Category: Singles and Retirement
The best retirement places for singles: where are they?
Updated Nov. 2023. Note: This original article dates back to 2009 - wow! It has proved to be very popular over the years, especially because of the many interesting comments and observations by our Members. In preparing for this "re-release", we contacted some of the folks who have commented and asked them for an update. They have been added as Comments at the end.
It makes sense that the search for the best retirement places for singles should use different criteria than those used by married couples.
Before you start your search, retirees should consider these factors for the best retirement places for singles:
Bigger is better
Town or active community
Depends on what you do when you get there
Look for places where there is a lot to do
Find a community with an activity director
Where do the most single seniors live?
Look for a college town
What is the biggest concern about finding the best retirement places for singles
The Best Reading Lamp - $12.59
The most common, and certainly understandable, fear that single people have about retirement is that they will wind up in a community where most of the people are paired off. A retirement place where singles are at best ignored, at worst discriminated against. Fortunately with some careful planning and research you can find a retirement town or active adult community where single people are included and feel completely integrated in that lifestyle.
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Published on July 21, 2009
Comments 66
Category: Home and Garden
The current recession has had no end of side effects. Now a study from the American Institute of Architects finds another one - the era when giant McMansions dominated the face of North America appears to have come to an end.
The Home Design Trends Survey polled architects to find out what their clients are interested in building. It determined that buyers are interested in smaller, more energy-efficient homes than in years past. Large entry foyers with high ceilings appear to be out. What is in are enhancements to existing homes that increase living space from the existing footprint without impacting energy consumption. Indoor/Outdoor areas such as patios and outdoor kitchens, finished basements and attics, and other types of improvements are popular.
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Published on July 13, 2009
Comments 1
Category: Active adult communities
Our latest installment, "When Active Adult Communities Go Bad", might have put the fear of the Lord into many of our readers. This week's article is intended to provide the basic steps you can follow to minimize your risk in buying into an active adult community, and help you take advantage
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Published on July 13, 2009
Comments 2
Category: Financial and taxes in retirement
In the last year mentioning the word "retirement" often generates a pause or a snigger; it might even seem like you've made a sick joke. As in, "What retirement? My 401k has blown up, my job gone, and along with that my retirement dreams."
{GOOGLE_AD}True enough, millions upon millions of baby boomers are asking hard questions about their retirements. Sadly for many of us, the new reality is here - we won't have enough to retire on comfortably. For others the day of reckoning is all too close; they never saved enough. Even if there hadn't been a global economic meltdown, they were never going to retire in the lifestyle to which they had become accustomed.
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Published on July 6, 2009
Comments 0
Category: Active adult communities
Note: This article was originally posted in 2009. Although things have improved in some communities, most of these same issues remain in 2011.
With prices in some very interesting active adult communities sliced in half from just 2 years ago, it is tempting to buy a retirement home. But as many thoughtful people have pointed out, those bargain prices could have...
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Published on June 30, 2009
Comments 3
Category: Active adult communities
The first part of the definition is easy - there are a lot of people who are 55 years of age or older. By the year 2010 there will be 74 million people who fit that category in the U.S. - nearly 1 in 4 people.
Arguably the term "55 plus active adult" includes just about everybody in this age group-except for those in prison, hospitals, or who live a sedentary lifestyle. But realistically, the term
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Published on June 13, 2009
Comments 3
Category: Best Retirement Towns and States
There's a new retirement calculator in town, and this one is proud to be wearing a brown hat. The Retirement Ranger's motto says it all: "Hi Yo, silver-hairs, away!" (Thanks to OldNassau for that great motto).
Retirement Ranger is a Free new interactive calculator that delivers an instant, personalized list of best places to retire. Answer 11 questions and you will be emailed an instant, free report. Use your Topretirements user name and password to sign up, or create a new one if you aren't already registered. You can retake the quiz as often as you would like - it's free and there is no obligation.
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Published on June 4, 2009
Comments 1
Category: Active adult communities
Update: July 27, 2009. As promised, the IRS has expanded its audit of the tax-free status of more bonds after failing to reach a settlement with Community Development Districts at The Villages. The investigation now covers almost $400 million in recreation and other bonds, up from $64 million in the original audit. See the Bond Buyer Story for more.
Original Story: The Villages, the giant active adult community south of Ocala, FL, has received a proposed settlement from the IRS to resolve an investigation of tax-free bonds issued by 2 of its Community Development Districts (CDDs). The Bond Buyer reports that the settlement would mean that the Village Center and Sumter Landing Districts would redeem over $355 million bonds issued in 2003, pay the federal government $2.85 million, and refrain from issuing more tax-exempt bonds. The IRS suggested that
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Published on June 2, 2009
Comments 2
Category: Best Retirement Towns and States
CBS Moneywatch.com has just published a thoughtful article on Best Places to Retire Lists. Thoughtful in the sense that it recognizes that there is no one best place to retire, people need different kinds of lists to match their differing objectives and preferences.
Moneywatch limited its review of the lists only to those updated since 2008. That led to its 5 top rated lists - U.S. News, Money, Smart Money, TopRetirements.com, and RetirementLiving.com. Could we say that Topretirements was pleased to have come out as the most highly rated of the bunch - YES!!!
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The Moneywatch.com writer, Richard Eisenberg, liked Topretirements because of the "Zagat-like" reviews and a "wide variety of reasonable criteria" for selecting the best places to retire on the basis of "livability". Topretirements was rated best for finding towns that other retirees like.
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Published on June 1, 2009
Comments 0
Category: Active adult communities
In 2006 Central Florida was shocked and titillated to read this headline in the Orlando News: "STDs Running Rampant in Retirement Community". The community in question being The Villages, the sprawling active adult enclave spanning several towns and home to over 60,000 people. Dr. Colleen McQuade, a gynecologist, was quoted that she "treats more cases of herpes and the human papilloma
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Published on May 24, 2009
Comments 15
