Retiring to a rural or semi rural place. Suggested thread (moving, friendly)
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’m sensing judgement from some posters. We get to choose where we live in retirement. That’s the beauty of retirement. If some people want small town or rural life, that is their choice.
However, when posts are made about aging in place, describing services and ways of managing into old age, I don’t see the point in someone posting with a trace of irritation, that those posts don’t apply to them.
I want to respectfully suggest that retired posters who live in rural area place start a thread about aging in a rural or semi rural place. There is probably some wisdom that could be imparted.
++++++++++++++
So as a retiree that is aging place in a rural area or (small towns) here are my thoughts and observations.
Not all rural/small town areas are created equal. Some are insular. Some are open to new people. Some have nothing going on, others do. Some have few amenities and zero health care, others have much.
Where we live is 9 miles from a town of just under 5000. We have four seasons and snow can be an issue at times. More than one power failure in winter. But we are adapted to snow and power failures.But what works for us is the friendly people, a town that has a good selection of restaurants, stores and decent medical care and many services for seniors. Good cultural climate. Not to mention high speed internet and good cell service! If one does their homework and looks at the factors they want, growing old in a rural area will work just fine.
I agree with you just like not all urban areas in big cities are the same. At the end it depends what you need most and what you are willing to not have. Both rural and urban areas have their pluses and minuses.
I happen to be one living in an urban area where I have every service I need including hospital within walking distance from my home, public transportation if needed is easily accessible those are huge pluses but there are negatives such as living in a very dense area, lots of noise, expensive area to live.
In retirement I’m planning on moving to a more rural community where the nearest town with hospital etc is about 15 miles away. Certainly a car is needed, but being closer to nature, quiet place, cheaper to live are all pluses. The community does have underground utilities, EMS service 24 hour, with recreational activities and high speed internet available. It also offers groups that will help with food and transport if needed so not totally isolated.
I’m looking forward to that new life but who knows if once I get to a higher retirement age depending on my physical and mental conditions whether I would prefer or need a more urban setting.
I’m sensing judgement from some posters. We get to choose where we live in retirement. That’s the beauty of retirement. If some people want small town or rural life, that is their choice.
However, when posts are made about aging in place, describing services and ways of managing into old age, I don’t see the point in someone posting with a trace of irritation, that those posts don’t apply to them.
I want to respectfully suggest that retired posters who live in rural area place start a thread about aging in a rural or semi rural place. There is probably some wisdom that could be imparted.
++++++++++++++
So as a retiree that is aging place in a rural area or (small towns) here are my thoughts and observations.
Not all rural/small town areas are created equal. Some are insular. Some are open to new people. Some have nothing going on, others do. Some have few amenities and zero health care, others have much.
Where we live is 9 miles from a town of just under 5000. We have four seasons and snow can be an issue at times. More than one power failure in winter. But we are adapted to snow and power failures.But what works for us is the friendly people, a town that has a good selection of restaurants, stores and decent medical care and many services for seniors. Good cultural climate. Not to mention high speed internet and good cell service! If one does their homework and looks at the factors they want, growing old in a rural area will work just fine.
++++++++++++++
So as a retiree that is aging place in a rural area or (small towns) here are my thoughts and observations.
Not all rural/small town areas are created equal. Some are insular. Some are open to new people. Some have nothing going on, others do. Some have few amenities and zero health care, others have much.
Where we live is 9 miles from a town of just under 5000. We have four seasons and snow can be an issue at times. More than one power failure in winter. But we are adapted to snow and power failures.But what works for us is the friendly people, a town that has a good selection of restaurants, stores and decent medical care and many services for seniors. Good cultural climate. Not to mention high speed internet and good cell service! If one does their homework and looks at the factors they want, growing old in a rural area will work just fine.
My worry is finding a welcoming town.
I had a very dear friend. She lived twenty years after her husband's death. She lived in the same NYC rent controlled apartment probably for forty years. However, the neighborhood changed. It went from a middle class Jewish/Irish/German to a poor Hispanic.
The supermarkets went downhill. Most middle class shops went away. She had bad knees so going up and down subway stairs was difficult. There aren't any subway elevators or ramps at 90% of subway stations. Cabs were luxuries for her.
She had to count her pennies. Everything in NYC - like food, toilet paper and cleaning products - is more expensive.
She had few relatives in Michigan, but no children. She died alone in her bed. She wasn't found for days until the neighbors notice the smell.
Cities change - maybe more than rural areas - I don't know. City life isn't always better. Sure, cabs are available for doctor appointments but rural areas have Uber now. Same difference.
I think what is important is having friendly people around. This is an interesting subject. I am glad it is being discussed.
------------------------
This goes to show how unfriendly NYC mass transit is:
Quote:
Twenty-two-year-old Malaysia Goodson was found unconscious after she fell down the stairs inside a subway station at Seventh Avenue and 53rd Street on Monday, January 28, the New York Times reports. At the time, she had been trying to carry her 1-year-old daughter’s stroller down the steps to a southbound train.
Many a time, I was completely stressed by subway stairs and strollers. If I had bad knees or another disability, I would be hard pressed to use the subway.
Rural areas all over have similarities, but a lot of differences.
Big trucks are common in rural areas. In some cases, they are used for what they are built for. In many more cases, they are basically used as a status symbol.
Some rural areas are live and let live. Where I'm from is not like that - if you don't believe in an extreme version of Christianity, it will be hard to fit in.
Location: We_tside PNW (Columbia Gorge) / CO / SA TX / Thailand
34,712 posts, read 58,054,000 times
Reputation: 46182
We've purposed to volunteer assist seniors to stay in their rural homes for nearly 40 yrs. That is not always welcomed by their family who wants them in an institution ASAP, so adult kids can sell the farm and spend generations of blood sweat and tears that provided it. Poof, it's gone. (Forever)
Eastern CA. All of those articles you see on the internet say CA sucks as a place to retire. But only due to being “expensive” and highish taxes. Once you leave LA or the Bay Area COL is not bad. Taxes pay for services that benefit seniors. And thanks, we were not lucky, but smart. Living as cheap as possible tax wise doesn't equal a good quality of life.
but as it got closer to retiring we realized that life would not be a good idea .
for one thing , we live in queens in nyc .
if i can't drive at some point we have one of the most extensive public transportation systems in the world here .. we had nooooooooooooo public transportation in the area in pa .
medical facilities and specialists in the area were few . we had scranton hospital but no world class facilities like here .
there were few specialists in the area and it usually required long drives elsewhere .
winters were long and boring with nothing to do .
the summer was getting boring and to find more interesting things to do required us traveling farther and farther .
if i wanted to work a bit in retirement , pay was a fraction of here .
we saved little on housing costs since here , we rent a two bedroom apartment in a building . no one lives with us .
we needed a big house to house all 12 of us when the kids and grand kids come so housing was more .
in the end we sold and decided to stay right here in queens where we have everything we could want.
that small town life was nice PART TIME . but when it came down to it , not for us full time daily . . not something i want to wake up to daily once the novelty was over . that is kind of what happened to us once the novelty of the area wore off .
when you are used to having everything you could want or do at your fingertips living that life full time was a radical change . for us it was not a good change once our retirement hats were on and not the life of skiing and water sports we bought there for .
Last edited by mathjak107; 01-29-2020 at 02:42 AM..
I'm retired (67) and have lived in a rural area for 30 years. Back in the day, we had live stock, horses, critters, but now I'm glad I'm done with that. There are never any days off. Now just a couple of Catahoula's. https://www.akc.org/dog-breeds/catahoula-leopard-dog/
Rural living is work. Few can afford to have acres and acres of grass to cut so you need a tractor (got one). Lots of time spent tending to your land. I enjoy that so no big deal. You'll need a generator since you'll probably have a well, for when the power goes out, it always does. By the way... rural areas are the last to be restored after a storm. You'll need an assortment of gas powered tools like chain saws, brush cutters, 4 wheeler or side by side, etc. Trees die and fall all the time, cut 'em up and on the burn pile or for fire wood. My "drive way" is 800' long, so get out the box blade and maintain it. Maybe gravel or 57 rock for a stable surface. You'll also need a trailer to haul stuff on or have someone deliver it. What about fencing? and if you have critters, what about water and feed?
If you can afford to have all this done for you great, otherwise expect to be busy EVERY day doing something. You'll need fuel deliveries too, propane for cooking or heat, diesel for equipment, and some gas too.... and vessels to store the fuel.
In addition like most outdoorsy guys, I have an 27' RV and a 23' boat too.
If you just want to live in the woods, it just ain't that simple... for most.
We moved to a rural area in Wisconsin 33 years ago. We will stay on in retirement. We have 80 acres. But there are 6 other houses on the road. Each has 2 acres. We do have a generator for power outages. There is a great hospital 20 minutes away. With an outstanding heart clinic. Shopping is 15 minutes away for most big box stores. Gas station with a small grocery is 5 minutes. We are 2 hours north of Madison for larger needs.
Our son and his family are here. They may not stay in 2.5 yrs when their son graduates from high school. They talk about a more moderate climate. We figure when we are retired if it snows we are home bound. We always have a full freezer we will be fine.
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.
