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Old 05-26-2012, 04:14 AM
 
Location: Virginia
18,717 posts, read 31,015,993 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by mlb View Post
I, for one, would love to know why that couple left Monterey, California for the East Coast......

Just because Monterey is my hubbie's number ONE place he'd love to move to - at least in the County.
My guess? $$$$$$$ and more $$$. It's also a little far from a big airport, if you like to do a lot of international travel.

My grandparents retired to Monterey back in the 1970s. Even then their little apartment was outrageously pricey (over $500/month, which was crazy expensive back then). I can't even imagine what that building charges now. I sure loved visiting them there, though.
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Old 05-26-2012, 04:57 AM
 
Location: Prospect, KY
5,284 posts, read 20,018,009 times
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Monterey is beautiful - when our son graduated from law school 5 years ago, we knew we'd be leaving California so we drove down the coast - stopped in Monterey for lunch. I can see why relocating there for retirement might be a problem for some - the cost of housing is expensive. The average price of a condo is $407,000 and the average price for a single family home is $580,000....however the overall cost of living is 93% - not sure why that would be when housing is so expensive.
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Old 05-26-2012, 05:55 AM
 
Location: Virginia
18,717 posts, read 31,015,993 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Cattknap View Post
The average price of a condo is $407,000 and the average price for a single family home is $580,000....
And if the average condo is anything like the place my grandparents had, it's going to be small. Their place was in a "luxury" complex but was only about 750 sf. After they died I inherited their furniture and was stunned at how small everything was--they must have special ordered it. In their house the couch seemed big--it stretched almost the entire length of one wall. When I inherited it I realized just how small it was. Same with the bed--it was a double bed, not even a queen bed. A queen bed would have been a tight fit in that bedroom. No garage, just a single assigned space.

Last edited by Caladium; 05-26-2012 at 06:03 AM..
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Old 05-26-2012, 07:55 AM
 
Location: Near a river
16,042 posts, read 21,937,686 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Prairieparson View Post
You were right about New Bern. I lived in Goldsboro, NC for several years. Likely it is just in the central city, but like any place, crime does find its way out of the bad neighborhoods. However, if you look down the road, in Havelock, their crime is pretty low. Also, the rural towns in those areas are pretty safe, so your really concern should for the most part be the actual towns, not the whole area.
Crime has a way of migrating from town to town, and no place is immune to it. My sister had told me several years ago that New Bern had a high crime rate. This surprised me as it seems not always to have been that way, and a number of retirees moved there as one of "the" places.

It's likely that more transient places attract more crime, including those places located on interstate highways (drug dealers). And crime in neighborhoods spills over.

One of the interesting things to search, besides sex offenders (perhaps the least of threats to elders, but of course not always), is home burglary and meth clinics, to get a feel for what's in store. And many idyllic-seeming places have problems that in old age you wouldn't want to have where you live.

One of the reasons I like where I am is that it's a stable family and college community, so far anyway. Not that it's not far from other crime-ridden areas.

It's possible that as boomers age and are not as feisty and aware as some of our parents, we could be more of a prime target for crime. Not necessarily scams, but parking lot robberies, etc. And potential rural home invasions. We can't afford to be too complacent anywhere we live.
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Old 05-26-2012, 08:50 AM
 
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Very low crime is one of the things that makes Maine very attractive for retirees. It is by far -- the safest place I've ever lived. We often talk about the fact that it's something we'll miss when we move. It's easy to take for granted, but we've lived in areas over the years that made us appreciate just how remarkably safe Maine is. I think Brunswick (about 15 min north of us-DD lives there) made a best places to retire list recently. Low crime, college (Bowdoin) town, plenty of activities for seniors, two local hospitals, walkable and you can get to the ocean or one of the many bays in just a few minutes.
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Old 05-26-2012, 08:59 AM
 
Location: Near a river
16,042 posts, read 21,937,686 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Sunday1 View Post
Very low crime is one of the things that makes Maine very attractive for retirees. It is by far -- the safest place I've ever lived. We often talk about the fact that it's something we'll miss when we move. It's easy to take for granted, but we've lived in areas over the years that made us appreciate just how remarkably safe Maine is. I think Brunswick (about 15 min north of us-DD lives there) made a best places to retire list recently. Low crime, college (Bowdoin) town, plenty of activities for seniors, two local hospitals, walkable and you can get to the ocean or one of the many bays in just a few minutes.
My daughter lives in Brunswick now and I love visiting. It is a second choice in a move. The senior resources are great. Glad to hear you like it too!
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Old 05-26-2012, 09:03 AM
 
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I wish I could remember the magazine that recently placed Brunswick on the Best Places to Retire list. Would you know which one it was, newenglandgirl?
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Old 05-26-2012, 09:06 AM
 
Location: Near a river
16,042 posts, read 21,937,686 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Sunday1 View Post
I wish I could remember the magazine that recently placed Brunswick on the Best Places to Retire list. Would you know which one it was, newenglandgirl?
I don't know, but what I like about it is that it seems to be between a small city and a town...not small enough where everyone knows your name and your business, and large enough to have nice coffee shops, a natural foods store, restaurants, farmer's market, Hannafords, and farmers market all on Maine Street within a short walk to the Bowdoin campus. In the summer there is the Bowdoin Chamber Music Festival. And it's a bit out of Portland but easily commutable. Since I will never move to any city no matter how wonderful the amenities, I would seriously consider Brunswick. The new commuter rail to Boston is going in in November.
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Old 05-26-2012, 09:50 AM
 
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newenglandgirl: Looks like Brunswick was #19 on Money Magazine's list of Top 25. I don't put much faith in "best" lists, but I always look at them as they often explore or unfold some criteria that weren't otherwise on my radar.

25 Best Places to Retire - Brunswick, ME (19) - CNNMoney.com
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Old 05-26-2012, 09:57 AM
 
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Northampton, MA is #21 on that list and another we've been discussing here, Williamsburg, VA is #25.
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