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I'm familiar with the weather. Kind of like where I live in the cooler months - except a bit cooler at night. Hotter during the summer days.
But - if you moved there - what do/did you like/not like about it? We would have a fair amount of money - and would rent at first. I am 69 - and my husband is 71. Robyn
Hi Robyn. We have friends who moved from Amelia Island to Las Vegas just a few months ago. They like it. She was originally from AZ, but moved to Amelia about 6 years ago, where she met her husband. I think they were bored there and wanted a different lifestyle. I believe they live in a 55 plus community.
Are you tiring of the Jacksonville area? My husband and I lived there and then Amelia (where we're both from) for our entire lives. We're in our 60s now. We finally moved a couple hours west, and although it's been an adjustment, we don't miss all the crazy development, traffic and population. I wish you the best.
I'm familiar with the weather. Kind of like where I live in the cooler months - except a bit cooler at night. Hotter during the summer days.
But - if you moved there - what do/did you like/not like about it? We would have a fair amount of money - and would rent at first. I am 69 - and my husband is 71. Robyn
Here are some of the DISADVANTAGES that I came up with when I was considering it as a retirement destination. Some people may laugh at this BUT they come from my POV after 30+ visits.
1) I would rank the climate in Las Vegas as oppressive. It is perhaps the hottest large city in the US after Phoenix, AZ. For me, I like to hike and that can get pretty rough in the hotter months.
2) The population in Las Vegas is very transient making it difficult to feel a sense of community and develop new friendships. That might be mitigated if you purchase into a 55+ community.
3) If you want to live in a highly desirable location, Las Vegas is NOT an inexpensive destination. I do not think that you get as much as in other locations around the country for what you are spending.
4) I am not from LA but I have lived in large cities in the Midwest. Las Vegas traffic anywhere near the Strip in any direction is just terrible and seems to get worse every year despite all of the road projects that they are putting in.
5) Las Vegas attracts and appeals to a lot of people with real addictions - sex, drugs, alcohol, among others. You end up having to interact with a lot of those folks. Obviously, every city has a few but none to that extent.
6) I do not want to live in a place like Las Vegas with a million great restaurants and a buffet on every corner. Seriously, I would rather resist the temptations.
7) I thought that the healthcare available in Las Vegas was a significant step down from what I had in Chicago, Cleveland, St. Louis and Detroit. Most of what I read left me very concerned about living in Las Vegas. In more recent years, i understand that several new hospitals have opened, attracting a lot more doctors. If I was going to move there now, I don't think that this would be a valid point anymore.
8) And the most important reason - my wife said "HELL NO!"
Hi Robyn. We have friends who moved from Amelia Island to Las Vegas just a few months ago. They like it. She was originally from AZ, but moved to Amelia about 6 years ago, where she met her husband. I think they were bored there and wanted a different lifestyle. I believe they live in a 55 plus community.
Are you tiring of the Jacksonville area? My husband and I lived there and then Amelia (where we're both from) for our entire lives. We're in our 60s now. We finally moved a couple hours west, and although it's been an adjustment, we don't miss all the crazy development, traffic and population. I wish you the best.
Yes - we're tiring of the JAX area. Actually - we were tired of it about 10 years ago (we've been here about 20 years). And thinking of moving. And then my father moved here (after my mother died). Well he is 98 now - and I don't want to spend the next X years of my life here waiting for him to die (his mother lived to be 104). But - before we leave - we have to find a place to go. I'm not about ready to set out in an RV .
There have been a lot of changes here over the years. I don't mind the growth so much. As the fact that the growth really hasn't brought a lot of swell things. Like - for example - excellent restaurants. The area used to be relatively small/charming. Now it's just another Florida metro area. On steroids. One strip mall after another for the most part...
Here are some of the DISADVANTAGES that I came up with when I was considering it as a retirement destination. Some people may laugh at this BUT they come from my POV after 30+ visits.
1) I would rank the climate in Las Vegas as oppressive. It is perhaps the hottest large city in the US after Phoenix, AZ. For me, I like to hike and that can get pretty rough in the hotter months.
2) The population in Las Vegas is very transient making it difficult to feel a sense of community and develop new friendships. That might be mitigated if you purchase into a 55+ community.
3) If you want to live in a highly desirable location, Las Vegas is NOT an inexpensive destination. I do not think that you get as much as in other locations around the country for what you are spending.
4) I am not from LA but I have lived in large cities in the Midwest. Las Vegas traffic anywhere near the Strip in any direction is just terrible and seems to get worse every year despite all of the road projects that they are putting in.
5) Las Vegas attracts and appeals to a lot of people with real addictions - sex, drugs, alcohol, among others. You end up having to interact with a lot of those folks. Obviously, every city has a few but none to that extent.
6) I do not want to live in a place like Las Vegas with a million great restaurants and a buffet on every corner. Seriously, I would rather resist the temptations.
7) I thought that the healthcare available in Las Vegas was a significant step down from what I had in Chicago, Cleveland, St. Louis and Detroit. Most of what I read left me very concerned about living in Las Vegas. In more recent years, i understand that several new hospitals have opened, attracting a lot more doctors. If I was going to move there now, I don't think that this would be a valid point anymore.
8) And the most important reason - my wife said "HELL NO!"
Thanks for this detailed list.
I realize the climate is oppressive in the summer. Like here in Florida - except worse. I haven't been to Las Vegas in the summer - but have been to Phoenix (my brother lives there). Our hiking days ended quite a while ago. And our golf may be coming to an end soon as well. So being outside - especially in the summer - isn't all that important to us.
The people where we live now aren't particularly transient. They have just become a lot younger over the course of the last decade. As people our age moved out - and younger families moved in. We have local acquaintances - no friends to speak of.
As for cost - I'm not looking for particularly inexpensive. But we can't afford Beverly Hills either (I'm looking at the Los Angeles metro area too).
Is the traffic around the Strip unusual for the area? Or is the traffic in the metro area bad in general? There has been a huge change in traffic where we live in the last decade or so. It used to be something you never thought about. And now - it's often a mess (although not as much of a mess as it is in SE and other parts of Florida). I assume Uber/Lyft (which we've recently started to use) are around - although it seems the services can be quirky:
I smoke. And drink too. Can't say I'll fit right in in Las Vegas. But I'm not going to stand out like a sore thumb either.
A million great restaurants? I'll take it . I am sick of cooking all the time at home because the restaurants here tend to be mediocre.
We'll have to investigate health care. We have a good set-up here with Mayo JAX. It would be hard to duplicate elsewhere. Then again - when we first moved here - Mayo JAX didn't exist for the most part.
What didn't your wife like about the area? And where did you wind up?
Seems like Las Vegas might suit us in other ways. For example - politics (it seems to be a toss-up state - which is ok by us). Taxes (no state income tax).
Then there are other things that might not suit us. Like earthquakes. I'm getting sick of hurricanes/windstorm damage - but don't feel like jumping from the frying pan into the fire. Wonder how expensive earthquake insurance is? Robyn
I realize the climate is oppressive in the summer. Like here in Florida - except worse. I haven't been to Las Vegas in the summer - but have been to Phoenix (my brother lives there). Our hiking days ended quite a while ago. And our golf may be coming to an end soon as well. So being outside - especially in the summer - isn't all that important to us.
The people where we live now aren't particularly transient. They have just become a lot younger over the course of the last decade. As people our age moved out - and younger families moved in. We have local acquaintances - no friends to speak of.
As for cost - I'm not looking for particularly inexpensive. But we can't afford Beverly Hills either (I'm looking at the Los Angeles metro area too).
Is the traffic around the Strip unusual for the area? Or is the traffic in the metro area bad in general? There has been a huge change in traffic where we live in the last decade or so. It used to be something you never thought about. And now - it's often a mess (although not as much of a mess as it is in SE and other parts of Florida). I assume Uber/Lyft (which we've recently started to use) are around - although it seems the services can be quirky:
I smoke. And drink too. Can't say I'll fit right in in Las Vegas. But I'm not going to stand out like a sore thumb either.
A million great restaurants? I'll take it . I am sick of cooking all the time at home because the restaurants here tend to be mediocre.
We'll have to investigate health care. We have a good set-up here with Mayo JAX. It would be hard to duplicate elsewhere. Then again - when we first moved here - Mayo JAX didn't exist for the most part.
What didn't your wife like about the area? And where did you wind up?
Seems like Las Vegas might suit us in other ways. For example - politics (it seems to be a toss-up state - which is ok by us). Taxes (no state income tax).
Then there are other things that might not suit us. Like earthquakes. I'm getting sick of hurricanes/windstorm damage - but don't feel like jumping from the frying pan into the fire. Wonder how expensive earthquake insurance is? Robyn
It is incredibly hot in the months of June and July. if you head to the minor league stadium for a night game. everyone sits in the outfield where it is cooler ... if they venture out at all. You will NOT have the humidity of Florida but a dry heat can be equally uncomfortable.
I really cannot judge the traffic in the metro as a whole. My last trip was to attend an Off-Strip basketball at the Orleans and a drive that I used to make in about 20 minutes took over an hour on several occasions. It would have taken equally long on Uber/Lyft. Each time I make it to Las Vegas, the traffic seems worse.
Why didn't my wife like Las Vegas ... let me count the ways ... First, she does not like the lifestyle and the transient culture. She dislikes the lack of a sense of community in the city. She thinks that a lot of the housing is grossly overpriced for the lack of build quality. She finds MOST of the communities built in the past 20 years to be unattractive and "slapped up." There is a relative lack of things to do in Las Vegas once you get away from the casinos and their venues. Let's call that the "short answer."
In general, Nevada is a conservative/libertarian state. What keeps the Democratic party competitive in the Las Vegas area is the massive influence of the gaming and other labor unions. Senior and other social services are not a high priority nor is education.
You are right, there is no income tax. You will pay taxes on everything else. I do not think that the taxes in Nevada are that much less than in Arizona when you consider some of the tax provisions in AZ.
I am going to pass on the talk of earthquake insurance. I covered my home in St. Louis with it for about five years due to the New Madrid fault scare of the 1990s.
Do NOT live in a non-HOA neighborhood in Las Vegas. When I was house hunting there is 2008-09, you could easily tell the non-HOA communities - the ones with the eight work trucks parked for the weekend on every available space in the development. Also, I saw several houses that had multiple families residing there.
If I was an affluent person, I would far rather live in Scottsdale and some of the areas around Phoenix than in Las Vegas. You will get a lot better health care (Mayo among others) and honestly, it is more attractive.
As for me, I live south of Tucson. While we love it, I do not think that it will meet your needs.
I'm familiar with the weather. Kind of like where I live in the cooler months - except a bit cooler at night. Hotter during the summer days.
But - if you moved there - what do/did you like/not like about it? We would have a fair amount of money - and would rent at first. I am 69 - and my husband is 71. Robyn
Perfect question, Robyn. I'm early retired in TB, FLA and always have the thought in the back of my mind to head to the Western USA (Nevada - specifically Reno) eventually. I've visited Reno twice, Vegas twice and enjoyed my time there -
PS RV travel might be the best way to see potential sites. This past summer I did an East Coast trip to Maine and saw so many towns that I'd love to live it it the winters were better.
For a generalized perspective - I'd say jlawrence01 is spot on.
I've never lived there but know people who have and have the same remarks about life in LV. I also agree with his comments about AZ. Check out the larger Phoenix area.
I'm partial to CA, can't beat the weather. I've never lived in the San Diego area, but love it and know it gets less expensive (and less hectic)the further you move south of LA.
This might be something you might not think of in advance -- a friend of mine moved to Vegas and she is horrified by the number of pedestrian fatalities they have there. (She is horrified by the way people drive in Vegas, too.) She told me every night on the news there is another story about someone trying to cross a busy highway and getting killed. There are probably multiple reasons for this (are pedestrians just less careful than they are here in South Jersey? Do drivers just not slow down, ever? I don't know.), but if you are a walker by nature, it is something to at least look into.
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. I am sick of cooking all the time at home because the restaurants here tend to be mediocre.
