Category: Best Retirement Towns and States
Update Sept 19, 2017 - We updated this article. Here is a link to the new one.
May 3, 2011 -- When it comes to selecting your best place to retire the weather, climate, and exposure to natural disasters can have a major impact on your retirement enjoyment. We think these are important factors to consider, along with cost of living, taxes, culture, proximity of friends and family, and recreational opportunities.
Before we discuss some regions and cities that rank poorly for weather, let's talk about the kinds of weather and natural issues that could be detrimental to your retirement. Some of these phenomena are inconvenient, while others are deadly serious:
- Sunshine. It's true, people are generally happier when the sun shines. Rainy day after rainy day does not...
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Published on May 3, 2011
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Category: General Retirement Issues
by James Stevens
Our flight was climbing to cruising altitude for the long flight back to Atlanta when my wife turned to me and said, “It’s not just about the money, is it?” Being a long-married man, I knew instantly she was referring to the idea of retirement, when society said it was time to move from active working adult to unemployed older person.
“No, it isn’t,” I agreed. “Having money is important, of course, but there’s so much more to a happy retirement. I think this trip confirmed it.”
Retirement had been a major topic of discussion as...
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Published on May 3, 2011
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Category: Active adult communities
What shape do you think the market for active adult communities is in -- is it slowly returning to a healthy state, or is it dead in the water? Topretirements.com is compiling some basic research about the state of the active adult communities market (including 55+ communities), and we would love to know what you think.
Please use the comments section below to answer these questions. If you are a potential buyer, we'd love...
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Published on May 6, 2011
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Category: Active adult communities
May 6, 2011 -- What would you do if you were in this situation: Your community's golf course is in terrible shape, even though you and every one else in the community is paying homeowner association fees to maintain it. The developer of the community that owns the golf course is either in foreclosure, or about to be foreclosed on. Would you vote to buy the course?
That particular situation or variations similar to it are unfolding in...
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Published on May 6, 2011
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Category: Best Retirement Towns and States
May 9, 2011 — We thought it would be a good idea to put the links to our recent “Best” and “Worst” states articles in one place: – The Wall Street Journal reported on our “Best States for Retirement, 2011 Edition” article today, saying it was a “…nice…
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Published on May 9, 2011
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Category: Best Retirement Towns and States
May 10, 2011 -- Late last year our list of the "10 Worst Retirement States" caused a surprising uproar. Much excellent discussion came from it, and the experience gave us a new appreciation for the complexity of assigning factors to any "best" or "worst" list. Six months later, and with fresh data in from the Pew Center on the States, it seems like it's time for an update. This article will list the states that are in the most fiscal trouble from the Pew Center's viewpoint. In the second part of the article we will provide a recap of how these poor performing states stack up when it comes to taxes for retirees. We will not include any rating for weather/climate, as we did in last year's list. Climate is so personal and so widely understood that we don't feel the need to rate that factor for you.
The Pew Center recently published data on the unfunded liabilities of the states, The Widening Gap, for pensions and for promised future health care. The results are frightening, and carry broad implications that could affect your retirement if you live in one of these states (but more about that later). Although a few states are beginning to take action, the vast majority of states have chosen to ignore their looming pension problems. Many of them also have large deficits, which are equally as concerning. As we will see, most but not all of the states in trouble are low-tax states; some might argue that unwillingness to raise taxes has contributed to the mess some states are in. Here are some of the Pew Center's findings:
As of Fiscal Year '09 the states had a $660 billion
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Published on May 10, 2011
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Category: International Retirement
May 17, 2011 -- Maybe you've been wondering about the best places to retire in the world. Perhaps for you that means buying retirement property on a beautiful tropical beach in the Caribbean, or maybe a small European village. The attractions of retiring abroad are many - the low cost of living, the charm and high standard of living, interesting cultural opportunities, and warm climate. Tens of thousands of Americans decide to retire overseas, and maybe you will be one of them. Retiring abroad can be exciting, cost-effective, and totally enjoyable. But before you decide to retire south (or some other direction) of the border, you had better think about these ....
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Published on May 17, 2011
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Category: Best Retirement Towns and States
By John Durfee
I've still got a decade or two before I can retire but my father, also a veteran, is about ready to. Where my family lives is very important to me, and I don’t want to leave this decision to fate. With the help of my daughter, I did some research to find the best places to retire for military in that fit my father and me as veterans. This article will share what we found out about our top 3 locations.
Our Criteria
There are a few things in particular that I am looking for in a retirement location. First and foremost...
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Published on May 18, 2011
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Category: Adventurous retirement
May 23, 2011 --
Note: This is the first in our series of retiree profiles. Our goal is to portray a variety of active baby boomer retirement lifestyles for our members. If you know a boomer retirement we should know about use the Contact Us link to let us know about it.
Kelly and Demaris Edwards wake up to a dream retirement every day. Picture a historic country inn perched high above the shores of Lake Erie. The sounds of the lake are the first things they hear. The 13 room inn they own and manage provides them with the majority of their livelihood plus a great deal of personal satisfaction. This outgoing couple enjoys running the inn for many reasons, but their favorite is the chance it gives them to meet new people. Over the years many of their guests have become repeat patrons and personal friends.
Their unique lifestyle also frees them to become snowbirds every winter. In January when Lake Erie freezes and the lake-effect snows begin to pile up, the Edwards climb aboard their 30’ RV and head on down the road to Key West, Florida. There they stay in a U.S. military RV park where they relax, read, and exercise in the warm Florida sunshine. This article will help explain why their son Jim...
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Published on May 23, 2011
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Category: General Retirement Issues
May 24, 2011 -- Not so long ago many institutions were bracing for a wave of baby boomer retirements that were going to leave them with a major talent shortfall. But up until 2011 the opposite has been true, we pesky boomers seem to have been delaying retirement, and in fact we have clogged up the talent path for newer job seekers.
Multiple reports in the press have detailed the "just say no to retirement" phenomenon. The reasons for it are well known - just about everyone's retirement fund took a hit a few years ago, while millions of boomers have neither...
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Published on May 24, 2011
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