Retirement

It’s not in the Sun Belt and it’s certainly not cheap. So why is Santa Fe rated among the top spots to retire in the United States? For the same reasons it’s attractive to so many other segments of the American population. It’s beautiful. It has a healthy, highly livable, four-season climate. Its history is as fascinating as its mixture of cultures. And it has culture—the other kind—in spades: world-class opera, chamber music, symphony and chorale; flamenco and other live dance; theater; repertory cinema; art markets year-round, galleries, and museums; many film venues; excellent bookstores and libraries; and dozens of classes and seminars on any number of topics in the city’s public and private institutions of higher learning. The food here is superb, with internationally acclaimed restaurants offering creative fare for the discerning palate and dozens of lower-priced eateries with good, down-home cookin’. Active seniors can burn off the extra calories skiing, hiking, golfing, kayaking, swimming, or enjoying any number of other outdoor endeavors in an environment that begs to be enjoyed.

But there’s something else in Santa Fe, a je ne sais quoi, that makes it just a little more attractive for an older population than other cities with similar qualities—the relaxed atmosphere, perhaps, and a cordiality toward older people unmatched in many other cities. Indeed, a number of national publications have rated Santa Fe among the top places in the United States to retire. It even beats out retirement communities in Arizona, California, Florida, and other states because of the city’s lack of congestion. As one local senior citizen succinctly put it, “You can grow old here.”

The number of residents age 65 and older in the city of Santa Fe was 8,648, or 13.9 percent of the total population, according to the 2000 U.S. Census. The number of older residents continues to increase and officials of Santa Fe County expect those 65 and older will comprise 27 percent of the county’s population by 2020.

In this chapter, we tell you about the services and housing options available for the growing senior population in the Santa Fe area. For more news and information by, about, and for seniors, pick up a copy of Prime Time: For New Mexicans 50 Plus (see our Media chapter), a free, Albuquerque-based monthly tabloid found at newsstands throughout Santa Fe.