Where Should I Retire...?

[Cap33 381]

5 hours ago, GreenspointTexas said:

I still consider Nashville to be one of, if not the most overrated city in America

+1

[Js1 82948]

3 hours ago, GreenspointTexas said:

I wouldnt choose phoenix area. Temps only gonna get hotter. But thats just me

[Foosters 17637]

[Aqua Buddha 14107]

5 hours ago, GreenspointTexas said:

for starters, any place yall are thinking of should also include the consideration of having enough water in the future. That said,
 

Santa Fe is pretty fucking awesome. Excellent food, cheap city (can get a nice smaller house in the foothills/mountians for under a million still), weather is borderline incredible, no traffic, and extremely quiet/chill. And its very pretty with a lotta outdoor shit within an hour

 

Flame away, but I still consider Nashville to be one of, if not the most overrated city in America

It might be a hot take but I kind of agree with you on the Nashville angle.  When I started this, I thought Nashville would rank higher but it didn't and we've been there quite a bit.  We don't know it like a local but we know it fairly well.  Sure, it's a good place to go party or to some bro country show but to live?  What am I doing on a Wednesday?  (I'm not going to shows every day.)

Weather is meh.  Hot/humid in the summer.  Cold/dry in the winter.  Good food city but not a lot of outdoor options.  Sure, they're outside of town but I'm talking about the city.

Got some good.  Got some bad.  Overrated?  Maybe.

[cafe society 2831]

Panama.  Just bring a little money and they will deify you and life is relaxing and inexpensive.

Thailand.  Amazing food and beaches and it is dirt cheap but not dirty at all.

Spain/Portugal.  Best combo of simple, country life and cosmopolitan access.

If you can buy your way into Canada, Vancouver and Montreal are two of the greatest cities ever created.


 

 

[VABuckeye 2472]

7 hours ago, deac_tracy said:

Have you thought about NoVa? Seems like it check off all the boxes. Definitely big but not NY or LA and you're close to Dulles airport. They have outdoorsy stuff like Wolf Trap, Great Falls, and Scott's Run nearby. Plenty of stuff to do like DC, Charlottesville, Shenandoah National Park, go to the coast or Virginia wine country. Taxes aren't insane and politics are moderate/left-leaning. The winters have been pretty mild the past few years. 

It’s where I live now. I can’t wait to get away from it.  There’s just too much of…everything. 

[deac_tracy 513]

It’s where I live now. I can’t wait to get away from it.  There’s just too much of…everything. 

Uh ok. That's not very descriptive but ok.

[HeHateMe 873]

You don’t want to live in South Scottsdale.  Scottsdale yes, south Scottsdale….no.  I’m not sure your perceptions of Scottsdale are 100% accurate judging from previous posts.  So your idea of South Scottsdale might be different than mine.  I’ve been here 21 years and love it.  It may or may not be for you, but it’s been an amazing place to live and raise my kids.  Water is not going to be an issue in our lifetime.  Feel free to ask specific questions if you want and I’ll try to answer.  Cactus corridor in Scottsdale or the Arcadia neighborhood in phoenix would probably be a better fit FWIW.  South Scottsdale is strip clubs and housing built in the 70s and 80s.

[Updawg 2245]

Realtor ^^^^

[baboso 6035]

18 hours ago, deac_tracy said:

Have you thought about NoVa? Seems like it check off all the boxes. Definitely big but not NY or LA and you're close to Dulles airport. They have outdoorsy stuff like Wolf Trap, Great Falls, and Scott's Run nearby. Plenty of stuff to do like DC, Charlottesville, Shenandoah National Park, go to the coast or Virginia wine country. Taxes aren't insane and politics are moderate/left-leaning. The winters have been pretty mild the past few years. 

Summers can be brutal.  98 degrees forecast for today and it is humid.

[South Austin 51564]

8 minutes ago, baboso said:

Summers can be brutal.  98 degrees forecast for today and it is humid.

I grew up between Northern Virginia and the North Carolina coast, and both can get Houston-level humidity.  But it's relatively short-lived compared to Texas.

I have fond memories of my childhood in Virginia (mostly Quantico, and 3 years in Fredericksburg).  But the area has been pretty much paved over.  Still, if I had no anchor to Texas and somebody told me I could either stay in Austin or move to NoVa, I'd be awfully tempted to move.

[Texzilla588 765]

Yeah I’ve struggled to explain to my friends who are iffy about Denver about the difference between a dry cold in Denver and a humid cold in Houston. Not to mention the sun being stronger and how quickly Denver warms up / feels warm 

Denver doesn’t get that much snow though they want folks to think it’s like steamboat. And they know how to clear the roads in nothing flat. There is little ice like Texas storms and the snow is dry and powdery like sand. Conversely the dry heat is wonderful. As a Texan that grew up misplaced in Memphis, humidity is a curse from God and I’m done with it.

We lived in Broomfield but if we could go back and had the bucks I’d likely go to a place like Ft Collins or more into the front range.

If no grandkids I’d be in Portugal or outside Barcelona or Majorca, or Ireland.

[Js1 82948]

1 minute ago, Texzilla588 said:

Denver doesn’t get that much snow though they want folks to think it’s like steamboat. And they know how to clear the roads in nothing flat. There is little ice like Texas storms and the snow is dry and powdery like sand

I have had to explain to my parents multiple times that no, the power isn't going to go out in Denver because it snowed.  While you lost power due to some ice and cold temps in 2021, Denver got what, 30 inches of snow and was -10?  I was nice and toasty indoors the entire time. 

[Aqua Buddha 14107]

7 hours ago, HeHateMe said:

You don’t want to live in South Scottsdale.  Scottsdale yes, south Scottsdale….no.  I’m not sure your perceptions of Scottsdale are 100% accurate judging from previous posts.  So your idea of South Scottsdale might be different than mine.  I’ve been here 21 years and love it.  It may or may not be for you, but it’s been an amazing place to live and raise my kids.  Water is not going to be an issue in our lifetime.  Feel free to ask specific questions if you want and I’ll try to answer.  Cactus corridor in Scottsdale or the Arcadia neighborhood in phoenix would probably be a better fit FWIW.  South Scottsdale is strip clubs and housing built in the 70s and 80s.

Why is that on South Scottsdale?  I'm talking about the areas around Fashion Square and maybe a little north and south of that.  (Maybe I'm wrong on the terminology.)  I do not mean Old Town, which seems kitchy like Branson in the Desert or something.  I'd prefer Paradise Valley but that's a price tier about what we're talking about here.

By "cactus corridor," I assume you mean North Scottsdale with all of the golf clubs?  We really like that area but parts of it look like a moonscape and the average age seems to be 137 years old.  Good communities and golf, though.

[VABuckeye 2472]

20 hours ago, deac_tracy said:

Uh ok. That's not very descriptive but ok.

Northern Virginia?  Traffic out the ass.  Hot and humid summers.  Winters aren't bad but then there's that 28" of snow in one storm every few years.   You have all the creature comforts but if you're goping somewhere its judged by how long it takes to get there and not how many miles it is.

For a career it is fantastic.  To retire to?  Not in 1000 years for me.

[rage-a-holic 4241]

On 7/16/2024 at 12:33 PM, crash_davis said:

apropos this thread.

https://finance.yahoo.com/news/boomers-leaving-america-retire-abroad-110000534.html

Boomers are leaving America to retire abroad in droves because the U.S. is just too expensive

Fawcett, now 67 and a Spanish resident through marriage, couldn't be happier about his decision. Though his wife still works, he spends his days playing tennis, reading, and going to the beach or cafés with expat friends in Barcelona. He and his wife are able to travel around the continent, even planning a trip to Paris for the Olympics this year.

The same lifestyle wouldn't be possible in the U.S., Fawcett says. Housing is much more affordable, food is inexpensive, and the wine is even less so. The mass transit system is a godsend; Fawcett doesn't have a car and doesn't need one to get around. Walkability is also a major benefit.

"It's a good life here," says Fawcett, who became a resident in 2019. "Outdoor dining is everywhere, the weather is amazing. Everything is very cheap."

Fawcett is part of a growing trend of retirees, spurred by America's retirement crisis, who are moving abroad instead of spending their golden years in the U.S. In December 2022, there were over 700,800 people receiving Social Security payments abroad, according to the most recently available data from the Social Security Administration. In 2000, that figure was less than 400,000.

Some move abroad because they simply cannot comfortably live on a fixed retirement income in the U.S., where the costs of housing and healthcare, especially, are becoming increasingly unaffordable. A substantial number of retirees rely almost completely on Social Security payments to make ends meet in the U.S., which average around $1,900 per month. A growing portion of elderly Americans live in poverty, with social services few and far between, if they are accessible at all.

uh yeah, about that

https://www.cnn.com/2024/07/08/travel/barcelona-tourism-protests-scli-intl/index.html

[SydneyCarton 47294]

Those chicks can spray me any day. 

[South Austin 51564]

45 minutes ago, SydneyCarton said:

Those chicks can spray me any day. 

Never figured you for a golden shower guy.  Just when you thought you knew someone . . . .

[crash_davis 23040]

Decades ago, flying from London to Barcelona, I thought damn, this is like a Cancun flight. The Brits treat Barcelona like Texans treat Cancun. 

Barcelona doesn't need the money like Mexico/Cancun needs American dollars. I'm surprised it took this long for Barcelona residents to push back.

[SydneyCarton 47294]

5 minutes ago, South Austin said:

Never figured you for a golden shower guy.  Just when you thought you knew someone . . . .

Whatever it takes. 

[po elvis 2070]

I am willing to bet that these Catalans protesting like to go off on their holidays  to other countries.

[Js1 82948]

Boomer retirees rave about Spain’s public transportation while they turned the U.S. into a hellscape of highways and parking lots 

[Sandman 3399]

After my kids graduated high school, I tried to get my wife to consider the idea of moving away for retirement, eventually. She did that thing I hate, which is act like she was seriously considering what I was saying, before steadfastly refusing because she doesn't want to be that far from her elderly mom. I delicately said that, by the time we're going to be moving, her mom and my own father will be long gone and it won't matter. That didn't help at all.

But now it's a moot point, as I now have two grandchildren who live within 5 miles of my house. My kids aren't going anywhere, which means I'm pretty much stuck. Thanks for nothing, grandkids.

[South Austin 51564]

8 hours ago, Sandman said:

Thanks for nothing, grandkids.

Sulking Paul Stanley avatar checks out.

[Mr. Drummond 2161]

nm

Edited July 26 by Mr. Drummond
nevermind

[tx 3 putt 75222]

On 7/16/2024 at 9:34 AM, GreenspointTexas said:

for starters, any place yall are thinking of should also include the consideration of having enough water in the future. That said,
 

Santa Fe is pretty fucking awesome. Excellent food, cheap city (can get a nice smaller house in the foothills/mountians for under a million still), weather is borderline incredible, no traffic, and extremely quiet/chill. And its very pretty with a lotta outdoor shit within an hour

 

Flame away, but I still consider Nashville to be one of, if not the most overrated city in America

 

thought I read here on a santa fe thread that medical care there is very low end. 

[Js1 82948]

10 hours ago, tx 3 putt said:

 

thought I read here on a santa fe thread that medical care there is very low end. 

There’s a reason the NM state government is trying to lure doctors from Texas under the guise of being able to practice reproductive health freely. Medical care is lacking 

[tx 3 putt 75222]

I’m very much leaning San Antonio area for retirement. I’ll even risk running into @Cajun

[GreenspointTexas 9376]

Austin and San Antonio aint gonna have water in 10-15 years

[Cajun 11659]

2 hours ago, tx 3 putt said:

I’m very much leaning San Antonio area for retirement. I’ll even risk running into @Cajun

That's a big risk for a fellow puffy taco enthusiast.

[tx 3 putt 75222]

39 minutes ago, Cajun said:

That's a big risk for a fellow puffy taco enthusiast.

 

[Cajun 11659]

The thing that'd throw me off most with that disguise is how pale you are there Putt.

[Cajun 11659]

2 hours ago, GreenspointTexas said:

Austin and San Antonio aint gonna have water in 10-15 years

Then we drink TEQUILLA!!!!

[CycleTex87 2944]

On 7/16/2024 at 8:35 PM, cafe society said:

Thailand.  Amazing food and beaches and it is dirt cheap but not dirty at all.

Buddy of mine (Brit expat in Houston) has a Thai wife who has family up country away from Bangkok.  The spend 3-4 months a year there and the lifestyle looks awesome.  Great food and drink and really laid back.  We may go visit them there next year. 

[cafe society 2831]

13 minutes ago, CycleTex87 said:

Buddy of mine (Brit expat in Houston) has a Thai wife who has family up country away from Bangkok.  The spend 3-4 months a year there and the lifestyle looks awesome.  Great food and drink and really laid back.  We may go visit them there next year. 

Our oldest son and his wife have great jobs that allow them to work remotely from anywhere in the free world.  He may be investing in a scuba business with a buddy who has one in Texas.  They spent a month in far south Thailand and Indonesia this past winter.  If they move there my wife will not stand to be that far from The Golden Child (our grandson) and we may opt to move there as well.  I've been there while my wife has not, but she loves the beach.

[Grimas 652]

Pre kids, wife and I lived in BKK and the with kids, 3 years in KL. Would easily live in Thailand (Hua Hin or Koa Samui) or in Vietnam (Danang or Hoi An) in a heartbeat if kids weren’t in the US at school…

[CooterBrown 17724]

13 hours ago, CycleTex87 said:

Buddy of mine (Brit expat in Houston) has a Thai wife who has family up country away from Bangkok.  The spend 3-4 months a year there and the lifestyle looks awesome.  Great food and drink and really laid back.  We may go visit them there next year. 

Chances she's a lady boy are way higher than zero. Especially with a Brit being involved. 

[NeverMarryAStripper 21765]

It is my understanding that a retirement visa in Thailand doesn't allow you to leave and reenter the country.  In order to reenter Thailand under a retirement visa you need to get a re-entry permit.  I don't know how much of a hassle this creates though.

[Incredulity 11160]

On 8/5/2024 at 11:01 AM, GreenspointTexas said:

Austin and San Antonio aint gonna have water in 10-15 years

[VABuckeye 2472]

We're pretty much dead set on Spain at this point.  My daughter has no intention of having kids and my son is 30 and still not attached.  It's Seville or Malaga and I think Malaga will be the place.  A decent enough airport and despite the location it's one of the more cost effective places to live in a country that is loaded with cost effective places to live.  We are on a 5 year plan to make the move.  

[blacklab 11818]

 wife's brother and sister live in Madrid. Sister is trying to convince us to buy a house there that she can then rent from us and we can move into when we retire. She claims there are very nice houses for $200k. We're going over next summer and I will be looking to see what $200k gets you. I think I wouldn't mind being there part of the year.

[Armybrat 40527]

Some friends just moved to Portugal and love it there.

 

[Larry T. Spider 1740]

I’m a long way from retirement but my wife would retire to Spain in a minute. Honestly, I would do the same. My biggest concern at this point is the number of Americans wanting to move there. I’m wondering if they will eventually become more strict the number they allow or if the locals will get fed up with us.

[troph 23995]

Southern Europe is going to burn in the summers either from literal fires or figuratively from the heat. It’s likely to be one of the places impacted more than average by climate change.  

[StassneyHorn 6429]

On 7/16/2024 at 10:43 PM, HeHateMe said:

You don’t want to live in South Scottsdale.  Scottsdale yes, south Scottsdale….no.  I’m not sure your perceptions of Scottsdale are 100% accurate judging from previous posts.  So your idea of South Scottsdale might be different than mine.  I’ve been here 21 years and love it.  It may or may not be for you, but it’s been an amazing place to live and raise my kids.  Water is not going to be an issue in our lifetime.  Feel free to ask specific questions if you want and I’ll try to answer.  Cactus corridor in Scottsdale or the Arcadia neighborhood in phoenix would probably be a better fit FWIW.  South Scottsdale is strip clubs and housing built in the 70s and 80s.

Don’t forget Sol Flower

[Vegas64 640]

I did this exercise recently almost to the exact same criteria (politics, weather, affordability, airports, etc.).

And truly the only locale that hit all the marks was SoCal. It's crazy, but I guess that is why there is the stereotype of SoCal being perfect. The weather, at least.

Someone said it once, and I've found it to be true in my dozens of times in Denver over my lifetime-- Denver is just Kansas City if KC was at the base of the Rockies. And I would live there, but for me the elevation is a disqualifier (not sickle cell but similiarly health related).

Scottsdale seems pretty horrible to retire to for me.

[Chewbacca 7617]

4 minutes ago, Vegas64 said:

I did this exercise recently almost to the exact same criteria (politics, weather, affordability, airports, etc.).

And truly the only locale that hit all the marks was SoCal. It's crazy, but I guess that is why there is the stereotype of SoCal being perfect. The weather, at least.

Someone said it once, and I've found it to be true in my dozens of times in Denver over my lifetime-- Denver is just Kansas City if KC was at the base of the Rockies. And I would live there, but for me the elevation is a disqualifier (not sickle cell but similiarly health related).

Scottsdale seems pretty horrible to retire to for me.

If you don't regularly go to the mountains, Denver is probably really similar to KC.  Denver's allure is proximity to mountains and nature (and traffic on I-70).

[Mother mopar 3267]

I did this exercise recently almost to the exact same criteria (politics, weather, affordability, airports, etc.).
And truly the only locale that hit all the marks was SoCal. It's crazy, but I guess that is why there is the stereotype of SoCal being perfect. The weather, at least.
Someone said it once, and I've found it to be true in my dozens of times in Denver over my lifetime-- Denver is just Kansas City if KC was at the base of the Rockies. And I would live there, but for me the elevation is a disqualifier (not sickle cell but similiarly health related).
Scottsdale seems pretty horrible to retire to for me.

SoCal and affordability, does not compute.

[Aqua Buddha 14107]

1 hour ago, Vegas64 said:

I did this exercise recently almost to the exact same criteria (politics, weather, affordability, airports, etc.).

And truly the only locale that hit all the marks was SoCal. It's crazy, but I guess that is why there is the stereotype of SoCal being perfect. The weather, at least.

Someone said it once, and I've found it to be true in my dozens of times in Denver over my lifetime-- Denver is just Kansas City if KC was at the base of the Rockies. And I would live there, but for me the elevation is a disqualifier (not sickle cell but similiarly health related).

Scottsdale seems pretty horrible to retire to for me.

What do you mean by "Denver is just Kansas City if KC was at the base of the Rockies?"  Is that good or bad?

[Vegas64 640]

25 minutes ago, Aqua Buddha said:

What do you mean by "Denver is just Kansas City if KC was at the base of the Rockies?"  Is that good or bad?

It's, as the kids say, mid.

55 minutes ago, Mother mopar said:

1 hour ago, Vegas64 said:

I did this exercise recently almost to the exact same criteria (politics, weather, affordability, airports, etc.).
And truly the only locale that hit all the marks was SoCal. It's crazy, but I guess that is why there is the stereotype of SoCal being perfect. The weather, at least.
Someone said it once, and I've found it to be true in my dozens of times in Denver over my lifetime-- Denver is just Kansas City if KC was at the base of the Rockies. And I would live there, but for me the elevation is a disqualifier (not sickle cell but similiarly health related).
Scottsdale seems pretty horrible to retire to for me.

SoCal and affordability, does not compute.

affordability as in the property taxes.