What were / will be your criteria for choosing a location for retirement?

[Louis]

Many thanks to all who've shared their thoughts and ideas.

I do have a question for the folks in the PNW who are on the west side of Cascades, and therefore get all the rain in the winter (but thankfully, no snow).

One of the trade-offs between W and E of the mountains, is of course warmer, wetter winters on the W side vs colder, drier winters on the E side. Is the rain and long periods with no sun something you've gotten used to, or is it still a noticeable annoyance that at times really bothers you?

The comparison here, would be, say, Eugene/Corvallis OR vs Pullman WA.

[dbnm]

I am 51 and we are starting to talk about things like this. I have 2 young kids and would love to have a place for us in Tuscany. We'll see. In the mean time, we live in Albuquerque and have it rather easy.

Lots of people from LA are retiring here and Santa Fe. Cost of living is low, home prices are reasonable and the weather is hard to beat.

[metalheart]

My recent move to northern Wisconsin was motivated by obligation rather than preference, but we considered a variety of places to relocate and never found anything that tempted us away from our Gold County home east of Sacramento.

Eastern Sacramento County and Western El Dorado County has four season riding and reasonable quality of life with a wealth of amenities. Also, it is not far from San Francisco if you want the big city nor is it far from the Sierra and Lake Tahoe if you like mountains and snow. Yes, housing is expensive, but if you have a budget of 500k, you can find something. Examples here.

There is a 35 mile or so bike trail along the American River if you want scenic flat rides, there is decent riding on local roads, and all the hills you wish if you go east. It is a four season area and it can get hot in the summer, but then you just ride early or head to the mountains for a variety of road rides. The thing about summer heat in this area is that it usually cools to the 50's in the evening from the breezes that come up the Sacramento Delta from the Bay Area. There is a very active and diverse cycling community in the Sacramento/Folsom/Rocklin area.

Paso Robles area and especially the central coastal communities mentioned above are scenic and have nice riding from my experience. Price of housing might be an issue.

Prescott Arizona and some of the smaller communities in northeastern Arizona were considerations for us before we decided to stay put -- until now -- in California. Silver City in New Mexico as well as Clouldcroft are high quality of life places, but I especially like Ruidoso. I thought each of those communities offered decent road riding opportunities. We looked at coastal and inland communities in Oregon and I especially liked the Ashland area. Good opportunities for road riding and the weather is pretty nice.

I have several friends who have moved to the Lake Chapala area of Mexico. We visited them last year. While there are many attractions to living there, road riding is not one of them. Cost of living makes your dollar go a long way and for some the ex-pat type life style is satisfying. I'm sure there are other places in Mexico that are like Lake Chapala.

If riding is high on your list of considerations for a retirement location, three to four seasons seems a must.

[Hindmost]

"...have found some places in CA where $500k buys you a POC shack..."

Hey, that POC is my home. Just kidding.

I have slowly come to realize that close proximity to critical services has turned out to be pretty important. Having the grocery store and a hardware store nearby it's nice too--maybe I'm just spoiled. Rideable roads out the front door and the nearness of trails is also important.

[Waterlogged]

Louis,

Everyone cautioned us about the rainy winters in the PNW and it’s not that bad. We ended up finding beautiful summers and mild winter temperatures in the Seattle area that allow for year round outdoor activity if you watch the weather. The total rainfall here is similar to many parts of the country, but be warned that there are fewer sunny days between October through May. That being said, the traffic sucks and the politics can be a little “different”.

[choke]

I'm always surprised when I see people say that they want to retire to CA (I can understand people who already live here wanting to stay). Not only are the housing prices high but the cost of living is crazy IMO....food, gas, insurance, power, etc. costs are all at the top end of the scale. I suppose that many of you already live in places where the COL is high so it may not seem that far out but there are a lot of places where it's much cheaper to live.

I do get that we all have different tastes though....

[flying]

Originally Posted by weisan

My dad "retired" when he was 50. He's now 80.

I am always intrigued by others and how they handled their retirements.

I have come to the conclusion, retirement is not age-dependent, or where you live or how much money you have saved up...it's a state of mind and the way you have chosen to live...every day of your life, regardless of where you are and who you are with. I been retired long time ago...

Sooo true It is a state of mind

I retired over a decade ago at age 52 & never looked back.
Yet I have many friends still working & they actually dread retirement

Work is all they have known & they cannot imagine a life without working

[Tickdoc]

Originally Posted by flying

Sooo true It is a state of mind

I retired over a decade ago at age 52 & never looked back.
Yet I have many friends still working & they actually dread retirement

Work is all they have known & they cannot imagine a life without working

I am in this camp. Will be 50 next year and really no plans for true retirement in sight, barring physical limitations. My retirement plan is rather to cut back hours and watch others do the work for me. The work itself keeps me young and the interactions with people I meet make it rewarding. I would miss that dearly. Will Another 10 yrs make a difference? Maybe, we shall see. Doesn’t mean I don’t dream of a retirement home or of not having to go every day, but I feel fortunate that I am my own boss and can take off and travel as I see fit. Good thread.

[nortx-Dave]

Originally Posted by flying

Sooo true It is a state of mind

I retired over a decade ago at age 52 & never looked back.
Yet I have many friends still working & they actually dread retirement

Work is all they have known & they cannot imagine a life without working

I'm another early retiree when I retired 5 years ago at 53. I have siblings that always tell me how they would be so bored if they didn't work.

I'm never bored!

[jlwdm]

I am 73 and still working as it is something I enjoy.

For me I would have to be near a race track. I started taking a car to the track 2 1/2 years ago and now it is an important part of my life.

Taxes are an important consideration also.

Sunshine is also important. After 40+ years in Western Washington I have enjoyed AZ and TX for 25 years. Not sure I could live in the PNW again.

Jeff

[2LeftCleats]

My experience with wet weather in PNW is limited, having lived here only a year. We’re told that we went through a relatively mild winter and that that’s been the trend recently (due to climate change, possibly). I also get the sense that the farther down the coast, the drier. A BIL with houses in Seattle and Eugene says he thinks winter is a lighter shade of gray in Eugene. I came from the Midwest where winter is often gray. It’s warmer here and rain tends (again in my limited experience) to be briefer without the thunderstorms back East. We find it somewhat laughable when folks back home wonder why we “want to go where there’s so much rain”, when actual amount is about the same. But we’re not sun seekers; never cared for Florida.

[bigbill]

I was recruited for a job in Kingman, AZ with the intention of working until my son finished college then retiring. But not here. Now I have a great girlfriend who is an artist and teaches art history at the local community college. We're looking at building on ten acres east of town, kind of off-grid but not really. We'll have electricity but will did a well and install a septic system. We're on the side of a mountain so the well will be pretty shallow and being 1000 feet above town, cooler nights. I'll finish up my MA in American History in February so my retirement gig will likely be at the community college as well. No more of this engineering stuff.

[metalheart]

Originally Posted by choke

I'm always surprised when I see people say that they want to retire to CA (I can understand people who already live here wanting to stay). Not only are the housing prices high but the cost of living is crazy IMO....food, gas, insurance, power, etc. costs are all at the top end of the scale. I suppose that many of you already live in places where the COL is high so it may not seem that far out but there are a lot of places where it's much cheaper to live.

I do get that we all have different tastes though....

So, here is my limited experience take on cost of living in California to the Northwoods Wisconsin:

1. Propane and Gasoline are definitely cheaper
2. Groceries are equal to or more expensive and the quality of store produce is inferior
3. Property taxes are about the same or higher
4. There are fewer shopping opportunities in the Northwoods so I guess that means less opportunity to spend
5. Electric power costs are a bit less expensive in the Northwoods
6. Labor like handyman and property clean up services are more costly in the NOrthwoods: I think it is a labor supply demand issueThe overall tax burden in the Northwoods is not enough different than California to make enough difference for me to consider it out of question
   
   Depends on where you live in California and elsewhere. Over the next year we will have a better idea of the differences in COL, but so far I would not eliminate California as a retirement destination based on COL. Again, it is a big state with a lot of local variation that needs to be considered.

[T-Crush]

Is really hard to beat. We almost (index finger and thumb this far apart) bought a lot in Cambria in 1998 with the intent to build our retirement home. Deal fell through. The lot we were looking at was number 17 on the water meter list. Went back there 18 months ago for a weekend get-away and the vacant lot we were looking at was still vacant and still in the mid teens on the list.

In short, Cambria, and I'm assuming the whole coastal area from Morro Bay to San Simeon has a real water issue. Moral to the story is either buy a lot with a water meter (moving them lot to lot is fairly easy) or buy something already built.

[572cv]

Wife and I thought about many places, but decided, in the end to stay right where we are. We’re in northwestern Vermont. Yes, it gets cold in the winter, yes the taxes are high. But, we can cross country ski all winter, and our place is small and not really all that costly. The ambiance and the sense of community, the quality cycling, the great local food and beer scene, and a certain number of friends who have come to the same conclusion, have reinforced our thinking. With the current Covid situation all around us, we feel very lucky to be in a rural area, and the impact on our day to day lives has been lessened by the place, and the culture.
I still work, but since I work for myself, I get to call the shots on how much I do, and I am only taking a job( I design buildings!) when I feel I will enjoy it and contribute to the process.
So, I guess this is a suggestion to look around at what you have in the community that you might have been involved with, and make sure you aren’t giving up something that is actually pretty decent.