10 Worst States for Retirement!

Max temps in summer <85F, min temps in winter >25F, max humidity anytime <70% would be my basic requirements. NW Washington fills the bill very nicely. We lived in Tidewater VA for three years (job-related). The 3 pm thunderstorm every day in summer was a real trial - 3" of rain in 45 minutes. Moving back to WA was the best thing ever.

We're close to the water here (about 75 feet away across the street) and the bay outside the marina is about 600 feet deep a couple of miles off shore. Most of the water flowing into the bay is snow melt, so it stays pretty cool and moderates the temperature locally. Yesterday afternoon, it was 82 in town and around 72 in our neighborhood just 5 miles west.

I'll take the odd earthquake or volcanic eruption every 25 years or so rather than daily thunderstorms and tornadoes every week in spring and summer.

wintersun wrote:
My 10 worst would be redneck states with hurricanes, tornados, gun toting bigots. It is a matter of both personal safety and quality of life.

Nice. Glad to see how inclusive you are. No bigot, you :R

rode2nowhere wrote:
I am already looking ahead as to where to go if anywhere when I retire in 6 years, Heat never did bother me much, cold I hate. I am not rich, basically living paycheck to paycheck, { wife has walmart addiction }. After reading all this I am still at a loss, California or bust? Florida and bake?

X-2. Retired back to Indiana in '87. Still here after retiring again 4.5 years ago. I hate hot,humid and cold too. I am ready for mountains in summer and desert in winter. Not sure when that will happen.

Well I still have 6 years to go, a lot will change in that time.

My 10 worst would be redneck states with hurricanes, tornados, gun toting bigots. It is a matter of both personal safety and quality of life.

Always the availability of public transportation and quality medical care are ignored by the people that write these articles. My mother is 89 and the lack of a good public transportation system and 100% dependence on flying or driving has greatly limited where she goes and who she has visited over the past 15 years of her life. The quality of living in this respect would be much better in many other countries.

I am already looking ahead as to where to go if anywhere when I retire in 6 years, Heat never did bother me much, cold I hate. I am not rich, basically living paycheck to paycheck, { wife has walmart addiction }. After reading all this I am still at a loss, California or bust? Florida and bake?

It's not like all of Oregon is colder than average. The high desert east of the Cascades gets cold in the winter and hot in the summer while the western portion has warmer winters and cooler summers.

It would be a big job to accurately compare taxes and fees for every state. Sure, we have high income tax in Oregon, but we have no sales tax and property taxes are less than what my relatives in the Midwest pay for similar homes. Auto registrations are also cheap here.

My sister lives not too far from the beach in Los Angeles and she doesn't have to spend money heating or cooling her condo. She's owned it for over a decade and has never used the air conditioning or heating system.

I retired to San Diego County in 1996 and my tax footprint is extremely small. I pay zero property taxes. I live in my RV on government property, paying nothing for rent or utilities in exchange for a security presence and light maintenance. California has no personal property tax like many Eastern States. During the last 16 years, many years I have not owed any State income tax. In the years that I did, it has averaged $90 a year. Sales taxes in California are minimal on food items. My receipt last night at Walmart for $86.10 shows an 8% sales tax applied on eligible items for a total tax of $1.91. Most of California does not do a biennial smog check. Enhanced vehicle emission rules/laws apply to metro areas, and zip codes with a rural population density are exempt until the vehicle is sold. Gas in San Diego used to the highest in the lower 48 in 1996-2000. Even higher than LA to the North. Now gas in Chicago and many other cities are higher. As far as gas taxes, all States are equal when the overall figures include higher income, sales, property, personal taxes, and toll fees credited in the general funds in all State budgets that are applied to road construction and maintenance. My point is, it is not where you live, but how you want to live that should determine your retirement. For me, in California, 90% of my income is disposable income.

Bobbo wrote:

silvercorvette wrote:

goducks10 wrote:
Gun nut? I'm guessing that's a person who's crazy about guns. Kinda like a car nut.

Unfortunately it is most often used as a pejorative term.

The word "redneck" is often used as a pejorative term too, but a true redneck is proud to be a redneck. (My wife says I have delusions of redneckedness.)

Bobbo, proud redneck and gun nut.

I was born in NY and moved to SC a few years after I retired form the police force, I seem to fit in well down south because my neighbor calls me a red neck and it is meant as a complement, people may use the same words, one may be said as a complement the other as an insult. I am willing to engage in a polite discussions about various issues but personal attacks directed at someone because of their beliefs should be out of bounds.

silvercorvette wrote:

goducks10 wrote:
Gun nut? I'm guessing that's a person who's crazy about guns. Kinda like a car nut.

Unfortunately it is most often used as a pejorative term.

The word "redneck" is often used as a pejorative term too, but a true redneck is proud to be a redneck. (My wife says I have delusions of redneckedness.)

Bobbo, proud redneck and gun nut.