Category: Home and Garden
October 3, 2017 -- A whole lot of Americans are about to face a crisis as they enter retirement. Three quarters of Americans between 55 and 64 have less than $30,000 saved, according to the AARP. About half of baby boomers are looking at a retirement that is powered only by their Social Security checks. Since Social Security was designed as a safety net, not a luxury retirement, those checks will not be not enough for a comfortable retirement. In past articles we talked about different ways to cope with a retirement income shortfall. In this installment we explore an option that might be your salvation, if you find yourself in a budget-challenged retirement.
Get a Housemate or Roommate!
About one third of baby boomers are single, which certainly makes it easier to think about having a roommate. Couples can usually make a shared living arrangement work too. Millennials and GenX types are blazing new roommate trails as they start their working careers, so there is no
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Published on October 2, 2017
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Category: Active adult communities
Note: This list was updated in June, 2020. Six of the winners here repeated.
October 4, 2017 -- The allure of Florida's warm winters, soft sandy beaches, and every imaginable kind of place to live has made it a retirement magnet for over 100 years. Some retirees come here as snowbirds for the winter months only, while others move to the Sunshine State full-time - lock, stock, and barrel. However they come, Florida is by far the most popular place in the U.S. for retirement. This article highlights the 15 most popular active adult and 55+ communities in Florida, as measured by visitor interest at Topretirements.com.
We encourage you to use our Florida Directory of Active Communities to explore the more than 250 active adult and 55+ communities we have reviewed there under almost 100 towns. You can also use our Advanced Search to find communities by state, size, expense, type of community, amenities, etc. - you'll be sure to find what you are looking for.
A geographically diverse state
In many people's minds Florida is one big swamp or runaway, cookie cutter development. But in reality it is many different areas that look and feel
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Published on October 3, 2017
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Category: Home and Garden
October 10, 2017 — Every year we update our 2010 article, “Snowbirds Leaving for the South – A Checklist” with more lessons learned from our experiences. And better than that, we are always getting more great tips and practical suggestions from our Members. Check out “Snowbirds Leaving for…
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Published on October 9, 2017
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Category: Best Retirement Towns and States
October 11, 2017 — We wanted to alert you that our very popular series on finding Affordable Places to Retire on the Coast (Part 2) has been updated. Real estate prices for all 10 ten towns have been updated (almost all went up since the list was created in…
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Published on October 11, 2017
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Category: Work and Volunteering
October 15, 2017 -- The idea of retirement is supposed to be - that you get to relax and not work anymore. Unfortunately that concept is running up against a harsh reality; not having enough money to retire. In this article we will talk about some creative ways folks in that predicament are managing to survive.
A harsh reality
A record one in five Americans over 65 is working today, a reflection of our longer lifespans and a changing world. An increasing proportion of retirees in the workforce coincides with the avalanche of baby boomers hitting retirement age; the oldest boomers are 71 this year. Although many are employed because they like working, millions of others are forced into it because of their fragile finances. Three quarters of Americans between 55 and 64 have less than $30,000 saved, according to the AARP. According the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, Social Security constitutes at least 90 percent of income for more than one-third of retirees. And, since
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Published on October 14, 2017
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Category: Active adult communities
October 18, 2017 -- The allure of Arizona's warm winters, mountains, and deserts has made it a retirement magnet for a long time. Although most people who retire here come from the midwest or west of the Mississippi, it also attracts a fair number of retirees from the East. Some retirees come here as snowbirds for the winter months only, while others move to the Grand Canyon State full time. However they come, Arizona is one of the most popular places in the U.S. for retirement. This article highlights the 15 most popular active adult and 55+ communities in Arizona, as measured by visitor interest at Topretirements.com.
We encourage you to use our Arizona Directory of Active Communities to explore the more than 150 active adult and 55+ communities we have reviewed there under 36 towns. You can also use our Advanced Search to find communities by state, size, expense, type of community,
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Published on October 17, 2017
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Category: Best Retirement Towns and States
October 25, 2017 -- For the person looking for a urban retirement on a small scale, it is hard to come up with a better choice than Greenville, South Carolina. It has parks and a downtown that attracts people every day of the week, including Sunday morning. There are plenty of housing opportunities downtown that let you walk to just about anything you might need. There is an ever expanding bike path that runs through the heart of the downtown and 8 miles up the road - through the Furman University campus and on to Travelers Rest, SC. The cultural scene is hectic with frequent festivals, multiple events, and an array of cultural resources.
This fast growing town in northwest South Carolina has 68,000 citizens in the city proper, while the larger MSA area including Spartanburg approaches 1 million. The downtown has been the subject of intense and successful redevelopment efforts. Those have paid off, as the city won Great American Main Street awards from the
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Published on October 24, 2017
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Category: Travel
October 30, 2017 -- Reposted with permission from JungleRedWriters.com Blog
LUCY BURDETTE: Lots of people have asked me how the Florida Keys and Key West are faring after Hurricane Irma roared through. Friday was the first day we were able to see for ourselves. Honestly, it was a bit of a grim ride south, especially the area stretching from Marathon through Big Pine, where the eye blew across the islands. The road is still lined with piles of trash, boats washed ashore, and mind-boggling deposits of
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Published on October 29, 2017
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Category: Health and Wellness Issues
Coming Soon... How to Buy a Medigap Policy
November 1, 2017 -- Today is the opening day of the abbreviated Open Enrollment period for Obamacare/aka the Affordable Care Act. We know many of our younger Members are retired before they wanted to be, or work for companies that don't offer health insurance. If you don't have health care insurance, and you are not yet 65 or otherwise ineligible for Medicare, you have until Dec. 15 to do something about it.
In this article we will try to outline the basic facts about how to sign up for Obamacare. Many people assume, incorrectly, that Obamacare is dead. To the contrary, although wounded by Congress's umpteen unsuccessful attempts to repeal it and the President's recent executive actions, the reports of the ACA's death are greatly exaggerated, to paraphrase Mark Twain. It is still the law of the land and the vehicle for over 10 million Americans to get affordable health insurance. You can still sign up for (or change) health care insurance for you and your family without worrying about having to pay extra or be declined for pre-existing conditions. And if your income is under $50,000,
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Published on October 31, 2017
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