Where Should I Retire...?

[Butch Had Not 2971]

On 8/9/2024 at 9:07 AM, TheAuditor said:

Any hot sports opinions on Flagstaff?  Seems interesting on paper,  but maybe too small.  

I spend plenty of time there. Love it. Can get stupid cold in winter or just normal cold. Best to have all wheel drive. Summers are great. Plenty of hiking. Close to sedona. 

Housing prices are too high. I missed the window to get a second home. 

Dining options aren't amazing but not bad either. You can walk to 6 breweries within a quarter mile (probably less actually). If you really need a finer night out you can go to sedona. 

The girls in yoga pants from NAU will be everywhere. 

If you are looking for quiet and just want a nice place that isn't stupid expensive but doesn't have a lot amenities, Lakeside/Pinetop in the white mountains could be worth looking at. Hiking,  skiing,  great weather (and winters similar to flagstaff) and a lot less people. Just be prepared to be bored if you are looking for nights out. It's pretty lousy for that. 

[Victor Lazlo 1777]

13 hours ago, Sandman said:

I think there's a big difference between "I have retired to BFE, 1500 miles away and I expect you to bring my grandkids to me, monthly" and "I have lived in my current location for 40 years, raised my kids there and my now-adult kids want to GTFO". 

Yes. I’m still here in the house where the kids grew up.

 Daughter (no pics), her husband and 3 young kids moved 1000 miles away a year ago for son in law’s job. To the company headquarters. Bought a big house, daughter said she hoped that’s the last move.

Well, son in law recently told me that he may need to go out into the field to run a plant as a prerequisite to moving into the upper management of the company. No telling where that will be.

If I’d sold my house and followed them, I’d be less than happy right about now.

I’m content to wait for them to truly settle in one place, then think about moving close. Until then, they are a plane ride away, and I stay where I am, close to good friends and other family.

 

 

[Mr. Drummond 2199]

How about Silverthorne/Frisco/Dillon Colorado?    You are 30 min from 3-4 different ski resorts, great in the summer for outdoor stuff.    Big enough Hospital.      1.5 hours to Denver Airport which might be the main issue if that is super critical to you.   But being in houston an hour drive to IAH isn't really a new thing ha.

[LonghornJones 837]

[Aqua Buddha 14596]

Does anyone have any experience with actually living in Ann Arbor?  I've been there a few times and it looks great but I'm guessing culturally and socially, it's very UM centric...?  

 

[Gladeite 375]

49 minutes ago, Mr. Drummond said:

How about Silverthorne/Frisco/Dillon Colorado?    You are 30 min from 3-4 different ski resorts, great in the summer for outdoor stuff.    Big enough Hospital.      1.5 hours to Denver Airport which might be the main issue if that is super critical to you.   But being in houston an hour drive to IAH isn't really a new thing ha.

This is not a bad area.  More moderate housing prices in comparison to mountain towns, big box shopping, lots of outdoor activities.  An hourish to downtown Denver and same the other way to Vail.  Downsides are summer crowds/traffic and a lot of snow to deal with in the winter.   I personally don't like full on winter up here.  We had 350" last year at our house in Breck.  Constant work keeping drives, decks clear.  

 

[GreenspointTexas 9602]

1 hour ago, LonghornJones said:

Im burnin, im burnin, im burnin for you

 

 

what a reference, btw

[Chewbacca 7779]

How about Silverthorne/Frisco/Dillon Colorado?    You are 30 min from 3-4 different ski resorts, great in the summer for outdoor stuff.    Big enough Hospital.      1.5 hours to Denver Airport which might be the main issue if that is super critical to you.   But being in houston an hour drive to IAH isn't really a new thing ha.

Summit is crowded, but there is lots to do.

This is not a bad area.  More moderate housing prices in comparison to mountain towns, big box shopping, lots of outdoor activities.  An hourish to downtown Denver and same the other way to Vail.  Downsides are summer crowds/traffic and a lot of snow to deal with in the winter.   I personally don't like full on winter up here.  We had 350" last year at our house in Breck.  Constant work keeping drives, decks clear.  
 

You don't like snow at a ski resort?

[Mr. Drummond 2199]

39 minutes ago, Chewbacca said:

Summit is crowded, but there is lots to do.?

The wife is looking at some houses on the golf course in Silverthorne that is up the mountain a bit.     Doesn't seem too crowded up there, but yes the 3 little towns on the weekend are pretty crowded

[Chewbacca 7779]

57 minutes ago, Mr. Drummond said:

The wife is looking at some houses on the golf course in Silverthorne that is up the mountain a bit.     Doesn't seem too crowded up there, but yes the 3 little towns on the weekend are pretty crowded

Well, yeah, but unless you're going to stay at the house all the time you'll run into all those people.

[South Austin 52504]

On 8/13/2024 at 12:06 PM, South Austin said:

My daughter starts at University of Oregon in the Fall.  My son, who's in 8th grade and still has a ways to go, is open to going out of state, and I'm going to push North Carolina State.  He's a smart kid, works hard, and gets straight A's so far, but it's really tough to get the numbers for UNC or Duke, and at least by the published rankings (for whatever those are worth), N.C. State has moved up pretty significantly since I went there in 1992-1994 for my first two years of college.  That could provide an anchor for us to possibly move to North Carolina, and it's probably more likely than the Pacific Northwest, and it's not a given that my daughter will even settle there after she graduates, though I'm pretty sure she's not coming back to Texas or anywhere close.

Again, probably a long shot, but why not put some wheels in motion? 

Also, it's funny, but until my dad got a job in Texas after he retired from the Marines, I thought he and mom would settle in North Carolina, and I'd stay somewhere in the state, probably the Raleigh/Durham area.  But then, I followed them to Texas, transferred to UT, loved Austin and, until a few years ago, the state of Texas, and believed I'd die here.  Now, 30 years after moving here, if I didn't have so many ties keeping me in Austin, I think I'd move back to North Carolina in a heartbeat.

@SydneyCarton, I supplement my post above by saying that after my second day in Eugene, this place kicks all kinds of ass, and Oregon moves up bigly in the retirement fantasy rankings. Of course, I say this sitting on the patio of a local brewery enjoying a 75-degree sunny evening, before the eight-month rainy season starts.

But seriously, steer your kid toward University of Oregon. This school and this town is awesome.

[Baboontyme 2812]

10 hours ago, Aqua Buddha said:

Does anyone have any experience with actually living in Ann Arbor?  I've been there a few times and it looks great but I'm guessing culturally and socially, it's very UM centric...?  

 

I think @Pimphand maybe? One of my close buddies lived there in his mid-late 20s with his girlfriend in an apartment above the bar he managed on Main St but I'm guessing that is not the type of experience that would be relatable. 

[VABuckeye 2472]

10 hours ago, Aqua Buddha said:

Does anyone have any experience with actually living in Ann Arbor?  I've been there a few times and it looks great but I'm guessing culturally and socially, it's very UM centric...?  

 

I'd take hell over that fucking town.

[conVINCEd 21469]

5 minutes ago, VABuckeye said:

I'd take hell over that fucking town.

Completely unbiased opinion here.

[Texzilla588 769]

[mention=192]SydneyCarton[/mention], I supplement my post above by saying that after my second day in Eugene, this place kicks all kinds of ass, and Oregon moves up bigly in the retirement fantasy rankings. Of course, I say this sitting on the patio of a local brewery enjoying a 75-degree sunny evening, before the eight-month rainy season starts.
But seriously, steer your kid toward University of Oregon. This school and this town is awesome.

We lived in Portland from 99-02. The rain is incessant and the cloud ceiling low. It’s fucking hell on earth weather wise. 44 and various forms of wet 9 months a year; you can not get warm. Summers were recruiting weather.

We were in the Bay Area when I interviewed for the Portland job. “Find out about the rain!” I asked the founder in the interview after he waxed forever on the wonderfulness of his town. What about the rain? “Thats a myth we use to keep Californians away or they’d fucking move here. It rains less here than Dallas!” Wife later asks “what about the fucking rain?!” It rains less here than Dallas. It’s looked it up!”

Moving van drove away. Rained the next 44 days.

[South Austin 52504]

3 minutes ago, Texzilla588 said:

We lived in Portland from 99-02. The rain is incessant and the cloud ceiling low. It’s fucking hell on earth weather wise. 44 and various forms of wet 9 months a year; you can not get warm. Summers were recruiting weather.

We were in the Bay Area when I interviewed for the Portland job. “Find out about the rain!” I asked the founder in the interview after he waxed forever on the wonderfulness of his town. What about the rain? “Thats a myth we use to keep Californians away or they’d fucking move here. It rains less here than Dallas!” Wife later asks “what about the fucking rain?!” It rains less here than Dallas. It’s looked it up!”

Moving van drove away. Rained the next 44 days.

Pics of wife.

[Agent 13 314]

1 hour ago, South Austin said:

Pics of wife.

[Gil Bang 25958]

Yeah, I had family in Oregon.  Fuck that place.  OK to visit...

[Butch Had Not 2971]

27 minutes ago, Agent 13 said:

All you wanted was a sandwich. 

[Biff Tannen 45685]

13 hours ago, LonghornJones said:

The people who get this are a special breed.

[Biff Tannen 45685]

3 hours ago, Baboontyme said:

I think @Pimphand maybe? One of my close buddies lived there in his mid-late 20s with his girlfriend in an apartment above the bar he managed on Main St but I'm guessing that is not the type of experience that would be relatable. 

Dude.  Pimphand lives in a padded room. 

[kilroydos 267]

On 8/13/2024 at 2:06 PM, South Austin said:

My daughter starts at University of Oregon in the Fall.  My son, who's in 8th grade and still has a ways to go, is open to going out of state, and I'm going to push North Carolina State.  He's a smart kid, works hard, and gets straight A's so far, but it's really tough to get the numbers for UNC or Duke, and at least by the published rankings (for whatever those are worth), N.C. State has moved up pretty significantly since I went there in 1992-1994 for my first two years of college.  That could provide an anchor for us to possibly move to North Carolina, and it's probably more likely than the Pacific Northwest, and it's not a given that my daughter will even settle there after she graduates, though I'm pretty sure she's not coming back to Texas or anywhere close.

Again, probably a long shot, but why not put some wheels in motion? 

Also, it's funny, but until my dad got a job in Texas after he retired from the Marines, I thought he and mom would settle in North Carolina, and I'd stay somewhere in the state, probably the Raleigh/Durham area.  But then, I followed them to Texas, transferred to UT, loved Austin and, until a few years ago, the state of Texas, and believed I'd die here.  Now, 30 years after moving here, if I didn't have so many ties keeping me in Austin, I think I'd move back to North Carolina in a heartbeat.

My daughter and I toured Oregon just a few weeks ago.  She doesn't graduate until 26, but it's on her list for sure.  

[South Austin 52504]

6 hours ago, kilroydos said:

She doesn't graduate until 26

Damn, how many years did you hold her back?

[Texzilla588 769]

About 80% of women who live in the rainy parts of Oregon will suffer Seasonal Affective Disorder, as they get cabin fever as their circadian rhythms get all fucked up. They have to get a sunlight box to sit in front of. My wife got it. Had to get a light box. “Why do you make me live in a place where I have to sit in front of a fucking fake sun?” Moved to Denver. Problem solved.

There is a reason the place is full of drug addicts, drunks, homeless, wife beaters, racists, political crackpots, and shitbags. It starts with not seeing the sun for nine months a year.

[RPM 26321]

9 hours ago, Butch Had Not said:

All you wanted was a sandwich. 

Looks like he had to say it twice.

[South Austin 52504]

2 hours ago, Texzilla588 said:

There is a reason the place is full of drug addicts, drunks, homeless, wife beaters, racists, political crackpots, and shitbags. It starts with not seeing the sun for nine months a year.

You pretty much described the only people who live in the state of Oregon. Well done.

[Aqua Buddha 14596]

3 hours ago, Texzilla588 said:

About 80% of women who live in the rainy parts of Oregon will suffer Seasonal Affective Disorder, as they get cabin fever as their circadian rhythms get all fucked up. They have to get a sunlight box to sit in front of. My wife got it. Had to get a light box. “Why do you make me live in a place where I have to sit in front of a fucking fake sun?” Moved to Denver. Problem solved.

There is a reason the place is full of drug addicts, drunks, homeless, wife beaters, racists, political crackpots, and shitbags. It starts with not seeing the sun for nine months a year.

Yeah, I love Seattle as a city and it would be on my list but the weather would get to me.  

[SydneyCarton 48106]

15 hours ago, Baboontyme said:

I think @Pimphand maybe? One of my close buddies lived there in his mid-late 20s with his girlfriend in an apartment above the bar he managed on Main St but I'm guessing that is not the type of experience that would be relatable. 

 

11 hours ago, Biff Tannen said:

Dude.  Pimphand lives in a padded room. 

 

Well done. I was going to simply say that he lives on his own planet. But yours is way more accurate. 

14 hours ago, Texzilla588 said:

We lived in Portland from 99-02. The rain is incessant and the cloud ceiling low. It’s fucking hell on earth weather wise. 44 and various forms of wet 9 months a year; you can not get warm. Summers were recruiting weather.

We were in the Bay Area when I interviewed for the Portland job. “Find out about the rain!” I asked the founder in the interview after he waxed forever on the wonderfulness of his town. What about the rain? “Thats a myth we use to keep Californians away or they’d fucking move here. It rains less here than Dallas!” Wife later asks “what about the fucking rain?!” It rains less here than Dallas. It’s looked it up!”

Moving van drove away. Rained the next 44 days.

 

But I like the rain. Like a lot. And you can get homes with beach views for under a million with like fucking giant ocean rocks from Goonies and shit. 

[Texzilla588 769]

Yeah, I love Seattle as a city and it would be on my list but the weather would get to me.  

The problem with Portland is the cloud ceiling is at about 22 feet. And as I was told, it rains less than it does in Dallas. It just rains real fucking slow.

Seattle gets more rain than Portland but has double the sunny days. Plus you can go to the San Juan islands which have their own Hawaiian style microclimate.

[cafe society 2871]

On 8/13/2024 at 1:29 PM, SydneyCarton said:

lol. I'm about turn 45 and my kid is about to get into the first grade. Clearly we started late.

I'm just going to nudge him like a motherfucker to attend college out of state, since my wife is adamant we'll be following to live somewhere a few hours of where he's going to school. So I'd just LOVE for him to pick somewhere in the research triangle, or increasingly the pacific northwest if I can get them on board with cold and wet. I'd also accept University of Michigan or somewhere there regionally. 

Excellent choices/planning.  The PNW isn't cold and wet so much as gray and wet.  But I love it there (lived in Seattle from 2 months old until nearly 9) and it gets into your soul, not to get too classically romantic.  And I find as I get older - I'm almost eligible for Medicare, yikes - that rainy weather is relaxing.  But good luck, and plan ahead.

[mdmost 43001]

I dunno know. The Denver area is pretty kickass to me. Here now and it’s pretty great.

Edited August 17 by mdmost

[Texzilla588 769]

I dunno know. The Denver area is pretty kickass to me. Here now and it’s pretty great.

We loved Colorado. Lived in Broomfield so halfway between downtown and Boulder. I’m sure it’s way different now; we rturned to DFW in 05. If we were to return we’d probably look for a place on the 287 corridor from Longmont to Ft Collins. Close to the front range. Or we’d head west to the Grand Junction - Ouray - Durango corridor

[Pimphand 5750]

On 8/15/2024 at 7:47 PM, Baboontyme said:

I think @Pimphand maybe? One of my close buddies lived there in his mid-late 20s with his girlfriend in an apartment above the bar he managed on Main St but I'm guessing that is not the type of experience that would be relatable. 

Never lived there but spent a boatload of time there 2006-09.

[Pimphand 5750]

You should go live in the places you are considering retiring to before you do retire. I used to live in St Thomas and had so many people tell me how jealous they are I lived in paradise.

It is a 3rd world country and I love it with every piece of my blackened heart and I hope to retire there myself but had I not gone there and lived there in my 30s I guarantee I wouldn't know the trap I was walking into and so its important to calibrate while you still are vibrant mobile and can.

[Pato del Muerto 52498]

Yes Seattle is rainy and dreary so nobody move there. And expensive. And full of homeless and used drug needles.  And super high property taxes. And definitely a state income tax. I don’t know why anyone lives there. 

[NWBuck 8566]

1 hour ago, Pato del Muerto said:

Yes Seattle is rainy and dreary so nobody move there. And expensive. And full of homeless and used drug needles.  And super high property taxes. And definitely a state income tax. I don’t know why anyone lives there. 

Stop sugar coating it... 

[VABuckeye 2472]

21 hours ago, Pimphand said:

You should go live in the places you are considering retiring to before you do retire. I used to live in St Thomas and had so many people tell me how jealous they are I lived in paradise.

It is a 3rd world country and I love it with every piece of my blackened heart and I hope to retire there myself but had I not gone there and lived there in my 30s I guarantee I wouldn't know the trap I was walking into and so its important to calibrate while you still are vibrant mobile and can.

Yeah. We’ve spent a LOT of time on St. John and in the BVI and came to realize it’s not for us as a place to live.  First, the hobby there is heavy drinking by pretty much everyone that lives there.  It’s also not an easy place to travel from to many of the other places we enjoy.  I love those islands but wouldn’t consider living there.  We also know a lot of people who went through Irma and I don’t desire that at all.  Ian when we lived in Naples was enough of that for me. 

[Chewbacca 7779]

Grand Junction - Ouray - Durango corridor

One of those things is not like the others.

[Texzilla588 769]

Well d want to be well south of grand junction

[mdmost 43001]

I think my issue with Denver is the places that would really interest me the most are pretty far away from that terrible airport so if we wanted to get to other destinations, it would take a bit of an effort. I guess if you're on the NW end you can use the tollroad to get there easily but man that airport is a beating. I really liked Idaho Springs.  That would be the vibe I'm looking for in a place to retire to. There is so much to do in and around Denver. I don't think visiting the mountains in the late spring through summer would ever get old. I also wouldn't mind be that close to other states with similar vistas like Utah and New Mexico. 

Edited August 19 by mdmost

[RPM 26321]

Back in 2014 I scouted the area for 3 months (May - July) looking for a place. I stayed in Breckenridge but scouted everything from Silverthorne to Canon City. The only places with the acreage I wanted and a price that wasn't insane were off grid.

[RDCanecutter 26443]

On 8/16/2024 at 9:52 AM, South Austin said:

You pretty much described the only people who live in the state of Oregon. Well done.

I thought it was the cast of Trainspotting.

[Incredulity 11671]

24 minutes ago, RDCanecutter said:

I thought it was the cast of Trainspotting.

Scotland and the PNW are pretty similar in the gloomy rain department.

[Helobious 9454]

All the people saying they want to live in the CO mountains haven’t spent much time there. Was in Telluride this past month. Pulled into the AirBNB one night, fucking huge ass bear hanging out by the garage, it bolted into the woods when it saw us. I don’t understand wanting to live in the territory of something that can easily eat you, and there’s a ton of them out every night. Not a safe place to live at all. The east and south denver metro make a little more sense. Safer from forest fires and bears, plus the weather is way better.

[RDCanecutter 26443]

11 minutes ago, Incredulity said:

Scotland and the PNW are pretty similar in the gloomy rain department.

A month ago I was on a Zoom call to a group in Scotland, and when I took the laptop out on the deck they started hooting and hollering that they wanted to move here-- I think it was the first bright sunlight they'd seen in weeks.

[Incredulity 11671]

3 minutes ago, RDCanecutter said:

A month ago I was on a Zoom call to a group in Scotland, and when I took the laptop out on the deck they started hooting and hollering that they wanted to move here-- I think it was the first bright sunlight they'd seen in weeks.

check out the Scotland thread.   Brisket is there now and the weather in the pictures are absurd for mid-August.

Edited August 19 by Incredulity

[ztejas 43448]

Just now, RDCanecutter said:

A month ago I was on a Zoom call to a group in Scotland, and when I took the laptop out on the deck they started hooting and hollering that they wanted to move here-- I think it was the first bright sunlight they'd seen in weeks.

I'm about halfway through Lonsesome Dove and this made me think about the plight of the two Irish they come across. All fun and games until you get lost in Mexico or eaten alive by water moccasins. 

[South Austin 52504]

5 minutes ago, Incredulity said:

check out the Scotland thread.   Brisket is there now and the weather in the pictures are absurd for mid-August.

Which is weird, because it always seems like Brisket is under a dark cloud.

[Incredulity 11671]

[Texzilla588 769]

I think my issue with Denver is the places that would really interest me the most are pretty far away from that terrible airport so if we wanted to get to other destinations, it would take a bit of an effort. I guess if you're on the NW end you can use the tollroad to get there easily but man that airport is a beating. I really liked Idaho Springs.  That would be the vibe I'm looking for in a place to retire to. There is so much to do in and around Denver. I don't think visiting the mountains in the late spring through summer would ever get old. I also wouldn't mind be that close to other states with similar vistas like Utah and New Mexico. 

I got used to the airport in the three years we lived in Denver. It has its good points and bad.