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.
Looks like my house will sell very easily to a cash buyer, as is, so now I have to figure out where I want to live. I will be travelling to the Midwest this spring.
Happy is a state of mind. There are lots of places you may think you will be happy. When you get there you may have a different opinion about the place. I agree with the poster who said friends are most important. They are for me. Like they say,"you can't choose your family" which is so true.
Some people want to follow their children around thinking that makes them happy.
Maybe the best thing is to go where you really love it and maybe rent for a while. That way you will have a better idea of the pros and cons of the area. I do love the winters in Florida though.
Happy is a state of mind. There are lots of places you may think you will be happy. When you get there you may have a different opinion about the place. I agree with the poster who said friends are most important. They are for me. Like they say,"you can't choose your family" which is so true.
Some people want to follow their children around thinking that makes them happy.
Maybe the best thing is to go where you really love it and maybe rent for a while. That way you will have a better idea of the pros and cons of the area. I do love the winters in Florida though.
I agree with your comments. The winters in Florida are lovely, its the 7-8 months of heat, humidity, thunderstorms, mosquitos, possible hurricanes, high homeowners and automobile insurance costs. In my job, I had to work outdoors a portion of every week. I get slammed with the humidity and high heat. I just can't take it anymore. I find that cool temps are invigorating.....I'll just have to buy a winter wardrobe.
I agree with your comments. The winters in Florida are lovely, its the 7-8 months of heat, humidity, thunderstorms, mosquitos, possible hurricanes, high homeowners and automobile insurance costs. In my job, I had to work outdoors a portion of every week. I get slammed with the humidity and high heat. I just can't take it anymore. I find that cool temps are invigorating.....I'll just have to buy a winter wardrobe.
Jeans, warm socks, sweaters, ski jacket, gloves, boots - all fun stuff. You are right that the cool weather can be invigorating and a welcome change.
Jeans, warm socks, sweaters, ski jacket, gloves, boots - all fun stuff. You are right that the cool weather can be invigorating and a welcome change.
Ahh, Minnesota. I spent an internship up there the summer before my senior year in college. I lived in Jonathan, MN and worked near Chaska. I loved it up there!
I have posted about this previously, but my experience is squarely on-topic for this thread topic. I am happily retired in the Los Angeles area, where I lived from 1958-1962 and from 1966 to the present. When I retired from full-time work almost ten years ago, I gave no thought whatsoever to moving somewhere else. I stayed here and have not regretted my decision because:
1. I value the rich, world-class cultural opportunities here: Live classical music, foreign films, ethnic restaurants, museums, and more.
2. I have friends here.
3. I already knew my way around and felt comfortable here; I like the climate and I like having mountains nearby. I liked my HMO (Kaiser) and knew how to navigate it. Still like it.
4. Three years before retirement I had already purchased the ideal (for me) retirement dwelling - a two-bedroom plus loft townhouse. No yard work, easy to leave for traveling(make arrangements for the mail and the newspaper, lock the doors, and go).
5. Existing contacts led to volunteer work which I find deeply gratifying.
6. I can easily afford to live here, as I have no interest in lavish living. No interest in designer clothes, don't need or particularly want a BMW or Mercedes or the like.
I am not claiming there are no downsides to living here - the traffic congestion is the biggest one, but many other cities also have bad traffic congestion. Rather, I am explaining why I am more than pleased with my decision to stay in place.
But to the original poster: I couldn't stand the heat and humidity of the Florida summers either. Yes, I have been there when traveling and experienced it first hand. Don't blame you for moving!
A big advantage of Kentucky is that real estate costs less, so you can own a nice house on a modest retirement income, and can pay it off faster. Being retired, with a house, with no mortgage to pay, makes you a lot more financially independent and less vulnerable to random bad luck. In a lot of states you can't even buy a house on a modest retirement income because it's not enough to qualify for a mortgage.
Kentucky also has other advantages for retirees. It's a compromise between hot and cold. It has cheap utilities. The bad laws and taxes are mostly against working people, not retired people. You can choose how rural or urban you want. They all have relatively cheap houses. There are places urban enough that you can walk everywhere and not have to rely on a car. There are places rural enough that you can have almost unlimited privacy and not have people bother you, if that's what you like. And last, but not least, Kentucky is so central that you can easily drive to visit friends and relatives in a lot of different places. No very long drives unless you're going way out west.
I have recently retired and I know that I want to move out of Florida, back to a 4 season climate. I would like to hear from folks that are retired and are happy in their location.....staying after retirement or those that moved to a new location after retirement. Happy and living now in.....?
Depends on what you want,If youlove the 4 seasons then New England is your only choice
good luck
I hope you still plan to come up here next summer. You can experience for yourself the best place to live. You've read my posts before about the NW Wyoming as well as Wyoming in general. It's really all true.
This is the real America, the one you remember from childhood. You can search long and hard, but you'll never find its equal. It's a special place for special people.
More than a million people from around the world come every year for the vacation of a lifetime, but I live here.
How many other posters live in places with thousands of tourist videos?
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.