Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I would never move further than North Carolina except to follow my kids. I cannot stand the heat. Seriously we have too much of it here, but I can tolerate it.
I was attempting to move to Florida this time last year, but the drop in pay would have made it not worth it, even with lower house prices. I think I could tolerate the heat even though extremely hot weather is not my preference. But it looks like I'll probably be in NJ at least until retirement which is still a good 25 yrs away.
Taxes are high even where the schools aren’t so good, so it must be more than that
The taxes are high for a few reasons:
1. Debt from underfunded defined benefit pensions and retiree healthcare benefits for government employees (basically, taxpayers today and tomorrow are paying for yesterday's labor expenses)
2. Abbott districts for schools resulting in tax revenue from richer towns going to poorer towns
3. Redundant levels and numbers of government organizations with tons of redundant (and many overpaid) government employees
4. Aging infrastructure
Why people put up with it? Worst case is you are too poor to move. A little better is stuck due to their occupation not being able to earn enough elsewhere to make up for lost income and/or not wanting to leave family/friends. Best case is you like NJ.
i noticed alot of retired ppl go down south with that retirement income. I think the FL economy will quickly outpace NJ and even NY because of several factors. I also think major cities will have just as much amenities and opportunity as NYC and Philly. I have lived in orlando, and i see no difference in healthcare quality, local amenities and stores. More and more business, opportunities are opening up there and salaries and home prices are creeping up as well. So im not sure if people are “talking up” jersey or im just dumb and blind as to what jersey has to offer (other than a satellite of nyc). I get the job argument, but to me it seems thats shifting to other states.
A few years ago, some friends moved to New Hampshire, because it has no income tax.
Guess what? Their property taxes in NH are slightly higher than the property taxes that they paid in NJ on a home of comparable value, and they have found that municipal services up there are... not great.
And, NJ has eliminated income tax on pensions for most people, so they are actually paying slightly more to live in NH than they paid in NJ.
I'm googling to to find where NJ eliminated income tax on pensions for some people but I can't find it. Can you direct me? This would make a huge impact on my future retirement. Thanks!
I'm googling to to find where NJ eliminated income tax on pensions for some people but I can't find it. Can you direct me? This would make a huge impact on my future retirement. Thanks!
For a single person, as long as your total income for the year does not exceed $100,000, your pension benefits are non-taxable. NJ Income taxes are still withheld from my monthly pension payment, but when I file my tax return, if my income for the year hasn't exceeded $100k, every penny of those payments is refunded to me. This very welcome change began in--I think--2019.
Yup and it sucks because the pension itself is not excluded, so the fact that I work (taking me back over $100,000) means ALL of it ends up taxed. It's a great law for people who retired awhile ago on much smaller pensions and such, but it definitely isn't written in a way that I would call "retiree friendly" for retirees from the last 2 decades.
NJ really is nowhere near as bad as people make it out to be.
I could comfortably stay here for a while.
We all know that, but don't let everyone else in on the secret!
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
