Best Affordable Places to Grow Old: Our Own Survey (pension, physically, gorgeous)
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Any recommendations (see post #1) in the Midwest--Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Kansas, Missouri, etc??
Well, you could read my earlier post...
Keep in mind that you had better enjoy diverse weather if you want to move to the north central US. I have lived in Iowa my entire life and I've seen extremes that you wouldn't believe. If you are not a fan of wicked winters or hot, humid summers you won't like it. Not every year has these extremes, but enough do that you'll likely get tired of it. It's in tornado alley. I've sat through a couple and it's not fun. You learn to respect the sound of a siren. And pay attention when it goes off.
But, it's a great place to live. In general people are outgoing and friendly. The Des Moines area is more culturally diverse than you can possibly imagine. It started with Governor Robert Ray (I wish we could get him elected again, but...) in 1975 when he became concerned about refugees after the Vietnam War and aided in their relocation to Iowa. That attitude still prevails and the "refugees" have arrived from all over the world. It is part of what makes the area a wonderful place to live - and eat.
With that said we are planing on leaving when Mrs. Tek retires. I've had enough of winter especially. Taxes are a bit much compared to a lot of other states and we are looking to decrease the tax bite when we finally settle. That's the plan at least.
Yes, that was a thinly disguised ploy for you to reveal everything!
A friend and her DH just moved from Texas to West Lafayette, Ind. From what I see, it's a really nice affordable place in the home of Perdue University. This has made me think that the Midwest is underrated for retirees.
This Columbus Day weekend has been an absolutely lovely one in New England. Temperatures perfect, 70-80 with cool nights, sunny dry days, leaves changing colors. The towns here turned out their autumn fairs, churches and the town commons doing their chili and chowder fests and craft sales, my entire town celebrating fall with tag sales everywhere. The college is alive with students and their parents. Pumpkins and chrysanthemums of every color everywhere. This time of year, from Sept-January, is great in New England. Since everything needed is walkable, I'm hoping the savings on transportation balances out the property taxes, which folks down south and the midwest would gasp at.
This Columbus Day weekend has been an absolutely lovely one in New England. Temperatures perfect, 70-80 with cool nights, sunny dry days, leaves changing colors. The towns here turned out their autumn fairs, churches and the town commons doing their chili and chowder fests and craft sales, my entire town celebrating fall with tag sales everywhere. The college is alive with students and their parents. Pumpkins and chrysanthemums of every color everywhere. This time of year, from Sept-January, is great in New England. Since everything needed is walkable, I'm hoping the savings on transportation balances out the property taxes, which folks down south and the midwest would gasp at.
This sounds lovely! The picturesque quality of your surroundings does remind me of many spots in NC . . . but one key thing you mentioned is rarely found here: walkability. A person is hard-pressed w/o a vehicle here, as we don't typically have very good public transit systems - meaning - there may not be a system at all - or if there is one - the routes are very limited.
I do plan to retire here in NC but I pray I will always be able to drive or be able to rely on other family members and friends to get me where I need to go. It is something I have thought about as I am acutely aware of other situations w/ the very elderly who can't drive. It is a major issue for them.
Any recommendations (see post #1) in the Midwest--Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Kansas, Missouri, etc??
Well except for the southernmost parts of this region, the winter is pretty severe. Begs the question why one would sign up for this winter if they don't need to be there for some other reason.
That said, rural Iowa has it's charms, although they are best experienced in spring or fall. The cost of living was favorable 20 years ago when I lived there briefly, not certain now. The summer is amazingly hot considering how severe the winter is. Lot of snow but no mountains to ski on - not seeing the upside...For a retiree who is willing to be snowed in for several days at a time, I guess it's do-able, but there are places with similar COL and better (IMHO) weather.
Illinois has obnoxious taxes to go with the obnoxious weather, I'd place it dead last in a region that might just be dead last in terms of where I would consider retiring.
oh, NEGirl, I miss my annual fall foliage trip this year...it sounds wonderful, it is such a special place in the fall. It's funny, I have (I think) a Japanese maple outside my window which turns very red, so I can just pretend I'm in NE, I really appreciate that tree!
Having lived there twice, I love Virginia. In fact, my oldest daughter was born there. But what I didn't love when considering retirement locations were overall costs, taxes and VEPCO!
Curmudgeon, you'll be happy to hear that VEPCO is no more!
It's now Dominion Power!
Well, not that that isn't still VEPCO in reality BUT
it kind of warms your heart when you think of all the money they burned getting rid of VEPCO stuff and buying the new Dominion Power stuff....
whoops , went out without my important comment: the issue of walkability/ease of getting from point a to point b. That is a hard thing to find in so many places, that also are not outlandishly expensive or questionable on safety. Having been flat on my back for nearly two weeks now I've had to really think about a number of these transportation issues. Suddenly what didn't seem like a real big deal has been a tremendously big deal. Before it mattered because i like to walk with a destination in mind and I also care about the aesthetics of a community - not walking round and round in a surburban neighborhood, going nowhere and looking at one similar house after another. Now it matters from the standpoint of how to get somewhere if you can't drive/who can you call to take you and how inconvenient is that/how far the things you need at certain times have to be....running back and forth to a doctor when the office is 18 miles away each way is expensive, time consuming and uncomfortable when you hurt.
Last edited by mzfroggez; 10-10-2011 at 04:50 PM..
A friend and her DH just moved from Texas to West Lafayette, Ind. From what I see, it's a really nice affordable place in the home of Perdue University. This has made me think that the Midwest is underrated for retirees.
Okay, off topic here, but it's PURDUE, not Perdue. We're the Boilermakers, not chickens! . Says the diehard alumni.
And yes, it's very affordable, but after now living in Virginia for over 30 years, there's no way I would go back to those winters.
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. Says the diehard alumni. 
