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The air quality in the city is often not as good. For older people, that could be a problem.
As we age, our bodies fall apart. Cycling, gardening (which has anti-depressant properties due to the dirt) hiking and getting back to nature can often extend lifespan
But as mentioned, medical care often has something to be desired. It can be long distances away, especially hospitals. And with 1 out of 3 people ending up in skilled nursing, it would be good to be in an area where there is a facility not too far. So in the elderly stages, you feel less uprooted and it's more likely people will visit if you're not to far away
Yeah that is a tough pill to swallow every winter....Medford in southern Oregon might get enough to be more tolerable, I've thought about retiring there but that's only marginally better than Washington state so not sure it's worth it...I will say the summers are truly fantastic so I always want to move in the winter and then when summer comes I start to think "what was I thinking to want to leave."
We had some morning sun, but now it's getting overcast again. Same as it's been all week. It's only early November and it's getting old already.
Why stay in NYC for 40 years? JOB! The types of jobs in NYC aren't available all over the country. If you work in the finance district, you will be well beyond burnt out after 40 years and just looking for some peace and quite.
If you've never lived in a state like NY or NJ, it's easy to say you'd pay more in taxes. We are 2 of the highest taxed states in the nation. It literally costs a small fortune to live here and own a house.
I've lived in SC and enjoyed the cheap taxes. We relocated back to NY - a different part of the state - and holy moly we're taxed through the roof! I know why retirees flee here like Canadian geese migrate. They're saving tens of thousands of dollars every year.....literally tens of thousands of dollars. Property taxes here will make your head spin.
You are correct as I have lived in NY and now in NJ for 32 years. I am retired and do enjoy living in Central NJ but I am watching my pension check(not 62 no SS yet ) not go as far as it used to go. I have family in NJ but was thinking Lewes or Ocean View Delaware as it is much less in property taxes no Sales Tax no Inheritance tax and the first 12,500 on you pension is not taxed when you reach 60(NJ 62) and not to far from the beach or family . The Cons are heavy traffic for 9 months healthcare less attractions compared to NJ&NY and you also have to drive everywhere. But is seems everywhere there is Pros and Cons.
Pensions are all but gone in the private sector these days. The amount of people working on Wall Street who couldn't find jobs elsewhere is going to be very small compared to the numbers of average people working average jobs that could be found elsewhere.
Well, pensions are still a huge thing here, so that is one major reason we have not moved sooner, that and the kidlet.
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My job has never had straight second shift- it's either work a mix of first/second or only third. I've been working third for years now and as much as it's been brutal on life and health, it beats a day shift that starts at freaken 7a.m. Seventy-nine days left and I'm done.
Sounds like you need to look for another job. That is terrible
I am in your camp. I cannot start work at 7am pulling full time.
At least not for that many years, it's very difficult. Biological clock doesn't mesh
Right now it's Wednesday afternoon 1pm-Friday morning at 9:30am straight thru. perfect for me
Pensions are all but gone in the private sector these days. The amount of people working on Wall Street who couldn't find jobs elsewhere is going to be very small compared to the numbers of average people working average jobs that could be found elsewhere.
it's not just the high paying jobs that were the attraction. it was also the quality education the kids were receiving thanks to the high taxes.
IDK about you, but I'd rather pay higher taxes and have my kids going to 9 or 10 rated schools than pay less and having them go to 2 or 3 rated schools.
if or when you have children, trust me, you will be taking the schools into consideration.
I think the most important thing is to either have a support system waiting for you in the form of friends or family(even if just a few) or to assess how easy it will be to create a support system that fits your lifestyle. What that consists of will vary from person to person.
OP some of the assumptions you make are off imo. I agree taxes are not the end all, but I suspect you might feel differently if you were writing out a check for over $10,000 in property taxes every year for an average middle class home. Especially, when what you are mainly getting for that is snow removal when you could and most likely would sit at home until it melts since you don't have to go to work, your neighbors second grade teacher making 80,000 so they can live there too, the local cop who almost never draws a weapon making $100,000, and that's before you even get to the corrupt county govt lol.
Having a Costco nearby is not worth that level of taxation to me. I never went to Costco when I paid those taxes.
You also cant just move children from high cost areas when you are working if there is an ex spouse involved.
I also think you are minimizing/underestimating the impact of NE winters on many people, especially if you have never lived through them for years. Ditto with congestion.
And, you haven't even touched on the emotional reasons people may stay or relocate. I'm sure there are great places to live in the center of the country, but the east coast and particularly the SE is in my blood literally. For me, retiring south albeit in a different place than where I grew up was coming home.
Different people have different priorities. And, those priorities may change with age.
Utility costs are largely determined by your usage.
That's not totally true. Each state has regulations about what can be charged for electric and natural gas. When we lived in SC, our electric bill was higher because we ran the a/c most of the year. We didn't have a gas bill because there wasn't any gas in our development. The electric rates were considerably less than where we were in NY. The delivery fees we less. The taxes we less. Yes, our usage was higher, but our bill wasn't much higher.
We were part of an electric co-op in SC. If we had SCANA our electric would have been higher. It all depends on the company who delivers to you. Each one has different regulations by the state. Even here in NY, NYSEG is considerably less than National Grid. National Grid has been called National Greed by many folks. I haven't heard such a name for NYSEG. Then again, our rates don't go up every year and new fees magically appearing like they did when we had National Grid.
The simple answer which has been touched on is start exploring areas where you think you might want to retire 5-10 years out.
I have friends who just upped and moved and regret their decisions, and those who never looked back.
If you can't do that then rent. I would rather throw a few thousand dollars away on renting than absorb closing costs again a year after I purchased.
Some of us are creatures of familiarity, weather, geography, friends and family and we do not realize until we move away how much we miss the simpliest things.
A neighbor of my friend moved to Florida from Kansas to retire. All was well in their new lives until they returned home for a wedding and spent a bit of time with their grandkids. They felt they were missing out on to much and have decided to move back.
There are plenty of success story's of those who were able to relocate for retirement............but for some it has been costly finding out that their new location turned out to be something they never dreamed of.
PS. We are in the Information Age, taxes, utilities, median temperatures and everything under the kitchen sink can be researched to help you narrow it down.
You are correct as I have lived in NY and now in NJ for 32 years. I am retired and do enjoy living in Central NJ but I am watching my pension check(not 62 no SS yet ) not go as far as it used to go. I have family in NJ but was thinking Lewes or Ocean View Delaware as it is much less in property taxes no Sales Tax no Inheritance tax and the first 12,500 on you pension is not taxed when you reach 60(NJ 62) and not to far from the beach or family . The Cons are heavy traffic for 9 months healthcare less attractions compared to NJ&NY and you also have to drive everywhere. But is seems everywhere there is Pros and Cons.
There's definitely pros and cons to relocating. Personally, I don't plan on ever doing it again unless we're forced to due to my husband's job. Unfortunately, everywhere he could be relocated to is a large city. I would NEVER want to live in most of the cities where the company has offices.
I don't handle the heat well at all. I learned that living in SC. Heat exhaustion and heat stroke are not fun at all. I didn't enjoy the dry heat in Salt Lake City this summer either....it made me quite miserable and feel ill. Phoenix in January was ok, but it's not my kind of city. The only cities I'd consider relocating to are extremely expensive and I really don't want that lifestyle....the commuting....the expensive home...the high taxes. I am perfectly happy where I am. We're remodeling and adding on to our house next year so we are planning on staying put permanently unless a dreadful relocation is given to us and we have no choice.
I'll take my high taxes. At least, I know what I get out of them. I know what healthcare is like where I am. I can handle the tourists and college students here. I'm used to both now. I'm good not being in a large city. I grew up in a rural area and live in one now. I'm good. We actually are seeing an increase of people retiring here. Several folks from California have retired here! One bought a winery here. Another is building retirement townhouses for seniors nearby. It's a nice place to live....not much traffic....not much crime...it's quiet for the most part. If you like wine, apples, grapes, or cabbage, this is the place to be!
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