[Dino1]

My wife and I were thinking of retiring to OK. We are looking for a quiet, rural, safe area, but we are worried about how cold it gets since we don't like cold weather. Are there any sections of the state that don't get bad winters or snow? Or should we look elsewhere? Any advice would be welcome. Thank you for your time and expertise.

[eddie gein]

Red river valley from I-35 to the Arkansas border are the warmest but certainly not immune to winter weather. Particularly the southeast corner of the state. However, this area is the most isolated and impoverished (but easily the most beautiful) part of Oklahoma.

[Johnhw2]

Originally Posted by Dino1

My wife and I were thinking of retiring to OK. We are looking for a quiet, rural, safe area, but we are worried about how cold it gets since we don't like cold weather. Are there any sections of the state that don't get bad winters or snow? Or should we look elsewhere? Any advice would be welcome. Thank you for your time and expertise.

Try Durant in SE OKlahoma. It is near the red river and lake texoma so not as cold as further north like Stillwater as one example. It has a state university so lots of things culturally going on there for its size. You can get out of town a few miles and find a more rural look and price than Durant which has a very good economy especially for SE Oklahoma

[okie1962]

I guess it depends on where you are from. For example if you are from the upper Midwest you would probably think the winters here in NE Oklahoma are pretty mild but wouldn't think the same if you are from SoCa.

This year in Tulsa we have only had one light snow, maybe an inch, but some years we can have as much as 25". But our average is 9" per winter. My folks live near Checotah and have not had any snow this year. That is about 70 miles SE of Tulsa near Lake Eufaula.

I think I heard it has been two years sine we had much of a snow fall here in Tulsa. And it is not that uncommon to have have sunny days in January and February where the temps gets up in the 50s and 60s.

But if you are wanting to get the least amount of snow as posable, go with eddie gein and Johnw2's suggestion and look at SE Oklahoma and Durant.

[debbie at bouontiful]

Good grief! I can't handle how we do not have a decent winter. I love snow and flurries like this morning in my book isn't considered snow. Where are you from?

[Dino1]

Originally Posted by debbie at bouontiful

Good grief! I can't handle how we do not have a decent winter. I love snow and flurries like this morning in my book isn't considered snow. Where are you from?

St. Petersburg, FL. In my book it is considered snow.

[debbie at bouontiful]

Not sure what the cost of living is where you are from but with my husband's job, we have lived in several states. The cost of living in OK has been the cheapest. I am sure there are other considerations but cost of living is quite reasonable in this State.

I guess compared to Florida this might be a winter. I was roaming the ranch most of the day with a sweat shirt on. In some of the States we lived I would have had snow boots on.

[trythis]

I've lived in both Florida and SE Oklahoma. I didn't live in St. Petersburg, but the Jacksonville area. It actually got fairly cold in the winter compared to more southerly parts of Florida. They said it didn't snow while I lived there, but I did see a few flakes falling you could never find on the ground. St. Pete being further south and by the Gulf, it must be much warmer. If you choose to move just about anywhere north of Florida, you are going to experience colder weather than you typically see now. As you know, many people from northern states choose to move to your area to retire for the warm weather and what they hope will be a lower cost of living.

If you have ever lived in states with different climate than you now have, you might find that colder weather isn't all bad. I don't mind snow if I don't have to shovel it, or drive on slippery roads. I live up north now, so I have to do both. If I was retired and lived in a place like SE Oklahoma, I wouldn't mind staying in the house on the rare winter days when there is snow or ice on the roads. Most people I know in Oklahoma don't even own a snow shovel. They just wait for it to melt. It rarely lays on the ground long. The weather will warm up and melt it off within a day or two in all but the most extreme cases.

I just did a quick check on Sperling's Best Places to compare the cost of living between St. Pete and Checotah, OK where I lived a few years back. Here is the link to the results:

Moderator cut: link removed, linking to competitor sites is not allowed

The overall cost of living is rated as 81 in Checotah vs. 87 in St. Pete. The big advantage for Checotah is cost of housing at 47 vs. 61 for St. Pete. But, Checotah actually has lower numbers in every category.

Checotah gets an average of less than 5 inches of snow per year, and averages less than two days per year when more than 1 inch of snow is on the ground.

Checotah and nearby areas have everything from older, smaller homes to newer, nicer homes, or even lakefront homes on Lake Eufaula (the largest lake in Oklahoma). It has something for every budget. Overall, I would say it's a nice town with the quiet, rural, safe feel you are seeking. I'm not saying it is the best town in Oklahoma, just that I liked it there. Other towns in Oklahoma would be good choices as well.

[linicx]

I spent a winter in Florida and few years in OK. The Eastern part of the state is the foothills of the Ozark Mountains. All the years I iived in Oklahoma I rarely wore anything heavier than a sweater or sweat shirt and an insulated vest. I wore the same in Florida. I saw one deep snow in 25 years. The roads were clear and snow was gone in 2 days.

The closer you get to Texas the hotter the summer. It is a shorter winter. I have a friend in Dallas who complains about the winter cold. If you want four seasons without extremes I think NE OK and Grand Lake is as good as it gets for inland living. My idea of perfect is SoCal on the ocean. It is amazing how cold ocean water is in the winter.

Grove is the largest town on Grand Lake. It has a population of about 5,000. It is a retirement area as the COL is low. There is an active senior center and and an active community center, new library, movie plex, variety of restaurants and shopping. It has a really decent hospital.

Grove has good internet service and good city services. When you move into rural areas you lose these types of services. If the internet and phone, and EMT is important you want to be very careful where you move. You can literally be 6 blocks from the fire department and not have city services.