Where to retire?

Preparing for life after work. RRSPs, RRIFs, TFSAs, annuities and meeting future financial and psychological needs.
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ghariton
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Where to retire?

Post by ghariton »

From the New York Times and so slanted toward US retirees, but still of interest:
According to a report this year from Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate, 57 percent of baby boomers say they plan to move to a new home in retirement. When asked which type of community they were likely to choose, 39 percent said a small town, like Chapel Hill, or a rural community. The next choice was a 55-and-older community (27 percent), followed by a metropolitan city (26 percent); 8 percent picked “lifestyle” communities (such as ones for active retirees, planned around golf courses).

Almost one-third of those canvassed plan to spend retirement in a different state from the one in which they currently live.

<snip>

A recent report by Bankrate.com looked at several factors in determining which states offer the best quality of life for retirees, including local weather, cost of living, crime rate, health care quality, tax burden and well-being (a measurement from the Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index that quantifies how satisfied residents are with their surroundings).

The five best states for retirement were South Dakota, Colorado, Utah, North Dakota and Wyoming. Popular retiree spots like Florida and Arizona don’t even make the top 10. The five worst states for retirement, according to the report, were New York, West Virginia, Alaska, Arkansas and Hawaii.
Retire to North Dakota, eh? I'll have to think about that.

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Re: Where to retire?

Post by deaddog »

ghariton wrote:Retire to North Dakota, eh? I'll have to think about that.

George
Makes S Dakota a vacation destination. :D
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poedin
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Re: Where to retire?

Post by poedin »

deaddog wrote:
ghariton wrote:Retire to North Dakota, eh? I'll have to think about that.

George
Makes S Dakota a vacation destination. :D
Would S Manitoba be the Canadian mid-continent equivalent for local climate ? :wink:
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Re: Where to retire?

Post by kcowan »

Unfortunately well-being does not include being comfortable...and being close to relatives.

I wonder if any of these studies count mosquitos? Northern Alberta would be good except for them.
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Re: Where to retire?

Post by izzy »

poedin wrote:
deaddog wrote:
ghariton wrote:Retire to North Dakota, eh? I'll have to think about that.

George
Makes S Dakota a vacation destination. :D
Would S Manitoba be the Canadian mid-continent equivalent for local climate ? :wink:
We got Lakeland and good fishing. If it was not for the mosquitos in the summer and the winter cold it would be perfect :rofl:
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Re: Where to retire?

Post by Shakespeare »

If it was not for the mosquitos in the summer and the winter cold it would be perfect :rofl:
3 months of mosquitoes and 9 months of winter doesn't leave much. :wink:
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Re: Where to retire?

Post by izzy »

Shakespeare wrote:
If it was not for the mosquitos in the summer and the winter cold it would be perfect :rofl:
3 months of mosquitoes and 9 months of winter doesn't leave much. :wink:
Ah ! but you meet the nicest people :D
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Re: Where to retire?

Post by parvus »

With frozen smiles alternating with mosquito-stung lips. :wink:
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Re: Where to retire?

Post by Peculiar_Investor »

What financial considerations would FWF'ers include in the determination of where to retire? Taxes (provincial and/or local) and cost of living come to mind. With a nod to the article George linked, would health care quality be a factor?

I'd also be interested to find out what percentage of FWF'ers would say they plan to move to a new home in retirement. For those in retirement, how many had a plan to move before retiring and did you implement it. If so, why. If not, why not.
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Re: Where to retire?

Post by westinvest »

We moved from Toronto to Kelowna at retirement, that had been planned for many years, had bought land several years before moving. I grew up in BC so moving back was always a priority, I'm a mountains and lakes kind of guy, and the climate is better. Taxes were not a consideration, but I think have worked slightly in our favour. Cost of living about the same, although I would probably have a tough time building a house here now for the cost that we built 15 years ago.
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Re: Where to retire?

Post by freedom_2008 »

ghariton wrote:From the New York Times and so slanted toward US retirees, but still of interest:
According to a report this year from Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate, 57 percent of baby boomers say they plan to move to a new home in retirement. When asked which type of community they were likely to choose, 39 percent said a small town, like Chapel Hill, or a rural community. The next choice was a 55-and-older community (27 percent), followed by a metropolitan city (26 percent); 8 percent picked “lifestyle” communities (such as ones for active retirees, planned around golf courses). ...
snap ...
In 2007, one year before we stopped working, we visited one friend who was 60 and living in a 55+ community in NJ, and stayed with them for few days. The houses there were newer but were of lower quality, and people there were friendly but most were very old. Although there seemed to have some activities going on, including a community garden, somehow we felt a bit depressed there, almost like staying in a retirement home, everyone was waiting to die. :(

We knew that there are certain concentration of old people in Victoria as well, so after retired and moved back to here, we bought our current house next to the University. Having lots free time after stopped working, we can and do join all interesting seminars/talks offered by or held on campus, and spend times in University library as well. Actually those (visit and walk in University campuses and city main libraries), in addition to hiking, are the activities we like to do in each city we visited, NA or aboard, working or retired.

Yes, we are getting older, but we have to stay young at heart and in mind, regardless the age. :wink:
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Re: Where to retire?

Post by parvus »

I've often thought of retiring to a small Ontario/Quebec town with low housing inflation and walkable amenities. The internet changes so many, many things.
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Shakespeare
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Re: Where to retire?

Post by Shakespeare »

I've often thought of retiring to a small Ontario/Quebec town with low housing inflation and walkable amenities. The internet changes so many, many things.
As age creeps up, a large nearby hospital becomes desirable - internet notwithstanding. This eliminates the smaller centres, although something like, say, Guelph might be worth considering.
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Re: Where to retire?

Post by AltaRed »

The priorities for me were good access to health care/hospital (becoming more important as one ages), a reasonable climate, and to live amongst people younger than me. I did think about cost of living and taxes (income and sales taxes mostly) as secondary issues but felt they would eventually be trumped by other things (and they were).

I initially retired in Calgary but the less than stellar climate got to me as did the size of the city. SO and I eventually moved to West Kelowna as soon as she retired (some 7 years after I retired). The drivers of a small to medium sized city (metro area of about 180,000) and a much better climate (along with wineries and lakes) trumped higher provincial income tax and sales tax rates....and a monster land transfer tax that leaves Albertans speechless. Ultimately, money was not everything though i remain pissed at the 5 digit land transfer tax we paid.

I never considered full time retirement outside Canada so that left only a few places to realistically consider in Canada when it came to climate. The Okanagan trumped the West Coast because of a drier climate, less costly and it is an accessible midpoint (by air or auto) between family in Alberta and on the West Coast. We did consider living in a retirement community (strata type walkout bungalows) and looked at a few but the depressing thought of living amongst people who all appeared to be older than us turned us off. There will be a time for that perhaps when we are 80.
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Re: Where to retire?

Post by freedom_2008 »

Very often hospitals are not far away from universities, especially the ones with medical schools. :)
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Re: Where to retire?

Post by SQRT »

We retired in late 2006 and prior to that we thought about moving to Canmore, Alberta. Financial considerations played a big part but once we got there in 2007 we fell in love with the scenery and young active lifestyle. About 16,000 people good health care and plenty of community activities. I took up skiing for the first time at age 57 and love it. The biking is superb. Granted the weather can be cold in the winter but we eventually bought a place in Arizona for that.
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Re: Where to retire?

Post by Shine »

Some people may relocate for retirement for fiscal benefit, or maybe climate reasons,(golf/sailing/gardening) however one should not overlook the benefit of the network of ones' friends.

I know some couples who chose to sell and relocate to better climates and such, but then found themselves remote from their families and bereft of long time friends.

A variation on that old Freak Brothers thing about "drugs will get you through times of no money much better than money will get you through times of no drugs". 8)

For me, having access to a good family doctor and responsible specialists with less than a two years wait time is important.
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Re: Where to retire?

Post by parvus »

Actually, come to think of it, I'm happy where I am. It's there's just too many "white" people moving in, and they upset the balance of the neighbourhood, with their flash and bling, their (upwardly mobile) gangs parading down the street, their protection rackets (give us a latte, barista) ...
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Re: Where to retire?

Post by scomac »

We plan on moving when my wife retires in the next few years. She is already looking at potential locations. For us, the priorities are going to be proximity to water, climate, healthcare and proximity to family and friends. In all likelihood this won't mean much of a move at all beyond changing residence to something newer and more manageable as we age. Retirement communities don't appeal to us. I'd much rather live within a diverse community that offers a wide variety of activities within walking/biking distance. I suspect that we will consider wintering, at least partially, in a southern clime (as long as insurance is affordable).
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Re: Where to retire?

Post by kcowan »

A few people consider Hamilton a retirement location, or St. Catherines? My business partner lives in Hamilton and sails on the Bay.

I worked for Megacorp all over but at the HQ in Toronto immediately before retirement. Then I got a consulting gig as VP OPS for a service bureau that had their major center in Mississauga but datacenters in Regina and Burnaby. I would spend one week a month in each of the western centers. It was a week in February in Burnaby with blue skies, green trees and blue water and temperatures in the mid-60s that convinced me to move west. Being in the three locations every month really helped with the comparison.

Once retired ten years later, we found the weather to be a bigger factor and decided to snowbird once our obligations to family were complete (2008). So we enjoy the summer in BC overlooking English Bay, Stanley Park and Vancouver Island and the winter in PV where the weather from mid-November to mid-May is perfect (same latitude as Hawaii but with low humidity and little rain).

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Re: Where to retire?

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kcowan wrote:A few people consider Hamilton a retirement location, or St. Catherines? My business partner lives in Hamilton and sails on the Bay.
We currently live in Hamilton. It meets the climate (for the most part), healthcare and friends and family requirements. Financially it is heralded as affordable, yet with the current and increasing property tax rates and crumbling infrastructure (not to mention ridiculous auto insurance rates visa vie Burlington for example), on going costs are not as cheap, but one could say it's a wash. So far, we have been looking at some of the smaller communities in the vicinity on Lake Ontario. We aren't sailors, or even boaters for that matter, but we do find a certain appeal and peace to being on the water.
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Re: Where to retire?

Post by Chuck »

These ranking things seem to totally miss the boat most of the time. From what I've seen retirees think mainly about:

1) Climate, climate and climate
2) Big enough for adequate healthcare, not so big there is too much hustle and bustle

After that, cost of living etc. plays in, but only as a secondary consideration. A whole new community will spring up if the climate is right, and there is enough interest to grow the community to a size which attracts services.

Weren't all those interior BC places just everyday small towns until the boomers started flocking there (mainly for climate/nice geography)?

And Maclean's (or whomever) can rate places like Brandon MB as high as they want. Very few seniors are going to relocate there to freeze their asses off.
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Re: Where to retire?

Post by Insomniac »

AltaRed wrote: monster land transfer tax that leaves Albertans speechless. Ultimately, money was not everything though i remain pissed at the 5 digit land transfer tax we paid.
Another reason to seriously consider renting if moving to BC to retire.

[OT]BTW, this tax is not aimed at Albertans. I have paid this tax several times over the years. Even on our first home, we did not qualify because our down payment was too high. Lawyer told me that he has had people crying in his office over this tax. Politicians must think it's a wonderful tax if it makes people cry. [/OT]
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Re: Where to retire?

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Insomniac wrote:
AltaRed wrote: monster land transfer tax that leaves Albertans speechless. Ultimately, money was not everything though i remain pissed at the 5 digit land transfer tax we paid.
Another reason to seriously consider renting if moving to BC to retire.

[OT]BTW, this tax is not aimed at Albertans. I have paid this tax several times over the years. Even on our first home, we did not qualify because our down payment was too high. Lawyer told me that he has had people crying in his office over this tax. Politicians must think it's a wonderful tax if it makes people cry. [/OT]
Correct me if I'm wrong, but this "monster land transfer tax" is dwarfed by its Ontario counterpart (itself doubled in the city of Toronto).
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Re: Where to retire?

Post by freedom_2008 »

I guess it you used to live in Alberta, moving to anywhere else would be more expensive tax wise.

We moved back to Victoria from Ottawa, so never had second thought about the land transfer tax, plus are very happy to see the property tax here is about half of what we would pay in Ottawa (mostly due to snow removal).
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