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SC is rated at "most tax friendly" for excluding $10,000 of retirement income (up to $3,000 for taxpayers under 65) with taxpayers age 65 or older being able to deduct $15,000 ($30,000 for joint filers) from all taxable income. Military retirement income and Railroad Retirement benefits are fully exempt.
Georgia is merely "tax friendly" but allows retirees 65 and over to deduct $65,000 of retirement income (up to $35,000 for taxpayers age 62 to 64) which includes pensions and withdrawals from retirement accounts. Georgia also exempts the first $4,000 ($5,000 beginning in 2024) of earned income. While military retiree pay is included in that $65K, as of January 1, 2022, veterans over 62 get an additional $17500 tax exemption on top of the 65K.
Beginning July 1, 2022, up to $35,000 of military retirement pay is exempt for veterans under 62 years of age.
Social Security is not taxed in either state.
Just did our 2022 taxes (married filing joint), well over 100K income from pensions and SS and 0, yup, 0 state taxes owed. Loving me some Georgia!
Thanks for posting the info above. I am returning to the USA in September and will likely find a place to live in the southeastern states (not in FL). I am originally from CA and have lived in AZ, NJ and Alabama. I knew about Georgia's retiree income exclusions of $65K for over age 65, in addition to tax-free SS. That's a good deal, and GA does not tax groceries like Alabama does.
I'll likely look for a place to rent near Columbus or LaGrange, not far from Alabama where I lived in the late 1990s. It's also not far from Atlanta airport if I want to fly somewhere for a vacation trip.
Thanks for posting the info above. I am returning to the USA in September and will likely find a place to live in the southeastern states (not in FL). I am originally from CA and have lived in AZ, NJ and Alabama. I knew about Georgia's retiree income exclusions of $65K for over age 65, in addition to tax-free SS. That's a good deal, and GA does not tax groceries like Alabama does.
Then you better tell Publix, Kroger, and Whole Foods because they've been applying a 3% tax on all my groceries since I moved to Georgia last year.
But on a more serious note, your statement is a perfect example of why relying on Internet sources can be fraught with peril. The explanation is that while the state itself does not tax groceries, the counties and cities can and do. Georigia has a state sales tax rate on most items of 4%, and as you noted, groceries are exempt. However, where I live in Savannah, Chatham County adds a 3% sales tax on most items, including groceries. So the overall sales tax rate here is 3% on groceries and 7% on everything else.
Then you better tell Publix, Kroger, and Whole Foods because they've been applying a 3% tax on all my groceries since I moved to Georgia last year.
But on a more serious note, your statement is a perfect example of why relying on Internet sources can be fraught with peril. The explanation is that while the state itself does not tax groceries, the counties and cities can and do. Georigia has a state sales tax rate on most items of 4%, and as you noted, groceries are exempt. However, where I live in Savannah, Chatham County adds a 3% sales tax on most items, including groceries. So the overall sales tax rate here is 3% on groceries and 7% on everything else.
MMOB, thanks for the correction - somehow I forgot that counties in GA have sales tax in addition to the state sales tax, and the counties don't exempt food. Some counties in GA appear to have 4% sales which is more than in Savannah.
You have to look at the entire of ALL the various taxes when you look to move somewhere.
And sometimes there's hidden benefits.
I do have some benefits though living in a beach town. The revenue from tourism is tremendous boost to our local city revenue and so we have lots of nicely built public beach parking with showers/bathrooms and I pay nothing to park.
Has anyone made a decision between these two states as to which is better as far as SS and taxes. Also did you buy into a over 55 community, and which one did you choose and why.
We have been looking in Florida but the sinkholes are in issue in some areas that we like and traffic and heat are also something we are thinking about. SC seems to be a more relaxed area, Conway or Little River look nice
Appreciate all advice.....this is getting very confusing
I lived in both so I can give you some ideas.
Florida vs. SC
No income tax vs. Income tax Importance of this depends on how much taxable income you bring in. Florida no tax South Carolina tax
No estate tax in Florida or South Carolina
Property tax
Very high in Florida very reasonable in South Carolina if your home is your primary. For example my home is about $10K a year, in South Carolina that same value house it might be $3 or $4K. Most in South Carolina pay far less than that as home prices are generally lower. For us the no income tax and increase in property tax evens out for same cost house though in South Carolina even if we moved from where we lived we probably would have a less expensive house and would have paid far less than $3-4K.
Initial car registration now evens out, when I lived in South Carolina it was cheaper but they since increased the initial registration cost. South Carolina charges a yearly property tax including registration fee every two years. Florida after the initial fees/tax only charges a registration fee every two years.
Conway and Little River are near Myrtle beach which can be high traffic, especially during certain times of the year (bike weeks). We have bike weeks as well but I don't notice the traffic as much as I did in Myrtle Beach.
Roads, far better in Florida. South Carolina needs to step up their game on their roads, especially 95.
Sales tax. South Carolina exempts food and medicine I believe, Florida does not
Publix In South Carolina you don't have to buy two to get the price of a BOGO. If you only need one of an item it is half price on any BOGO deal. Not so at Florida Publix.
Yes, but those high taxes might not impact a lot of seniors. In addition to S.C. not taxing Social Security, up to $30k of other retirement income from pensions, IRAs, 401(k)s, etc., is tax-free for married couples aged 65+. So theoretically, such a couple could have a six-figure retirement income and not pay a penny in state income taxes.
My taxes on current retirement income in SC vs CA from smartasset - SC was only about $1K less, if you look at taxes with IRA/ROTH conversion, SC is about $2K less; on the other hand states like NV, TN and FL are almost $15K less - big difference.
Other factors - DW lived in SC for several years, has no desire to move back - I lived in FL and could see moving back again.
Very high in Florida very reasonable in South Carolina if your home is your primary.
Florida property tax is higher than South Carolina, but in no way can it be characterized as "very high" in general. In fact, Florida's property tax is slightly below the national average.
Quote:
Originally Posted by NorthofHere
Initial car registration now evens out, when I lived in South Carolina it was cheaper but they since increased the initial registration cost. South Carolina charges a yearly property tax including registration fee every two years. Florida after the initial fees/tax only charges a registration fee every two years.
This is not quite correct. Florida charges an annual registration fee; however, car owners have the option of paying for two years (at double the annual fee, of course) at one time.
Quote:
Originally Posted by NorthofHere
Sales tax. South Carolina exempts food and medicine I believe, Florida does not
This, too, is incorrect. Florida exempts groceries from sales taxes; however, if you purchase a ready-to-eat, prepared item in a grocery store, then that would be taxed. In other words, if you bought a sub sandwich from the deli in Publix it would be taxed, but if you just purchased the individual ingredients and made the sandwich yourself at home, none of the ingredients would be taxed.
Quote:
Originally Posted by NorthofHere
Publix In South Carolina you don't have to buy two to get the price of a BOGO. If you only need one of an item it is half price on any BOGO deal. Not so at Florida Publix.
Georgia is the same as SC in that respect. It was a pleasant surprise I learned by accident when we first moved up here from Miami last year. I had inadvertently put an odd number of a BOGO item in my cart and when I realized it in the checkout lane, the cashier told me it didn't matter.
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Has anyone made a decision between these two states as to which is better as far as SS and taxes. Also did you buy into a over 55 community, and which one did you choose and why. 
