Worst states for retirement

[Tom]

Prescott Valley is less.  Sedona & RedRock nearby are expensive.  Williams, Holbrook & Winslow are low IIRC but like here.  "Location, location, location".

[Kent in Upstate NY]

Northern AZ is nice. You are in the mountains and out of the oppressive heat. Chattanooga is my family home and is quite progressive and a good place to live. Too bad it is surrounded by some of the most regressive politics you can find.

[GearheadGrrrl]

I vote for midwestern small towns, thanks to all the young folks moving to the city you can get bargains in housing here- $100k will damn near buy you a mansion. Thanks to global warming, winters are getting shorter here- Even here in southwest Minnesota I'm still getting some riding in during december, and the riding season starts up again in march.

[rocker59]

Yes in the hot/humid.  Have lived many places over the years and would rather have the humidity than the pure heat out here in the SW.  Grew up in Phx and still don't like it there.

If we didn't have kids or family anywhere we'd probably just stay here where we are.  Winters can get a little cold, but, summers are mild enough we don't need A/C (mountains east of Alb).

I'm just the opposite.  I'll be leaving the heat and humidity of Arkansas for Northern New Mexico (permanently) at my first opportunity.

Will be spending a week there 18th-23rd of this month.  Cimarron, Taos, Tres Piedras.  Have rented a house in Tres Piedras and will be taking the horses.  (no motorcycles this time).

Can't wait!

[JJ]

By the way, here are the WORST states for retirement, according to one source, and in no particular order.

Maryland - Connecticut - Alaska - Oklahoma - Hawaii - Louisiana - Arkansas - Oregon - West Virginia - and New York!

[Lannis]

By the way, here are the WORST states for retirement, according to one source, and in no particular order.

Maryland - Connecticut - Alaska - Oklahoma - Hawaii - Louisiana - Arkansas - Oregon - West Virginia - and New York!

Not a very good list, because West Virginia is actually one of the BEST states for retirement!

I'd like to see someone prove that it's not .....

Lannis

[rocker59]

Not a very good list, because West Virginia is actually one of the BEST states for retirement!

I'd like to see someone prove that it's not .....

Lannis

And, based on the numbers of midwesterners who retire here to Arkansas, hard to believe it's among the worst.

[Arizona Wayne]

By the way, here are the WORST states for retirement, according to one source, and in no particular order.

Maryland - Connecticut - Alaska - Oklahoma - Hawaii - Louisiana - Arkansas - Oregon - West Virginia - and New York!

Different strokes for different folks............ne ed details, like property taxes cost, housing prices, weather, etc......tho I'm already locked into my final residence........ but for others to figure out.

[Tom]

'ey JJ..... what source?  Would like to read the criteria for their choices. 

[Lannis]

'ey JJ..... what source?  Would like to read the criteria for their choices.

Tom, I'm tellin' ya - it's the same criteria that would be used for "Who is the Best Bond Villain?" or "What is the Best MGM Musical?"

It's just click-bait.   It CAN'T be anything else.   Just look at the responses that people on this very list tell us are driving their retirement decisions.   They're aesthetic, they're subjective, they're qualitative, and they're all over the map.

Would you expect anything else?

Lannis

[JJ]

All silly and all subjective, (IMHO) - from the link "The 10 Worst States For Retirement"  (I think posted above...?)

I mean, C'mon...West Virginia?  Arkansas?  I understand NY and CT, because I am from that area...but Geeez!

Louisiana is probably cheap, and I assume Oklahoma is also. 

Maryland, Oregon, Hawaii, and Alaska, I hear are expensive, but who knows?

Housing, property taxes, cost of living (food, health care, etc.) I am sure are all factors...but again, just one data point.

I am amazed California did not make the list.  Flora, Fauna, mountains, ocean and weather are all spectacular, but everything else is silly expensive, and mainly for "the well heeled...."  I lived in NORCAL twice, so I am qualified to say so...

[oldbike54]

 JJ , more like we ARE cheap in Oklahoma 

 Seriously , if humidity doesn't bother you , Eastern OK would be a decent place to retire . Lots of lakes , decent scenery , the metro area in Tulsa has music , museums , and good food available . I however am becoming less tolerant of HIF's in the 110 range , West of here is looking good .

 Dusty

[charlie b]

I would probably not mind north central NM for retirement for a number of reasons.  But, I do not want to be that far away from a larger city for mostly medical reasons.

Cost of living can be quite a bargain in smaller communities, especially since you can do most of your purchasing online these days.  As long as state taxes and fees won't kill you like they can in AZ, CA, WA, etc.

[Arizona Wayne]

What the hell do you base that on?  Do you really think I'd be living in Kingman, Az. if any of that was true after having lived in Calif, Oregon, Wash. State?    Your experiences and mine are opposites, that's for sure.    Every state has high cost and lower cost of living areas.  I've always lived in the lower cost of living areas.    Any time you want to compare housing costs, property taxes, etc. let me know.

[oldbike54]

 Damn , didn't think a thread about places to retire could turn into a heated topic 

 Dusty

[Arizona Wayne]

Damn , didn't think a thread about places to retire could turn into a heated topic 

 Dusty

When someone recommends it's best to retire @ X they better know WTF they're talking about and consider all the points involved.  This subject is a can of worms just waiting to explode.  Everyone has a different idea of what it means to them.  What I prefer, you prefer could be exact opposites.   It's like an oil thread.    Sorry I got a bit heated. 

[tris]

Is the answer sober 

[azguzzirep]

IF I leave Germany for the States, I sure as hell ain't moving back to Phoenix!

I always did like Eastern AZ or New Mexico.

Tom

[Rough Edge racing]

Damn , didn't think a thread about places to retire could turn into a heated topic 

 Dusty

 With all do respect, you come off as a person who treats any form of disagreement as something to be avoided...I believe many of us here enjoy a heated discussion....A person with passion is a person with life...

[Rotten Ralph]

One reason not to move in retirement is taxes. All states need a bunch of money to run and the way that they gather it changes with administrations, the economy, and other variables.
When I moved to NJ there was no income tax and a 1% sales tax. Boy have times changed!
The minute you move to a state that doesn't tax retirement income, the following year(s) it will be taxed due to a fiscal shortage!

[Lannis]

When someone recommends it's best to retire @ X they better know WTF they're talking about and consider all the points involved.  This subject is a can of worms just waiting to explode.  Everyone has a different idea of what it means to them.  What I prefer, you prefer could be exact opposites.   It's like an oil thread.    Sorry I got a bit heated. 

I've never seen an exploding can of worms but I'll bet it's messy.

There's no need for anyone to "explode" over this subject, any more than there's any need to explode over "What's your favorite color?"   Unless, of course, someone says "Anyone who likes Purple is a poopyhead".   THAT could lead to a fight, I suppose.

Lannis

[charlie b]

Yes, AZ can have high taxes and fees compared to other places.  Grew up in Phx and lived in Mesa a number of years.  Compared to NM  and many other states it is expensive.  We found it almost as expensive as NY state.  Just vehicle registration is a shock compared to others if you have a newer vehicle.

Remember I also said that living in smaller communities can be much less expensive that way, whatever state you are in.  For one thing, bigger cities tend to have higher property taxes than smaller ones.

[Dean Rose]

I like it here, no complaints.

Dean

[oldbike54]

With all do respect, you come off as a person who treats any form of disagreement as something to be avoided...I believe many of us here enjoy a heated discussion....A person with passion is a person with life...

 Dude you aren't paying attention . Besides , you live in NY , why would anyone live
there ? 

 Oh , almost forgot to say "with all due respect"

 Dusty

[LowRyter]

I'm just the opposite.  I'll be leaving the heat and humidity of Arkansas for Northern New Mexico (permanently) at my first opportunity.

Will be spending a week there 18th-23rd of this month.  Cimarron, Taos, Tres Piedras.  Have rented a house in Tres Piedras and will be taking the horses.  (no motorcycles this time).

Can't wait!

Make sure when you move there you have room for visitors and their RV.   

If you want to be in the less populated areas, you might try the Carson Forrest south of  Taos and north of Las Vegas.  Seems to be scenic but a little depressed.  I would bet there are some bargain properties there.  The downside is a couple of hours from anywhere. 

[Red Dog]

May try the 6000 mile loop for awhile.

Start out here in the Gulf of Mexico & head for the Mississippi then North to the Great Lakes, East to the Hudson, down the East Coast to the Inland waterway, around Florida & back to the Gulf.

I've been looking for a trawler to convert but they have gotten popular in the last few years so the price has gone up.

So I'm thinking about building my own & building small enough to explore other rivers along the way.

No property taxes on the water.

[Rough Edge racing]

Dude you aren't paying attention . Besides , you live in NY , why would anyone live
there ? 

 Oh , almost forgot to say "with all due respect"

 Dusty

  Dude, What does NY have to do with my comment? 

[rocker59]

Make sure when you move there you have room for visitors and their RV.   

If you want to be in the less populated areas, you might try the Carson Forrest south of  Taos and north of Las Vegas.  Seems to be scenic but a little depressed.  I would bet there are some bargain properties there.  The downside is a couple of hours from anywhere.

I've yet to find any bargains anywhere in Northern New Mexico that have electricity and are within a few miles of pavement!  But hey, I live in a place with pretty cheap real estate.

Probably couldn't afford anything close to Santa Fe or Taos, but have seen some nice things in Colfax County, on the eastern side of the Sangre de Cristo mountains.  And they have grass and water there!

Cimarron, Miami, Springer, Maxwell, etc...

[oldbike54]

  Dude, What does NY have to do with my comment?
[/quote

 Sorry you missed my point , which is that when we say things that don't make sense with the express purpose of starting an argument it always leads to , well , an argument . There is a difference between heat and light . Heat is fine when it is cold , but it is light that illuminates .

 Dusty

[oldbike54]

 Yes Mike , East of the Sangre De Cristos  Springer seems a nice place .

 Dusty