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I'm living in the snowy/icy midwest and looking for a milder climate to retire, and would prefer to be in or near a town between about 2,500 and 25,000 located somewhere in the greater Southern Colorado River area, Arizona, New Mexico, and greater Rio Grand River area of Texas. [Might possibly include southernmost California (inland from high-dollar San Diego), and southernmost Nevada & Utah.]
If I had to use one adjective to describe to ideal town, it would be "friendly". [looked to change my title from "...Best Towns..." to "...Friendly Towns...", but the editing platform doesn't seem to allow]
The more culture and things to do, the better, but I do have financial constraints and will be considering areas where housing and the cost of living are not in the most expensive fourth of the spectrum for these states / regions.
Would prefer January lows not too much below 25F, and July highs not too much above 95F.
Ideally would like to be within striking distance of a grocer along the lines of Natural Grocers, Sprouts, Whole Foods, Krogers, Aldi's, or local food coop. . A town with a college or university would be nice but I know that is possibly likely to boost the COL.
One other consideration [that I didn't mention in the original post] is that I am interested in the idea of building my own small, alternative-design (possibly off-grid, solar, small wind turbine, composting toilet, tiny-home/small-home, etc) and am hoping to find an accomodating, alternatives-friendly zoning/planning department with some flexibility in this regard.
Would prefer average to below-average crime-rates and "safer areas" -- in practice I am looking for some kind reasonable compromise between top-tier safety-security and affordable, average to below-average housing costs.
Looking for suggestions for towns / cities / areas that line-up with these criteria, personal stories (successful or otherwise), and related info from folks who:
- have worked or vacationed through this region
- have migrated to live/retire somewhere in this region, or
- are long-residing locals with a feeling for what retirees are likely looking for.
Last edited by JMT; 03-12-2019 at 01:35 PM..
Reason: Your thread is better suited for the General U.S. forum.
I'm living in the snowy/icy midwest and looking for a milder climate to retire, and would prefer to be in or near a town between about 2,500 and 25,000 located somewhere in the greater Southern Colorado River area, Arizona, New Mexico, and greater Rio Grand River area of Texas. [Might possibly include southernmost California (inland from high-dollar San Diego), and southernmost Nevada & Utah.]
If I had to use one adjective to describe to ideal town, it would be "friendly". [looked to change my title from "...Best Towns..." to "...Friendly Towns...", but the editing platform doesn't seem to allow]
The more culture and things to do, the better, but I do have financial constraints and will be considering areas where housing and the cost of living are not in the most expensive fourth of the spectrum for these states / regions.
Would prefer January lows not too much below 25F, and July highs not too much above 95F.
Ideally would like to be within striking distance of a grocer along the lines of Natural Grocers, Sprouts, Whole Foods, Krogers, Aldi's, or local food coop. . A town with a college or university would be nice but I know that is possibly likely to boost the COL.
One other consideration [that I didn't mention in the original post] is that I am interested in the idea of building my own small, alternative-design (possibly off-grid, solar, small wind turbine, composting toilet, tiny-home/small-home, etc) and am hoping to find an accomodating, alternatives-friendly zoning/planning department with some flexibility in this regard.
Would prefer average to below-average crime-rates and "safer areas" -- in practice I am looking for some kind reasonable compromise between top-tier safety-security and affordable, average to below-average housing costs.
Looking for suggestions for towns / cities / areas that line-up with these criteria, personal stories (successful or otherwise), and related info from folks who:
- have worked or vacationed through this region
- have migrated to live/retire somewhere in this region, or
- are long-residing locals with a feeling for what retirees are likely looking for.
by "Greater Rio Grande" do you mean the Valley or anywhere along the Rio Grande in Texas?
No to sound too unequivocal but I think given your criteria it will difficult to beat Las Cruces NM which has made the top of my shortlist in the Desert Southwest. While a college town (New Mexico State University) you're not dinged in the pocketbook in terms of housing cost in my opinion. The town/area has been forward-thinking in terms of alternative housing and even features an excellent "outlet center" for tiny homes. I have found Las Cruces quite friendly and well-educated obviously as attributed to NMSU faculty/staff/grads as well as those employed at the nearby White Sands Missile Range. In terms of crime, like most cities it's pretty fragmented with areas to stay out of being pretty clearly demarcated from my experiences. In terms of grocers the there is a Sprouts located in-town as well as a fantastic local option called Toucan Market.
No to sound too unequivocal but I think given your criteria it will difficult to beat Las Cruces NM which has made the top of my shortlist in the Desert Southwest. While a college town (New Mexico State University) you're not dinged in the pocketbook in terms of housing cost in my opinion. The town/area has been forward-thinking in terms of alternative housing and even features an excellent "outlet center" for tiny homes. I have found Las Cruces quite friendly and well-educated obviously as attributed to NMSU faculty/staff/grads as well as those employed at the nearby White Sands Missile Range. In terms of crime, like most cities it's pretty fragmented with areas to stay out of being pretty clearly demarcated from my experiences. In terms of grocers the there is a Sprouts located in-town as well as a fantastic local option called Toucan Market.
Cruces is way bigger than 25K (including the part of the county that basically the city it better than 200K).
A lot of it is kind of dumpy but it does have some nice spots. Mesilla Park is really nice and there are some nice spots up on the Mesas. If the OP is willing to consider a place that big it's certainly the best place it's size in that area. Plus the access to El Paso (and Juarez if it's ever safe again) is nice for some larger city amenities.
I think I posted a list on another forum but in that population size and (close to) that temperature range.
Texas
Alpine/Marfa/Ft Davis triangle
(There are multiple oil patch/cotton patch/ranching towns that fit criteria but I don't think they are desirable due to wind, dust, and are in scrubland.
New Mexico
1)Silver City
2)Alamogordo/Tularosa
3)Socorro
4)TorC
5)Deming
6)Carlsbad
(Several oil patch towns in SE NM that are similar to the towns in Texas. I did include Carlsbad because a good portion of the town is down in the river bottom and is greener and slightly more protected from the wind.
Arizona
1) Payson
2) Bisbee
3) Benson
4) Willcox
5) Nogales/Douglas (border towns)
(Arizona has other options in cities that are larger than the listed towns, slightly colder or warmer than the listed temperature or are pricey.
by "Greater Rio Grande" do you mean the Valley or anywhere along the Rio Grande in Texas?
Per my original thread, the part of Texas that I wish to include in the discussion is the
part of Texas that is south and west of a "rough dividing line" drawn from Lubbock to Corpus Christi -- generally speaking, the lower humidity half of Texas.
Last edited by GoldWings; 03-13-2019 at 09:11 AM..
Here's an example of roughly what I could be aiming for climate-wise: . Miami / Globe / Claypool AZ is about 3300 to 3500 ft elevation; the climate of Globe (pop. 7,400) is a little on the warm/hot side in July [average daily high of 97F], but not too far off the mark.
I'm also looking at San Bernadino, Imperial, and Riverside Counties in CA.
For example, the climate in Joshua Tree, CA is a little on the warm side in July/Aug [similarly, average daily high of 98F] but in the ballpark of my criteria.
But I'm not sure how well Joshua Tree or other SBC/IC/RC county towns & small cities might match up to my remaining criteria?
Last edited by GoldWings; 03-13-2019 at 12:31 PM..
Reason: accuracy
I'm living in the snowy/icy midwest and looking for a milder climate to retire, and would prefer to be in or near a town between about 2,500 and 25,000 located somewhere in the greater Southern Colorado River area, Arizona, New Mexico, and greater Rio Grand River area of Texas. [Might possibly include southernmost California (inland from high-dollar San Diego), and southernmost Nevada & Utah.]
If I had to use one adjective to describe to ideal town, it would be "friendly". [looked to change my title from "...Best Towns..." to "...Friendly Towns...", but the editing platform doesn't seem to allow]
The more culture and things to do, the better, but I do have financial constraints and will be considering areas where housing and the cost of living are not in the most expensive fourth of the spectrum for these states / regions.
Would prefer January lows not too much below 25F, and July highs not too much above 95F.
Ideally would like to be within striking distance of a grocer along the lines of Natural Grocers, Sprouts, Whole Foods, Krogers, Aldi's, or local food coop. . A town with a college or university would be nice but I know that is possibly likely to boost the COL.
One other consideration [that I didn't mention in the original post] is that I am interested in the idea of building my own small, alternative-design (possibly off-grid, solar, small wind turbine, composting toilet, tiny-home/small-home, etc) and am hoping to find an accomodating, alternatives-friendly zoning/planning department with some flexibility in this regard.
Would prefer average to below-average crime-rates and "safer areas" -- in practice I am looking for some kind reasonable compromise between top-tier safety-security and affordable, average to below-average housing costs.
Looking for suggestions for towns / cities / areas that line-up with these criteria, personal stories (successful or otherwise), and related info from folks who:
- have worked or vacationed through this region
- have migrated to live/retire somewhere in this region, or
- are long-residing locals with a feeling for what retirees are likely looking for.
Here's an example of roughly what I could be aiming for climate-wise: . Miami / Globe / Claypool AZ is about 3300 to 3500 ft elevation; the climate of Globe (pop. 7,400) is a little on the warm/hot side in July [average daily high of 97F], but not too far off the mark.
I'm also looking at San Bernadino, Imperial, and Riverside Counties in CA.
For example, the climate in Joshua Tree, CA is a little on the warm side in July/Aug [similarly, average daily high of 98F] but in the ballpark of my criteria.
But I'm not sure how well Joshua Tree or other SBC/IC/RC county towns & small cities might match up to my remaining criteria?
I forgot about the Miami/Globe/Claypool section. This is a dying mining area but it is a pretty area. Globe is sort of like Bisbee but not touristy.
If you are willing to go with what Globe has then the Verde Valley might work. There are some really nice places there. Sedona is close by.
Kingman and Chino Valley might work but they can be really windy for some reason. Not west Texas windy but for Arizona. I think Chino is still reasonable property wise include Prescott down the road.
I really love that part of the country. In fact I am going down to Alpine, Tx this weekend.
IMO Southern NM and W. Texas have the best climate in the US. Las Cruces is hard to beat but so is the west side of El Paso if you want to be in a bigger city. Also, relocation might depend in which state you wanna live in for taxes etc. Santa Teresa NM is a suburb of El Paso and is just as nice. None are cosmopolitan but laid back and have a hometown feel. The smaller towns between ELP and LC along the river might have easier zoning restrictions from the looks of it and are probably cheaper but you won't have stores very close and you might want to check on crime rates (check city-data). It's probably a compromise on having access to the finer things and easier zoning restrictions.
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