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I am sure countless people here have already crunched the numbers and done the math. Bottom line: which states are the cheapest for retirees taking into consideration housing costs, COL, taxes (including on retirement income), etc.?
Location: We_tside PNW (Columbia Gorge) / CO / SA TX / Thailand
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really depends a lot on income amounts and sources...
but (with low income / low housing costs...) the general USA answer is:
Mississippi
Arkansas
Oklahoma
West Virginia
Indiana
Louisiana
Kentucky
Missouri
Alabama
Tennnessee
Not all specifically in order, since needs vary as do localities.
Of course many won't consider a retirement home east of the Mtn Time Zone (summer Humidity and heat / downwind pollution, public Open Space....)
Then there are those who require services (including specific HC or state assistance), which the top 10 can be limited.
Culture, terrain, family, travel, recreation...
Lots matter, much far more important than cost. (to some)
Several Texas retiree neighbors have been fleeing to NW Arkansas, Take the money and run, while still able! (equity and income tax free previous wage / investment earnings)
I suspect the BEST financial choice will change at least 4-6x during my retirement (due to my income source changes, and personal needs, and state regs)
Each state has expensive areas and inexpensive areas. Income at different levels can be handled differently. In short, there is no one answer.
Agree. A finer scale than state level is probably going to be more meaningful. "Cheap" is relative in any case. You're going to give up something else to get it but that something else may make all the difference. If you can't get something you need in one location (because its cheap) and have to travel somewhere else for it, what did you save?
Last edited by Parnassia; 04-21-2021 at 05:43 PM..
There are probably at least a dozen different lists out there regarding this....
-cheapest overall state
-cheapest state to buy a house
-cheapest state to retire in
Here's one I just googled...the cheapest states in America 2020. Mississippi usually comes in 1st place.
Mississippi
Arkansas
West Virginia
Tennessee
South Dakota
Alabama
Kentucky
Ohio
South Carolina
Indiana https://www.homesnacks.com/cheapest-...%20Indiana.%20
I am sure countless people here have already crunched the numbers and done the math. Bottom line: which states are the cheapest for retirees taking into consideration housing costs, COL, taxes (including on retirement income), etc.?
Based on my travels and temporary contract work all over the US during about 20 years, I tried to make a guess before I opened this thread. My guess was Mississippi, and it looks as though that is the correct answer! It took me about one second to guess, and no other state occurred to me as a possible contender for #1.
really depends a lot on income amounts and sources...
but (with low income / low housing costs...) the general USA answer is:
Mississippi
Arkansas
Oklahoma
West Virginia
Indiana
Louisiana
Kentucky
Missouri
Alabama
Tennnessee
Not all specifically in order, since needs vary as do localities.
Of course many won't consider a retirement home east of the Mtn Time Zone (summer Humidity and heat / downwind pollution, public Open Space....)
Then there are those who require services (including specific HC or state assistance), which the top 10 can be limited.
Culture, terrain, family, travel, recreation...
Lots matter, much far more important than cost. (to some)
Several Texas retiree neighbors have been fleeing to NW Arkansas, Take the money and run, while still able! (equity and income tax free previous wage / investment earnings)
I suspect the BEST financial choice will change at least 4-6x during my retirement (due to my income source changes, and personal needs, and state regs)
I'll add another - some (I) won't live south of the Mason-Dixon line/Bible Belt..but that's just me.
You should also consider your lifestyle and what you would like to do with your free time: do you enjoy beaches, mountains, fishing, surfing, walking/hiking, hunting etc. You want areas humid heat, dry heat, some snow, four seasons? City life? Driving/walking distance? Retirement communities? Land and ranch living?
Do you need to be close to medical facilities? International airports?
etc...
I'll add another - some (I) won't live south of the Mason-Dixon line/Bible Belt..but that's just me.
I feel the same way. When you look at those lists, the cheapest states are the worst for a lot of things. It depends upon what is important to you. If some people want Bible Belt stuff, they can have it, but stay away from me. I'd rather be poor and live in one of the states with which I am familiar, where people share the same values as I do, where the health care is good, where people are pretty well educated, where the foods are familiar, where people care about schools and libraries, and where most people are "live and let live."
Climate is important though and there aren't that many great climates in the USA. Some countries accept immigrants for retirement so that would be another consideration, but again, I'd want familiar food and compatible values. Cheapest state? I wouldn't want it.
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