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Ya , like NE Tenn. is different than just east and or SE. I have friends that live there.....when they say Tennessee it comes out Tenn a see. Most do not have the mid south southern ascent , it's more like old English. Have you ever been to a Spring Ramp Festival ? Most still do not honor the VA. Or the NC. Border.
My experience is that in most places I have been that you leave them alone they will leave you alone. Yes there are exceptions but.... On the bold red can you explain darstar? I do no know what you mean. I do not want to assume or presume.
Quote:
Originally Posted by MadManofBethesda
So, you've come to the conclusion that most northern retirees are better off staying put where they are, huh? How nice of you to conclude that for them.
I thought it was pretty presumptuous on his part but I will agree with him. It is the majority of people that will stay put.
Quote:
Originally Posted by darstar
Hate to say it , but what he says is most likely true. We all are a product of be careful what you wish for.....you might get it !
You are right what he says is true but not for the reasons of not wanting to go. Most will be because they didn't put that into their budget of savings to make that possible. If all you have is the equity in your home even in the high priced northeast your putting yourself at risk selling and attempting the move. For those that did make some savings and made the plans I would venture the guess that it is over 50% that do move south from the northeast or at least snowbird.
That is one thing we considered is snowbirding and decided it wasn't for us. The Mrs Golf and I discuss retirement often now. We came to an agreement that we would not have two homes nor would we rent one just to get away from the snow. It is all or nothing so we are looking at the compromise areas. Hence Tennessee came on board.
Everyone has some very valid points here. I appreciate that everyone can see things others miss. I see in the posts here that Mrs Golf and I will go to our top locations with good intel and that will help us make the decision that is right for us.
I know we will not stay in this beautiful house. It is a house meant for a young family with kids and dogs. It is too big for us to maintain when I get into my 70's so that is very important. We could decide that Massachusetts is still the best place with just a smaller home or condo. Nothing has been decided in our lives yet. Hell I don't even know if I will be retained until 2017 at my work (my 60th birthday). I am good until 2015 but then I have to hold my collective breath again and pray for 2 more years, which will actually equate to 2 and a half since the system announces those non-retains in April and if you are full-time like I am the job will retain you until the end of September (which coincidentally is after my 60th birthday).
have you checked into the Land Between the Lakes area of Kentucky (not far from Tennessee)
I haven't yet. Is there some 55+ communities going in there? I haven't looked at the tax situation and how it would apply to us so that is also something I would do as well. I have that information as I have passed it on several times here in different threads. I just haven't put that in the consideration yet.
My experience is that in most places I have been that you leave them alone they will leave you alone. Yes there are exceptions but.... On the bold red can you explain darstar? I do no know what you mean. I do not want to assume or presume.
It's really all about independence. These mountian folk learned early on to fend for themselves. One of the reasons they tryed to form their own state. A movie I would recommend " Winter People"
I thought it was pretty presumptuous on his part but I will agree with him. It is the majority of people that will stay put.
You are right what he says is true but not for the reasons of not wanting to go. Most will be because they didn't put that into their budget of savings to make that possible. If all you have is the equity in your home even in the high priced northeast your putting yourself at risk selling and attempting the move. For those that did make some savings and made the plans I would venture the guess that it is over 50% that do move south from the northeast or at least snowbird.
That is one thing we considered is snowbirding and decided it wasn't for us. The Mrs Golf and I discuss retirement often now. We came to an agreement that we would not have two homes nor would we rent one just to get away from the snow. It is all or nothing so we are looking at the compromise areas. Hence Tennessee came on board.
Everyone has some very valid points here. I appreciate that everyone can see things others miss. I see in the posts here that Mrs Golf and I will go to our top locations with good intel and that will help us make the decision that is right for us.
I know we will not stay in this beautiful house. It is a house meant for a young family with kids and dogs. It is too big for us to maintain when I get into my 70's so that is very important. We could decide that Massachusetts is still the best place with just a smaller home or condo. Nothing has been decided in our lives yet. Hell I don't even know if I will be retained until 2017 at my work (my 60th birthday). I am good until 2015 but then I have to hold my collective breath again and pray for 2 more years, which will actually equate to 2 and a half since the system announces those non-retains in April and if you are full-time like I am the job will retain you until the end of September (which coincidentally is after my 60th birthday).
It's all about Independance . These mountian folk learned early on to fend for themselves. One of the reasons they tryed to form their own state. There is some mighty rugged country in this triangle. A movie I would recommend " Winter People"
I haven't yet. Is there some 55+ communities going in there? I haven't looked at the tax situation and how it would apply to us so that is also something I would do as well. I have that information as I have passed it on several times here in different threads. I just haven't put that in the consideration yet.
If 55+ is the way you want to go, the good news is you can find them just about anywhere. Some may be really big, some may be really small, but there are thousands of them out there. Be sure you look into the financial health of the development. Some are healthier than others. And give some thought to how difficult resales might conceivably be in any community you consider (just in case you will need to sell in the future. You never know.) In some, you'll see plenty of resales being sold. In others, you may wonder if the only thing that will sell is the brand new units.
Cost of living and scenery are two reasons I hear people retire to TN. And those are two good reasons, IMO. I'd be interested in hearing comments from TN residents as to whether the COL is actually as good as it sounds. Are there any aspects of life there that turned out to be more expensive than you thought it would be? Would also love to hear what you think of medical care in TN.
I"m not reading all 5 pages so apologize if this has been mentioned. But I started this journey of looking for a retirement destination last November and my first stop was eastern TN, specifically Johnson City. You really owe it to yourself to look into it. The area is beautiful, I could not believe how big the mountains were. The town is nice. Not awesome for a college town, there are empty ugly warehouses near the tracks, but it's still very nice. Golf is important to me too and JC was rated as one of the best destinations to retire for golf.
Housing and taxes are way cheap, as is the golf. But what shocked me was the groceries etc were not that much different than in MD. Another plus was the weather. Mild winters mean early springs, not to mention lower heating bills. The do get snow, and that's important to me, just not a lot. The summers, due to the elevation, are not as hot and humid as it is on the east coast.
In the end I just didn't feel comfortable moving that far away fro friends and family, that's why we settled (for now) on Charlestown, WV. But since you don't seem to have that issue it may be worth a look. There is a big medical center there too.
If 55+ is the way you want to go, the good news is you can find them just about anywhere. Some may be really big, some may be really small, but there are thousands of them out there. Be sure you look into the financial health of the development. Some are healthier than others. And give some thought to how difficult resales might conceivably be in any community you consider (just in case you will need to sell in the future. You never know.) In some, you'll see plenty of resales being sold. In others, you may wonder if the only thing that will sell is the brand new units.
Cost of living and scenery are two reasons I hear people retire to TN. And those are two good reasons, IMO. I'd be interested in hearing comments from TN residents as to whether the COL is actually as good as it sounds. Are there any aspects of life there that turned out to be more expensive than you thought it would be? Would also love to hear what you think of medical care in TN.
Yeah I am beginning to find out that there are a great number of them. It just takes time to find them and thankfully there is the internet and C-D as well. You are also correct to look into the health of the community financially. It would suck to have bought in to find that the association sold out or worse as you said no resales or slow resales.
I am also interested in the COL of those areas as well. I don't know if we will get that unless we visit it ourselves. You would need to in order to have a reference frame to compare. For example, Mrs Golf and I took a trip to Charleston SC as many of you know. What we found out in our short time there is that the sales tax in some aspects are much higher then here in Massachusetts. While that is not a deal breaker it did put a check in one of the columns against a move there.
darstar, you mention that the triangle area and I am assuming that JC is in that area is rugged territory. Does that mean there is a lot of snow there? Is that something that I will need to take into consideration? I mean I do not need to completely avoid snow but I would prefer to be in an area where snow that falls goes away quickly without much intervention. I would like to be in an area where golfing can be done year round as well as other activities.
Ii don't think you read my post because I addressed most of your last paragraph a few minutes ago. JC's weather is great, mild winters but they do get a small amount of snow. Due to the temps it's gone quickly. Sounds like it's a good option for you.
I"m not reading all 5 pages so apologize if this has been mentioned. But I started this journey of looking for a retirement destination last November and my first stop was eastern TN, specifically Johnson City. You really owe it to yourself to look into it. The area is beautiful, I could not believe how big the mountains were. The town is nice. Not awesome for a college town, there are empty ugly warehouses near the tracks, but it's still very nice. Golf is important to me too and JC was rated as one of the best destinations to retire for golf.
Housing and taxes are way cheap, as is the golf. But what shocked me was the groceries etc were not that much different than in MD. Another plus was the weather. Mild winters mean early springs, not to mention lower heating bills. The do get snow, and that's important to me, just not a lot. The summers, due to the elevation, are not as hot and humid as it is on the east coast.
In the end I just didn't feel comfortable moving that far away fro friends and family, that's why we settled (for now) on Charlestown, WV. But since you don't seem to have that issue it may be worth a look. There is a big medical center there too.
That is find about not reading. Your information didn't conflict with anything so far written. It is though great information. The medical center is a good thing as is the VA hospital there in JC. I am in relatively good condition but I have had almost 40 years of military service with one war zone deployment. Who knows what kind of ailments I could have as a result of that which could show up in my 60's and 70's. I know that my joints are feeling the wear and tear and of course that would go for a lot of occupations too.
I like to hear that golf is a big deal in JC as my wife liked the 55+ community website for Willow Spings Reserve. She thought the home prices might be a bit high but that is not a huge deal breaker as I am pretty sure we will sell up here for nearly twice the cost of a new home there. Buying in there with no mortgage is something we would like to do.
My question back to you Dave is darstar mentioned it is rugged country up there in JC. I haven't been there but plan on making a trip to see. Is it in fact rugged country? You mentioned snow, does that snow accumulate so that in the winter I would need to worry? Will there be so much snow that I would have to make trips to Myrtle Beach for golf in say January or February? I mean I do not mind that so much as I can rent a house or something and enjoy that time. I am also thinking forward 20 years ahead meaning 30 years from now and what would be my next move. As one thread here mentioned that we should also think ahead on 85+ life. What sort of place would I need to be looking at? Would we want to move again? I guess it would depend on how healthy we are. I don't plan on living to be the oldest man ever so I need to at least consider the possiblity I could be a centenarian or my wife could as well.
Cost of living and scenery are two reasons I hear people retire to TN. And those are two good reasons, IMO. I'd be interested in hearing comments from TN residents as to whether the COL is actually as good as it sounds. Are there any aspects of life there that turned out to be more expensive than you thought it would be? Would also love to hear what you think of medical care in TN.
I have the best doctor I have ever had in my adult life here in Tennessee but I wouldn't know if that translates to other places in the state. Also (knock wood) I've never been hospitalized overnight. I live quite well on my pension but then again, the things I enjoy doing in retirement don't cost much, I rent and I hate shopping. I haven't jumped in much because while I live in East Tennessee, I don't live anywhere near the tri-cities area, nor do I live in Knoxville or Chattanooga and I don't think I'm a typical retiree as far as preferences, likes and dislikes go.
I picked my town because it offered the kinds of things I liked to do. Plus, and this was just dumb luck because my town is 85 square miles in size, I live within 3 miles of everything I do regularly and a lot of it is less than 1 mile.
I think I've mentioned that I take classes in a retiree program. It costs me $100 per year. There are 3 semesters per year. You can sign up for 5 classes per semester, more if the classes aren't filled. Class offerings change every semester. The community college lets us use their building. It's around the corner from where I live. There's typically no homework. There are trips each semester which are extra if you want to go. You are welcome to look at the Fall catalogue.
It doesn't cost me anything to do photography so it doesn't matter if I do it once a week or 5x a week unlike, for example, bowling where you have an equipment expense plus you pay every time you do it. My camera club dues are $20 per year. We meet at the same community college around the corner.
Our state parks are free (and there are plenty of them) as is The Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Between Spring and October 31, there are all kinds of free festivals.
If you are a history buff, Tennessee is the place to be. There are numerous living history events and battle (different wars) re-enactments. The state has 3 music zones - just look at our state quarter. Bluegrass in East TN, country in Middle TN, rock and roll/blues/jazz in West TN. My town hosts collegiate rowing events.
My book group meets less than a half mile up the road. The lake is at the end of my road in the other direction. My doctor is about 1 mile or less. My therapy is about 1.5 miles. The hospital is about 1.3 miles. The supermarket is about 1 mile or less. Lunch out can be had for less than $10 in just about every restaurant in town. My last electric bill was $53 (I have a 2 bedroom, 2 bathroom all electric apartment - $980). You can go to the multiplex in town for less than $5. If I wanted to buy a house or townhouse/condo, they are cheap (in my opinion).
Our winters are mild but I am in a valley. Don't need a snow shovel. I always see the grass after it snows and it typically all melts by noon if it snowed overnight. I'm in the Eastern time zone but if I do anything to my west heading toward the Plateau, I typically cross into the central time zone. My town has a lot of scientists, engineers and government contractors to the Dept of Energy. We have a science museum and a children's museum. I think we have 2 golf courses. We don't have visible homeless probably because we have no central downtown. It's all sprawl with two main drags.
This is the first place I've ever lived where people are into college sports over major league sports.
People who are natives (and strangers) will chat you up just about anywhere. I find the natives are friendly. The transplants come with bad (unfriendly, rude) habits they'll need to lose unless they move to a place where people are mostly transplants.
There is a tax on food, however, food is cheaper than where I lived before so it's a wash. Gasoline is cheaper. You won't get the variety you are accustomed to in the northeast.
Who should NOT live in my town? People who need public transportation or like to shop a lot/want shopping variety/want a mall, are country club types.
Tenn is a great place to retire to. I just did! We love it here and there are so many reasons. It does look very similar to NC, but is much more tax friendly and homes are much cheaper than in Asheville area. Chattanooga is really a nice area and close to the mountains. I live in Loudon, one of the areas the OP asked about. The town is small, and I wouldn't live in town, but that's just me. I live near one of the lakes and we have so much recreation right outside our door. I think that is what I love about it so much. There is water everywhere if you are a boater or fisherman, you are just in your element. I am a hiker and golfer, and I have more of that available here than I have time to do! With the low COL, I can afford to indulge my hobbies, which also include riding my motorcycle on beautiful winding country roads. Seriously, we are in heaven here.
Don't listen to the folks who will have you thinking all Tennesseans are hill folk who make moonshine. We are a half hour from Knoxville, which is as modern a city as any, and has a symphony, university, sports teams, etc. People who live here are both locals and transplants and are very outgoing and friendly. Trust me, you won't hear any banjos in the woods!
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