Worst States to Retire 2012: Northeast and Midwest Come Up LosersCategory: Best Retirement Towns and States January 10, 2012 — There are plenty of best places to retire lists. But how about the places where it’s not such a good idea to retire? Last year our “worst 10 states” list caused quite a sensation, so we are back at it again for 2012. The purpose is to try to help baby boomers understand where, all other things being equal, they can enjoy their hard-earned retirement without taking on more problems. To make sure you don’t miss updates to this and other lists like it, sign up for our free weekly “Best Places to Retire” newsletter.Your retirement is unique Every individual has to consider his or her own criteria for identifying the worst or best states to retire. One of the most important factors for anyone is proximity to family and friends. So, if you want to be near your grandchildren the worst state on our list could be the best state on your list. Likewise, you might not share the same considerations we used to develop this list. Tax issues might be most important for you, or you might not care about spending winters in a warm state. Our 2012 list is based on 5 considerations that we think will be important to most people, but freely admit that these factors could be totally irrelevant to many other folks. Our Top Weighting Criteria This year we expanded the criteria we used from 3 to 5 factors. The factors for 2012 are: Fiscal health, property taxes, income taxes, cost of living, and climate. Each criterion was worth up to 1 negative point. If these are not key factors for you, your list might look very different. Also new this year is a page where you can customize your “worst states” list by eliminating criteria that might not be important to you. You will find detailed explanations of these factors along with our sources following the list. The negative point range this year went from 4.05 for #1 CT to 2.45 for #10 WI. The 10 Worst States for Retirement – 2012 Three new states made our list this year: Vermont, Minnesota, and Maine. That means that 3 states were lucky enough to leave the list: Ohio (low property and income taxes), Nevada (in terrible financial shape but no income tax and low property taxes), California (bad financial shape and high property taxes, but almost no income tax on our prototypical couple, plus a great climate). The additions and subtractions do not necessarily mean that these states got worse or better since last year; that probably has more to do with the changes from our new rating factors. And, since the data is always trailing, the ratings might not be a perfect reflection of today’s reality. 1. Connecticut. We actually had a numerical tie for 1st place. CT won the tie-breaker because it has much higher property taxes, income taxes, and cost of living than Illinois. Most pension income is taxable, although there are some significant exemptions for social security, depending on income. CT had the 3rd highest tax burden of any state in 2009. The Nutmeg State does have considerable charm and some terrific places to live like Stonington and Madison, if you can afford to live there. 2. Illinois. Illinois (along with Nevada) faces serious economic troubles. Its pension funding, deficit spending, unemployment, and foreclosure rates are among the worst of any states. The state began to address its problems last year when it raised income tax rates. Although Illinois does not tax most pension or social security, other earnings and investment income are taxed at a fairly high rate thanks to its 5% flat tax rate. 3. Rhode Island. The Ocean State has severely underfunded pension/health liabilities and budget deficits. It has the 5th highest median property taxes paid. Our prototypical couple would face much higher income taxes here than they would in most other states. It does have some great places to live like Westerly, thanks to its extensive coastline and numerous bays and harbors. 4. Vermont. The Green Mountain State has very high median property and income taxes, with a top 10 cost of living. Winters here are better for skiing than golf. 5. Massachusetts. In the Bay State our prototypical retiree couple would face property taxes that are among the highest of any state. Even though social security income is exempt, income taxes would be high for our couple because of the flat rate applied to other earnings. Most government pensions are exempt, but private sector ones are taxed. The cost of living is high. See reviews of great places to retire like Williamstown. 6. New Jersey. New Jersey residents are the biggest losers when it comes to property taxes – the median property tax in the Garden State is the highest in the U.S. at $6579. It also has the highest tax burden (as reported by the Tax Foundation), a large budget deficit issue, and a very high cost of living. New Jersey has both an estate and an inheritance tax. On the plus side, it excludes most pension and social security income for couples making less than $100,000. 7. Minnesota. Another newcomer to our list, Minnesota, would impose the 4th highest income tax on our prototypical couple. That is mostly due to the absence of any pension or social security exemptions. Property taxes are just below the top 10. Minnesota has a large budget deficit issue. Anyone care to winter in Minnesota? 8. New York. The Empire State was essentially tied with #9 Maine. We broke the tie because New York has the 4th highest median property taxes and one of the highest tax burdens. Surprisingly, the state did not earn any negative points for income taxes, since it offers generous exemptions for social security and pensions, along with a high standard deduction. Its cost of living is one of the highest, plus a very cold winter climate. On the plus side, New York’s Governor Cuomo is waging a campaign to limit property tax increases and improve the state’s fiscal condition. College towns like Ithaca can be awfully nice though. 9. Maine. Maine’s property taxes are much lower than New York’s, while Maine’s income tax on our prototypical couple would be about $1000 higher. Winters are even colder, but cost of living is lower. Maine’s governor has vowed to try to exempt retirement income from taxation, although nothing has happened on that front yet. 10. Wisconsin. Property taxes are among the highest in the country. It has a high foreclosure rate. Wisconsin’s high income taxes are mitigated somewhat for retirees because social security income is exempt and because there is a high standard deduction. See our entire list of great places to retire by state. Criteria used in developing this list Fiscal health. Just as the U.S. government is spending more than it takes in, many of the 50 states have serious financial problems of their own. “The Widening Gap:” from the Pew Center on the States provides a good understanding of the problem. To determine the fiscal health component of our rankings we used 4 inputs this year: deficit, unfunded pension liabilities, unemployment rates, and foreclosures. Why do we think these are important things to rate on, you might ask? Just think about the turmoil Greece and Spain are experiencing as they are finally start to address their deficits and borrowing. Social services are being cut, taxes are being raised, and there is civil unrest. Similarly for states that run into financial trouble, the pain will be acute when the piper is paid, and you probably don’t want to be part of it. We combined these factors; if a state was in the top 10 for all four problems it received 1 negative point in the rankings (.25 each). Property taxes. In our opinion property taxes are usually the most oppressive taxes for retirees, since they can be so high in some states and bear no relation to one’s income. The 10 states with the highest property taxes were awarded 1 point on a sliding scale, with New Jersey actually earning 1.1 points since its median taxes are so much higher than any other state. State income taxes. We think too many baby boomer retirees focus too much attention on state income taxes as a reason to move. That’s because unless you have a lot of income, they are not a factor. In our analysis we created a hypothetical couple that has $70,000 in earnings from social security, pension, earnings, and retirement savings; equal to the top earning quartile of people 65+. Using data from the Congressional Research Service we assumed this couple received 20% of its income from social security, 23% from pension, and 47% from earnings and investments. We used those inputs to estimate income taxes for each state at tax-rates.org. Obviously, your earning profile will probably be different. If your joint earnings are significantly below $70,000, this rating component is probably not significant. Here is where you can see the ratings with this component eliminated. The 10 states with the highest taxes on this factor earned up to 1 negative point. Cost of living. Most people retiring today are very concerned about how they are going to make it work financially. We awarded states with the highest cost of living 1 negative point. Climate. We believe the majority of today’s retirees have a bias towards places with warmer winters. States north of the Mason-Dixon line were awarded a negative 1 point for their colder climate. (See also our 2011 article – “Worst Places to Retire for Weather and Natural Disasters“) You can customize your “worst states” list by using the rankings on this rankings page. Other criteria for identifying the best or worst retirement state: While our rankings concentrated on fiscal health, taxes, cost of living, and climate, here is a more complete list of possible criteria for developing your personal rankings of retirement states and towns: - Proximity to friends and family - Sales taxes (Not usually a deal breaker, but annoying) - Inheritance and Estate taxes (Some states have neither, a few have both) - Crime - Recreation - Transportation - Healthcare - Education including colleges - Cultural resources - Natural disasters - Fitting in socially, politically, religiously Should the States Be Trying to Attract Retirees – and What Should They Do? There are some states that actively try to attract retirees – notably Texas, Louisiana, West Virginia, Mississippi, and Tennessee. They have bought into the idea that the “mailbox” economic value of retirees (the pension and social security checks arrive in the mailbox) is as important as attracting new industries. Most of those retirees are being recruited are coming from the high tax states up north, only a few of which are actively trying to stem that tide. Property tax freezes for seniors, taxation of pensions and social security, and investments in infrastructure are some ideas that could help states in the northeast and midwest avoid losing valuable citizens whose retirements are being compromised by indifferent legislators. Share your ideas with them, and us! More about our sources and criteria: Pension/Health Funding and Budget Deficit data – Pew Center Budget Deficit data – Center on Budget and Policy Priorities Unemployment data – Bureau of Labor Statistics Foreclosure rates – CNBC.com Property Taxes – Tax-rates.org Income taxes – here we used the income tax calculator from Tax-rates.org Cost of Living – Missourieconomy.org For further reference: Worst States for Retirement – 2011 State Retirement Guides Tax Foundation Tax Burden by State Tax Friendly States The Most Important Issue Might Not Be What You Think Our 2011 List of the “100 Best Retirement Towns” Best Retirement States for 2011” We were happy to have seen this article extensively quoted by Yahoo.Finance, MarketWatch, and AOL.DailyFinance. Comments: What do you think about our criteria and our rankings? Did your state make the list, or did it deserve to? Please share your opinion in the Comments section below. Posted by John Brady on January 10th, 2012 Comments (33)  Email This Post
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| 33 Comments » |
| » Our Worst States to Retire List Topretirements says |
| [...] The 2012 version of this list came out Jan. 11. December 7, 2010 — The 50 U.S. states are in a beauty contest. Whether they [...] |
| January 11th, 2012 | # |
| Charles says |
| I am interested in retiring to Wisconsin, your article states that it has the highest propert taxes in the nation and states that social security is not taxable. What about cost of living? Health Care? cost of Gas etc. these factors would very helpful for decision making of where to retire. How does the economy in wi compare to other states? |
| January 11th, 2012 | # |
| Marian Van Til says |
| Your list seems quite plausible. I would point out, though, that
some of those states are big. And whether one lives in one area of the
state or another can make a huge difference. My husband and I live in western NY (on the Canadian border, down river from Niagara Falls). Property taxes vary by county, and in Niagara Co. they definitely are high related to income levels. And income taxes are pretty high; but as you note, retirees can take advantage of exemptions. We couldn’t possibly afford to live anywhere near NY City or Albany. But western NY has very moderate housing prices (nice houses/neighborhoods starting at less than $150,000) and a much lower cost of living than many other parts of the state. And housing costs have not been subject to the extreme rises and falls that they have been in many areas of the country. There is also has an immense amount of natural beauty here and the winter climate is not at all extreme (which you imply it is in NY); and of course, there’s all kinds of boating opportunities in the other seasons. Also tons of good restaurants. A person might simply want to avoid Erie County’s Buffalo Southtowns if he/she doesn’t like a lot of snow and colder weather. Or, just drive south an hour or so to go skiing, and then return home to no snow. Where we live along the Niagara River and a bit south of Lake Ontario, we get far less snow than Buffalo and its southern suburbs does only 30 miles away. Though we are looking for a possible place outside of NY to move to when my husband retires, that mostly has to do with wanting to be near family and nothing to do with a bad climate here, or lack of natural beauty, lack of amenities, etc. I might add that it’s also a plus to live next door to Canada (and an hour and a quarter from Toronto), as that opens up additional cultural and social opportunities. I would say western NY is a well kept secret and a very fine place to live. |
| January 11th, 2012 | # |
| Barbara says |
I’m responding to Charles’ question, regarding Wisconsin. We
have lived in Wisconsin most of our lives. Yes, the property taxes are
quite high, but housing costs are much lower than states on the east and
west coasts. Cost of living, therefore, is much lower than, say,
California, but that would be true of the entire midwest. When we do
retire, we will always keep a home there because of family and because
the summers are really beautiful. We only use our AC for a week on
average during the entire summer. The winters….well, you’ve got to like
the cold and snow. And of course, the Green Bay Packers!!  |
| January 11th, 2012 | # |
| David M. Lane says |
| Those are precisely the reasons we sold everything in New York State (western NY) and relocated to Florida. We save a huge bundle. have a condo in Winter Haven FL city of 35,000 and 50 lakes within city limits. with homestead takes under $700/yr. total excellent weather, plenty to do and only 40 minutes from Orlando airport with reasonable flights everywhere including worldwide. Beaches on both costs an hour or so away. Lots to do. People need to retire outside of the high cost states listed in your review. Good article. Should be helpful to all those pondering the question! |
| January 11th, 2012 | # |
| AJ says |
| I live in Chicago now. I am 70, still trying to work, and barely making it. The cost of living is extremely high compared to my salary. When I go on straight SS, I will never make it here. Just the rent alone will do me in. I can’t afford to buy so I am looking at good rental areas with good walking to stores, etc. I am torn between the west,AZ or NV, or going south. Not sure about the humidity in FL. I need sun and not gloomy horrid winters. |
| January 11th, 2012 | # |
| belleboy says |
| My wife and I are NJ residents and are trying our best to wave farewell to this state of taxation. In the past four years our real estate taxes thanks to local government tax hikes and their re-evaluation have increased from $4,500 to $7,800. Governor Christie is working to reduce taxes but he is dealing with a generational Democratic State House and Senate who just love to pander to the government employees and to tax and spend. |
| January 11th, 2012 | # |
| joeinMA says |
| I am retired and just moved from Connecticut to Western Massachusetts. I find it much cheaper to live here. Our home is waterfront on a beautiful lake and the property taxes are 1/2 of what we were paying in Newtown CT. |
| January 11th, 2012 | # |
| Warbeads aka Glenn says |
| I’d be interested in a site where you can select the factors
important to you that be quantitatively measured. Some things like not
too far (or too near) family are qualitative factors only. For me that means minimal allergies like I and my wife endure in Saint Louis (a wonderful region in many ways,) lower median humidity, temperature not too frequently over 99 degrees or frequently under 32 degrees, median or lower cost of living, midway between Missouri (daughters) and California (Brother, sons, niece, nephew,) conservative, and (due to Hispanic/Anglo/Indian family backgrounds,) someplace moderately culturally mixed. Our best answer so far has been Central New Mexico. Multiple Summer visits of 1-2 weeks and a Fall visit of just over 1 week to Albuquerque, Santa Fe, Rio Rancho, and Taos (Evergreen allergies alone killed Taos,) have reinforced our impressions. We want to visit in Winter and Spring before our 2016 retirements to be sure. Gracias, Glenn |
| January 11th, 2012 | # |
| » Our 2011 Best Places to Retire List: The Sunbelt Rules Topretirements says |
| [...] February 22, 2011 – The Sunbelt continues to dominate when it comes to the places that baby boomers are considering for retirement. Topretirements.com has just published its 5th annual list of the 100 most popular places to retire on its site, and this year the trend toward the Sunbelt continues even stronger — 77 of the 100 top positions were held by towns in the Sunbelt. Florida dominated the list, taking 26 of the spots (it held 23 in 2010), followed by North Carolina (11) and South Carolina and Arizona (7 each). Note: We will be updating this article for 2012 in late January, 2012. To make sure you don’t miss our new list, sign up for our free weekly “Best Places to Retire” newsletter. See also “The Worst States for Retirement – 2012“. [...] |
| January 11th, 2012 | # |
| BullsFan says |
| I don’t understand how an assessment of Illinois can conclude Illinois is a “worst” place to retire. Sure the fiscal health is lousy– but that’s not impacting people (yet, I assume). And retirees are incredibly shielded from that fiscal health problem because 100% of retirement income is not taxed in the state tax code. So, you are mostly left with complaining about the weather. |
| January 12th, 2012 | # |
| Walter Mead says |
| I’ve lived in downstate Illinois for 51 years and have been
retired for 16 of those years. The state fiscal mess has not yet
impacted on the state’s residents and will not likely impact
significantly on retirees. Those who were employees of the state (e.g.,I retired from teaching at a state university) are not taxed on any of their pension income that was earned during their employment by the state. Except for the cold winters, Illinois is presently a great state for retirees.:neutral::neutral::neutral: |
| January 12th, 2012 | # |
| Bill says |
| Is there a State by State ranking of best or worst places to retire. I know you published the 10 worst places, but what’s number 11, 12 and so on. Editor’s note: Good question. In 2011 we came developed a list of the 10 Best States to Retire – we will be updating it soon. The worst states after 10 started to fall off quickly – in other words they aren’t nearly as bad as say the top 7 or 8. But in the 11th through 15 spots would probably be MD, CA, WV, NE, and MI. |
| January 12th, 2012 | # |
| George W says |
| Very helpful article. Wouldn’t it have been great to be smart enough to make all the right decisions over the past five decades? Gosh, I would have been both wealthy and well known, I am sure. Alas, I made many, many bad choises, and, from my mistaks, learned little more than bad things do happen to good people. Of course other people and institutions made an equal number of bad decisions that hurt me. Take it all together and what I difference does it make at age 75? For me not too much except to realize that we are not the producer, director and actor in our lives. Best to take life less seriously and try to find a bit of happiness each day as it passes by. |
| January 12th, 2012 | # |
| NJ Ranks 6th Worst For Retirement [AUDIO] | WOBM-AM 1160 & 1310 says |
| [...] a lot of it has to do with taxes.John Brady operates the website, “TopRetirements.com“. His analysis shows northeast states with high taxes put a large burden on retirees. Of Jersey’s [...] |
| January 13th, 2012 | # |
| Your Golden Years in Connecticut? Forget about it. | says |
| [...] just confirms what we have already suspected, but Connecticut has been deemed the worst state in the country in which to retire. Thank you Governor Malloy, thank you State Senator Bob Duff, and thanks to [...] |
| January 13th, 2012 | # |
| Semi-retired says |
| As a CT resident and a senior one at that, I can’t think of any
place in the US that I like more or appreciate the many wonderful and
beautiful opportunities right here at home. Of course, as a senior, I
too want to avoid cold weather (even if we don’t have a blizzard this
year 67″ of snow last year) and the unfavorable tax rates on seniors
here in CT. Please avoid the laying of blame on either political party as the debt problem in CT goes back nearly fifteen years and both parties have run this state. Where I live is extremely affluent and virtually 75% Republican but the reality is that CT economics is largely dependent upon the defense industry from Groton (submarines and naval warfare) to Hartford (weapons production) and Stratford (Skikorsky helicopers) etc. When the defense budgets go up and more people are hired, finances improve. When DOD budgets are cut, the state loses revenue. Also note that most of the country’s hedgefunds are headquartered in CT as are a substantial portion of the insurance industry. So, let’s get off blaming particular people or parties as both parties have suffered through the same problems. |
| January 14th, 2012 | # |
| The 10 Worst States to Retire In: They’re Frosty and Costly | Mesa Az News, Weather, Jobs, and Hotels says |
| [...] has compiled a list of the 10 worst states in which to retire, based on five factors: fiscal health, property taxes, income taxes, cost of living and [...] |
| January 15th, 2012 | # |
| Fred says |
| If Connecticut is the worst state for retirement, why does this
Newsletter/blog/discussion post come out of Connecticut? It is my
understanding that the person who runs it has retired and this is the
job/business he created for his retirement. Editor’s Comment. Yes, I live in Connecticut most of the year. We try to be objective in what we present here (even if it hurts!). We dearly love the State, but it is not a friendly place for retirees for the reasons presented. We are fortunate that we are able to live here where so many of our friends and many relatives also live. Like we said in the article, there are a lot more reasons to retire somewhere than just the financial ones. |
| January 15th, 2012 | # |
| Fred says |
| I understand. I also live in Connecticut and my wife and I are planning to retire in a few years. When we do retire, we will be leaving the state, like so many others. I estimate that I will save at least $1500 a month by leaving Connecticut. We will be moving to either Georgia, South Carolina, Tennessee, or Florida. Living in the South will not bother us, we have lived there in the past, unlike some other Yankees who have trouble adjusting. The $1500 comes from being able to at least cut my PITI in half for an equal house/condo, no longer having an oil bill for heat and hot water (as I write this it is 11 degrees, electric rates in Connecticut are the second highest in the country, Hawaii is the highest) and not having my Social Security taxed along with so many other taxes in Connecticut. In addition, our children have all fled Connecticut to that area of the South, so it only makes sense for us to go there. They fled Connecticut because of the high taxes and high cost of living years ago. This is a problem for many families in the state. The young people are leaving because it is difficult to find jobs that pay enough for them to be able to live independently and not have to come back and live with Mom and Dad after college. When they head south and west, they can do that. Connecticut is in the business of exporting people, jobs and businesses to the rest of the country because it is so expensive to live hear and do business. Last year, the state imposed the highest tax increase in the history of the state. The fact is, that state is in a similar condition to Illinois or California. It is just that Connecticut does not get a lot of attention because we do not have a major city or media center in the state so people do not pay a lot of attention to what goes on here. We are between Boston and New York, not fly-over country, but drive-through country. A very pretty state to be sure, with a lot of history, beautiful colonial towns, and wonderful places on Long Island Sound, but one you can drive through on your way to a major metro in 2+ hours. |
| January 16th, 2012 | # |
| Bob says |
| Did you know that the state of Illinois has no income tax on retirement income, including pensions and 401-Ks!!! This more than makes up for any other shortcomings. Editor’s Comment: Very true, IL is very friendly about just every kind of retirement pension, including SS. One problem is that IL’s property tax is 6th highest in the nation. Another is that because there is a flat 5% income tax, all non-retirement income is taxed at a pretty hefty rate. |
| January 16th, 2012 | # |
| Jack Bolly says |
| Don’t forget sales tax and gasoline taxes in Illinois – among the highest in country. Also, Gov Quinn is wanting to start to tax retirement income based income level. It’s getting worse. |
| January 16th, 2012 | # |
| Jeri gonzalez says |
| My husband and I retired from South Fla to Western North Carolina. It is just beautiful being in the foothills of the mountains. Taxes are low, expenses are low, insurance is low, health care is fantastic and we find ourselves sharing the area with many “half backs.” Northerners or MidWesterners used to move to Fla, hate it, and then come half way back, which is usual. Four perfect seasons clinch the deal! |
| January 17th, 2012 | # |
| Charles Ostin says |
| West Virginia? Surely you jest! Yes, WV wants retirees’ income, but offers NO INCENTIVES, particularly to the middle class. |
| January 17th, 2012 | # |
| David says |
| This is a “we hate liberal states” list, not a “best place to
retire” list. No mention is made of factors such as climate (which is a
financial AND a halth issue- how much does it cost to run your air
conditioning onstantly in a high-humidity state?) or public services (on
which people on fixed incomes are especially dependent?). The state of
Texas is in much worse budgetary shape than just about every state
mentioned, but it misses your list- why? What about a clean
environment- aren’t older folks especially susceptible to toxic air and
water? I could go on…really though, the political bias is obvious. Me,
I’ll retire where I live and love it, California. Editors note: In an effort to keep politics out of this Forum we made a few small edits to this and some other posts here. |
| January 17th, 2012 | # |
| alan says |
| This state is horrific to live in..highest gas (double) tax in the nation…highest alcohol/cig taxes…highest property taxes…if u have a 400,000 house expect to pay like 10k a year in taxes….sell your house? another tax!….double dip state income tax…sales tax…every tax u can think of …If i didnt have little kids here, id be otta here |
| January 18th, 2012 | # |
| Drew Gilliland says |
| There are so many other factors that are relevant to retirement besides weather and taxes (although both are very important). I believe that family, friends, and familiarity play just as important a role in maintaining a quality of living. A lot of times it seems that moving away is based on fiscal reasons with the expectation that you can travel and visit family and friends. Health issues and comfort issues sometimes get in the way of this. |
| January 19th, 2012 | # |
| Cynthia says |
| I live in Massachusetts and my husband and I are about 5 years from retirement. We have considered some of the Soutern/Western states to retire to, but eliminated them because of things not mentioned in your article – Florida (too humid in the summer), Texas, Nevada, Arizona (too many illegal immigrants), Louisiana (hurricanes, flooding, natural disasters), Mississippi, Alabama (deficient health care and public services). You also make too much of high property taxes – if a retiree wants to dodge high property taxes then RENT, don’t own. My husband and I have definitely decided on Maine as our summer/fall living destination. It has nice beaches, great (not humid) summer weather, and a reasonable cost of living. We are still looking at a winter/spring place, and are currently considering Virginia or the Carolinas. Your article is biased toward the Northern/Midwestern states. I will take Maine (one of those Northern states on your “bad places to retire” list) over Texas or Florida any day of the week! |
| January 20th, 2012 | # |
| Tess in CT says |
| Interesting article. A caution to all before moving, however, to carefully run the numbers. A few years ago we sold 20 acres in Montana we had once considered for retirement and discovered we would have paid more in state tax there that year than in CT. (As for its weather, Montana does reliably hold summer every July.) I also recently considered buying a small condo near my mother in Ohio but after adding to the property tax, the sewer tax, water tax, school tax, town tax, etc, it added to more than ours here. (And Ohio weather? Columbus has more cloudy days than Seattle.) We retired right here. I no longer listen to the Connecticut bashers calling talk radio (who needs nine hours of whining negativity?). So it snowed last night. I saw a young mountain lion race across our property into the woods this morning and just came in from taking photos of its tracks. I’m happy to be alive here. |
| January 20th, 2012 | # |
| Jon says |
| There seems to be an unhealthy obsession with income taxation and cost of living associated with this list. Anyone who is about to retire should be old enough to remember that state fiscal crises are nothing new and cost of living is a more slippery concept for retirees. Remember, this is retirement. I hope no one is realistically considering a 30 year mortgage on a four bedroom house, complete with .5 acres of grass to mow that will be taxed accordingly. Access to good health care institutions and good public services should be heavily weighted with rehspect to any list of potential retirement locations. Moreover, the social environment should be seriously concerned, i.e., availability of intellectually stimulating people, institutions and opportunities. |
| January 20th, 2012 | # |
| Diana says |
| David-We would love to retire to California, but it is too messed up economically; we know, we lived there already once. Politics has very little to do with our decision. We have to think about how far our retirement income will go. That’s the reality of it. Some states are just too expensive for us to even consider. As I read what people write, there is some good advice, some off the wall advice and some some “what the heck is this person thinking” advice. I enjoy this forum. I sure would like to hear more about Conway, SC and that area… |
| January 21st, 2012 | # |
| Natalie says |
| After reading all of the posts, it becomes more clear to me why Prescott, AZ is rated 3rd of 100 in the top 100 list of favored retirement locations. We’ve lived in the Prescott since 2007 and really like it here. The weather is temperate with mild winters and summers that peak at about 99 degrees. The Prescott area took a big hit along with the rest of Arizone in the housing market, so the previous high prices have reduced dramatically. For veterans, the Prescott VA Hospital is highly ranked across the VA Hospital system. My husband uses it exclusively for his medical care and has been very satisfied. Other medical care can be a problem though. Most doctors will either not take Medicare/Medicare Advantage or are not taking new patients. For the most part, Prescott is conservative Republican. The extended area of Prescott Valley adds additional housing, shopping, and entertainment opportunities. If you are still working and looking for employment opportunities, they likely won’t be in the Prescott area unless you are in the medical field or are interested in retail. |
| January 22nd, 2012 | # |
| Corey says |
| Housing still overpriced in Illinois North of I-80 and East of
I-39, and property taxes here are brutal. Based off over-inflated
“market value”. 2010 Census tells the story of Illinois and as soon as
my youngest is done with school, we are fleeing this state. I pay more
in property taxes than what most in surrounding states pay for their
monthly mortgage payment. Source: http://www.topretirements.com/blog/great-towns/worst-states-to-retire-2012-northeast-and-midwest-come-up-losers.html/ |
