplace like that since he could end up moving away from there.

I think I would prefer to stay in this state where I do know people. But, most of the people that I know and care about (other than kids who may not be here long-term) are not in the Houston area.

So -- if I stay in this area or another nearby county I tend to not think of that as relocating.

If we move elsewhere in the state I would tend to think that is relocating. So all of this is still to be determined. We probably won't make a decision until year after next.

 

[Morricol61]

While working we knew we wanted to live on an acreage estate a couple of hour's drive from Brisbane, Queensland after retirement. We bought the land and paid it off while still working and paying the mortgage on the house we were currently living in.

Although we weren't planning to build for another 10 years, we actually built our retirement home and moved in 5 years later because we just loved the tranquility of rural life.

We've lived here 7 years and are very happy with our decision. Our family and old friends only live 1 hour's drive away, and we have made a lot of new friends here too. Relocating made our life better because we have a nicer house in a nicer area but are within comfortable driving distance of city attractions and services.

 

[donheff]

We are staying put in our Capitol Hill DC townhouse. Kids and grand kids are here. Amenities are walking distance. There is a good community association to help us age in place. The only negative is winter. But travel can take a bite out of that, at least until we are quite old.

 

[RE2Boys]

ER'd in 2000 in Alabama.
Would have stayed but elderly parent care situation had us moving to NW PA in 2004. Now empty nesters, but we're happy here so don't plan any more moves.

 

[kaudrey]

Although I love my friends where I live, and it will be hard to leave them, when I retire, I want to be on water. Preferably ocean, but would be OK with a large lake. And I want somewhere warmer than here (DC). I don't like the cold. My family is scattered, so that won't be an issue...

 

[Cassius King]

Relocating. In a few years when our daughter finishes high school the DW and I are moving to Florida. The winters and cold weather have gotten to be too much for us and we'll downsize to a ranch with no stairs as we age.
The warmer year round climate will allow us to be more active and hopefully increase our quality of life and longevity.
Two weeks ago, found a very nice house that fits exactly what we want. It's a little early, but can't seem to get the thought out of my mind. My wife says go for it, we can vacation and rent it out while not there, but I don't want the added stress of it. Decisions.

 

[Tallman4123]

I voted Relocate although we only moved 90 miles and it was back to family and friends. We had relocated fifteen years ago to a HCOL urban area primarily for my career, and the day I FIRE'd we moved back to our L(er)COL area. We actually upsized when we did so; moving from an urban two bedroom condo to a suburban/rural three bedroom home on an acre of land. The house cost us ~45% of what we sold the condo for.

One of my former urban-based work colleagues and his wife visited us for a weekend this summer and when they left, they stated that weren't sure they could "live off the grid" like we were. They were joking, but I think only by half...perspective is everything.

 

[Midpack]

I may have misvoted. We’re definitely relocating to a new home. We’re still on the fence about whether we’ll move to another state or not, though I suspect we will move to a more southern state. Family is not a factor for us, we’ve never lived anywhere near family as adults.

 

[48Fire]

We relocated from Northern Indiana to Florida. However, there was no need to convince DW. We planned this from the beginning. We eased into it with two houses for 3 years, then made the full-time move last year. Only one DD and SIL in Indiana, but two hours from where we lived. Friends can be remade, since we're still in our 50's. Parents were in different states, but we packed up MAIL and moved her 2 miles from us.

OTH, friend with five kids and nine grandchildren within 30 minutes is never leaving.

 

[Teacher Terry]

I moved here by myself 20 years ago with knowing no one. I came for a job. Now we have a great circle of friends that I would not leave.

 

[daylatedollarshort]

We moved to the Bay Area for jobs, the weather, scenery and things to do years ago. We thought about relocating when we retired. It was kind of cool watching all the TV shows of places we could live, since almost anywhere was cheaper. But in the end we never really found any place we would like better, it seemed like a lot of work to move, we started making other retired friends, joined clubs and developed hobbies here, and have been enjoying all the cultural activities and day trips. We might downsize and move near one of the kids one day. But for now as long as we are young enough to drive around for our day trips and take the train into the city for the nightlife, we will probably stay put.

 

[Scuba]

I think it's really interesting that, other than family and Athena, nobody has talked about the social impacts of moving. DH and I aren't from our town and moved here for work, but I really can't imagine leaving now since we've invested so much time and energy into building our community here. I'd be really loathe to give up our friends and community here and start over.

We live in a HCOL area; family is not nearby, but I think we're going to stick around for the long haul unless unforeseen circumstances arise.

For the OP -- do you like Arizona? What part? I've spent some time in Phoenix in both summer and winter and loathe it. As someone who likes to be outside every day, I find that part of the country not at all pedestrian or bike-friendly, and the weather is horrible. Plus, no water.

The social impact of moving is one of the top 2 or 3 reasons we haven't left So CA. The weather and diversity of activities available are the other ones.

 

[WestUniversity]

I'm trying to convince DW to downsize and move to Arizona full time.

Just wondering what the membership did or plan to do after retirement.

1. Stay in current location.
2. Relocate.
3. Would like to relocate but family or other issues prevent relocation

We are planning to relocate, but not for a couple of years after FIRE...

 

[Throwdownmyaceinthehole]

Relocated to a more vibrant area 10 years ago with plan to retire. Love where we live now and no plans to move. Lots of traveling tho!