Are preferences in weather changing or are more Americans just retiring? (home, calculated)

[UKUKUK]

ALL ECONOMIC FACTORS ASIDE (THERE SHALL BE NO DISCUSSION OF TAXES, TEA, JOBLESSNESS, POLITICS, WHATEVER IN THIS THREAD)

I've noticed a lot of people say they're moving south to escapes cold, snowy winters.

Is this a new trend? Before, I never really encountered that many people that disliked winter until recently. Upon finding this forum, it turns out a lot of people prefer Atlanta's damp 50 degrees to Cleveland's snowy 30.

It's really surprising that people would move halfway across the country just over a winter that's still pretty cold in most southern metros.

[HtownLove]

people have been trying to escape cold for centuries. people have been using warmer climates as an escape for ages. Even when the New World was harsh and riddled with decease, European wives were still excited to start over in warm temps

[annie_himself]

Baby boomers are getting older.

[DubbleT]

Fifty degrees is shirtsleeve weather for me, and probably a lot of other people, not really all that cold.
That twenty degree difference in temps can make a lot of difference to some people.

~Although I headed a bit further north after living in the deep south, for cooler summer temps, a trend I see mentioned a lot in the TN and NC forums. So maybe it evens itself out somewhat.

[WILWRadio]

I live in an area with very hot and humid summers and I cannot wait to get out of here. Had enough of that kind of weather. I'll trade it for a New England or Minnesotan winter any time.

[po-boy]

IMO, the majority of people have always preferred to escape cold winters (although I know some really love them). People also prefer to not have extremely hot summers. Most people naturally prefer a mild climate with some variation in the seasons. That is a major reason that southern and coastal areas are becoming more popular.

But that certainly isn't the whole story as there are many other factors as well. The invention and affordability of air-conditioning is a pretty recent development (in the grand scheme of things) which makes summers less oppressive than in the past. The widespread spraying to kill mosquitoes and reduce illness transmitted by mosquitoes has cut down on a major reason to stay away. People are just generally more mobile now than in the past. Plus all those economic reasons you don't want us to discuss. And the fact that the population is aging.

[Jeromeville]

Yes, the rise of A/C is what makes southern climes tolerable (and therefore desirable).

[Thomas R.]

Yeah I think this is an old pattern, not a new thing. A possibly newer trend is the reverse, people retiring to the Pacific Northwest or whatever. Still not going to a snowy place though even then. I think there's a fear shoveling snow leads to heart attacks and many old people have circulation or other issues which make the cold more unbearable to them. (However I know old people, particularly older women, who find heat more unbearable)

[canudigit]

FWIW, What I think you tend to see a lot of on a relocation forum like C-D is threads started by people who are bored with or tired of where they live, don't have the life that they want, and have convinced themselves that if they move somewhere else and get a fresh start their job will suddenly be more interesting and lucrative, their marriage will get better, or they will have more friends and something to do 24/7. IOW, they want to blame things that have nothing to do with where they live on...well...where they live. They will usually present it in the context of not being able to stand one more cold winter, but the reality is, if you have a truly full life and are contented, who really cares if the winters are cold, especially since where you would be going has equally miserable summers so, presumably, it all balances out in the end anyway, right?

It used to take a lot less for people to be contented with their lives, that they were generally just happy to be working, have their health, and have a roof over their heads, but anymore it seems that what used to be good enough isn't exciting enough or something, and I think the general restlessness that you see throughout the forums here in C-D attest to that. Also, this migration isn't all one way, much as it may seem that way if you don't explore the forums for the northern states very much. Just in the past week or so there have been threads on the Michigan forum started by people from GA and TX who have randomly chosen Michigan as the state that they want to move to and are seeking advice to that end. I have also seen the same on forums for states such as MN, NE, OH, and WI. Sometimes people are actually tired of the hot weather and want a break, instead of the other way around.

Don't forget, if and when those people do move, find out that their lives aren't any better, and in fact may even be worse because they don't know a soul, don't go to the beach every week like they thought they would, miss the things back home that they took for granted, etc., nine times out of ten, they will NOT come back to C-D and tell everyone that the state that was going to be their personal paradise just didn't (ahem...) work for them and they are packing it up and moving home to stay, so the trends that show up here probably aren't reflecting the entire truth, since we're only seeing one side of the equation. Nobody really wants to admit that they miscalculated the situation to the Nth degree, it's embarrassing.

[Woof]

Originally Posted by Thomas R.

.....many old people have circulation or other issues which make the cold more unbearable to them. (However I know old people, particularly older women, who find heat more unbearable)

Yes, people don't tolerate cold as well once they get past a certain age, unless they've managed to stay in superb physical condition. Used to be old folk stayed in their home for a lifetime and gravitated toward the wood stove in the kitchen ..... or else the old guys used to gather around the potbelly stove in the town general store, and solve the world's problems there every day over coffee.

Most of the retirement trends are not so much to hot areas, but to comfortable cities - for example Prescott AZ or Santa Fe NM up a bit in the cooler mountains, or a cool breezy ocean beach in So Cal or Fla. So it's not just any old hot muggy place, but to an island of niceness in an otherwise hot area.