After careful consideration I decided to move ahead with my life and move to a different state. I am in California and everything is so expensive here. Which states are best and have low cost of living?
A relative of mine used to live in Missouri, not exactly sure which part. She and her husband used to raise cattles there. Where they were at, land is plentiful and cheap, rent is super low, and life is slow and peaceful.
LOL Are you guys pulling my leg with these questions or are you that rich ? Yea, sure I like a beach city and me at the beach under an bamboo umbrella being served exotic drinks by young gorgeous Half naked waiters and waitresses. And in the afternoon I go to my scheduled massage and sauna appointment. 😁
G iven this and the other post as well as very broad questions, I think you might find it helpful to make a list of specific considerations, which do vary by individual. Then search the state and the parameters. What might be great for each of us might not suit you, and we have no idea what you're looking for.
E.g., first define "affordable", as it applies to you. And what specifically about CA is "not affordable"? Is it housing or rental costs? Food, gas, utilities?
Are you concerned about politics? If so, then you'd identify the blue vs. the red states.
Entertainment? What kind? If you love opera, search on that parameter. If you want county music, search on that. Festivals, crafts shows? Other parameters to search.
The folks here are either caring for someone, have done so, or are in other situations where time can be limited. You're asking for a lot of information, w/o detail.
The answers I've read are very helpful and cover a spectrum of issues. Narrowing it down would help responders. You could also search the specific states under consideration after eliminating some of the ones you definitely wouldn't consider, such as Alaska, if you don't want to live in a really, really cold state.
I have relatives who have lived in Southeast FL for 3 generations. I lived in Miami for 2 years. My advice to anyone moving anywhere is to make sure that whatever county you consider, it offers good services for seniors. My 2 aunts live in a FL county with scant services. One mile away is a different county with much "richer" resources. Crime & safety, distance and availability to public transportation to resources, and access/availability of medical resources (most of FL has this in spades), etc. must be weighed. In FL the frequency of hurricanes needs to be considered, and how one would evacuate and to where. When needed, I can easily mobilize my ample number of willing cousins in FL to move and protect our 2 aunts in an evacuation. Not sure what I'd would do if I didn't have their willing help.
Tennessee is relatively less expensive. Highest sales tax in the country... 9.25% -9.75%, depending on the city you live in. Food is 7%. But no state income tax.
Nashville has had a construction boom in the last few years, but it’s also inflated cost of living there.
Winters are relatively mild but summers can be brutal.
Don't come to NJ. We have a almost 6.5 sales tax. Our income tax is 2%. Our property taxes are the highest in the nation as is our car insurance.
I know 2 retired couples who love Tenn., another couple like Kentucky. My brother lives in NC, property taxes are low. But, registration of cars is expensive. I really don't understand how it works, something to do with the price of the car. Maybe why he and a friend who lives there don't buy new cars.
Ohio does not have great weather. Hot and humid in summer; snow and ice in winter. A couple of the urban areas are ranked among top 10 worst places to live. The cost of living varies greatly in different areas of the state. Property costs also vary greatly. In addition to federal and state taxes there are city/town taxes and sales taxes. On the plus side there are no taxes on food and food costs are not exorbitantly high. There are good public schools, excellent colleges and universities. Many OH retirees move further south to ancient, SC, GA and FL and more recently AL has become very popular.
Needhelp2021, I see from your profile that you have been caring for your Mom, who is only 75 years old but has major health issues. Question, will your Mom be coming along with you? If yes, wherever you decide to move, make sure there are excellent health care facilities nearby, and medical offices.
You could find a nice sweet inexpensive town like Mayberry, but one would need to drive several hours to get specialized health care. Another thing to consider, how good is the broadband internet/cellphones in those areas.
Californians are fleeing mostly to Arizona, Texas, and Idaho. We're out of here once my mother doesn't need us any longer, and we'll be going to Arizona with a second place in Colorado.
We lived in Colorado from '99-2012, and I'd go back in a heartbeat, but my husband doesn't like the cold weather. It was tough to acclimate to the cold there when we two native Californians were first transferred up there, so don't discount the effects weather might have on you and in the case of Colorado, the effects altitude can have on you. It's not good for someone with heart issues.
If you move to a state with no income tax, they make up for it in property and sales taxes. A condo in non-income tax state might be the best way to go. If you have kids, the states with low COL don't have the best school systems. (If you live in ND please don't read further..) I live in MN and you couldn't pay me any amount of money to live in ND. Mostly flat, boring and not much culture. SD has the Black Hills, Bad Lands and Lake Champerlain. If you like wide open spaces then ND is for you. The winters are brutal.
There are states with no state sales tax and normal property tax rates. Nevada for example. They don’t make up for lack of sales tax with high property tax rates, their property taxes are low. Florida’s property taxes are about the same as California’s.
There s an area n Arkansas that s offering 10k to people for moving there. Probably not the only area in the country. Low cost of living and jobs available, the reason for the 10k. Google best places to live with low cost of living.
You need to consider weather not just cost of living. Just FYI. Arizona, MI, OH, Florida, Idaho, Montana, North & South Dakota all have much lower costs living BUT the weather is very different there. If you go to Idaho or the dakotas or Ohio, you have to deal with snow. Arizona and Florida get much hotter than CA (and FL has humidity and tropical storms/hurricanes which we Californians are NOT used to). Oklahoma is pretty cheap but they get tornadoes. Don’t know about you but I would take earthquakes over tornados and hurricanes any day!
I live in Tampa, I don't think the temperatures have ever gone above 100. Parts of CA do get hotter, and other parts have terrible fires (which according to the Wall Street Journal have driven up cost of homeowners insurance). These are big states, and you really have to consider different parts.
Mississippi. Watch that show on HGTV called Home Town. Ben & Erin Napier restore old homes in Laurel MS and let me tell you, if I was able to tolerate humidity, I'd move there in a heartbeat. For $100K, you can live like royalty! You can buy a nice home for under $50K even. I'm sure the cost of living in general is WAY lower than CA or even CO where I live.
Check out their TV show; it's one of my favorites!
I live in San Francisco. Don't come HERE, hee hee. We used to have a small cabin in the Country, Mariposa County very near to Yosemite. It SHOCKED us how much less the cost of living was in terms of everything from food to housing to help in building anything. In short, in EVERYTHING. For instance, dog teeth cleaning in SF, is 1,000. Vet in Mariposa was 125.00 with extractions. Vet said he would be FULL with city slickers if he accepted them. So it varies in the state. My bro paid 4,000 for two beautiful rooms in ALF in So. Cal Palm Springs. In my area such a place would be easily twice that. Wishing you the greatest of good luck. Remember to look at taxes on everything, property especially. When I read the New York Times Sunday edition where they show homes across the country same price? The taxes can range from 2,000 a year to 10,000 a year. Also think of cost of heating in winter months. Can be VERY HIGH. I hope you will let us know what your search shows. Good luck.
Main reason I wont move to texas to be near my daughter
What are you looking for?
A beach city, mountain, close to big city?
What will your favorite destination have there?
Yea, sure I like a beach city and me at the beach under an bamboo umbrella being served exotic drinks by young gorgeous Half naked waiters and waitresses. And in the afternoon I go to my scheduled massage and sauna appointment. 😁
https://www.agingcare.com/questions/is-anyone-living-in-arizona-or-any-other-affordable-state-463411.htm
G iven this and the other post as well as very broad questions, I think you might find it helpful to make a list of specific considerations, which do vary by individual. Then search the state and the parameters. What might be great for each of us might not suit you, and we have no idea what you're looking for.
E.g., first define "affordable", as it applies to you. And what specifically about CA is "not affordable"? Is it housing or rental costs? Food, gas, utilities?
Are you concerned about politics? If so, then you'd identify the blue vs. the red states.
Entertainment? What kind? If you love opera, search on that parameter. If you want county music, search on that. Festivals, crafts shows? Other parameters to search.
The folks here are either caring for someone, have done so, or are in other situations where time can be limited. You're asking for a lot of information, w/o detail.
The answers I've read are very helpful and cover a spectrum of issues. Narrowing it down would help responders. You could also search the specific states under consideration after eliminating some of the ones you definitely wouldn't consider, such as Alaska, if you don't want to live in a really, really cold state.
All of the above LOL! But gas and housing costs are probably the main reason OP is looking for a lower cost of living state :)
https://www.usnews.com/news/best-states/rankings/opportunity/affordability
Nashville has had a construction boom in the last few years, but it’s also inflated cost of living there.
Winters are relatively mild but summers can be brutal.
I know 2 retired couples who love Tenn., another couple like Kentucky. My brother lives in NC, property taxes are low. But, registration of cars is expensive. I really don't understand how it works, something to do with the price of the car. Maybe why he and a friend who lives there don't buy new cars.
You could find a nice sweet inexpensive town like Mayberry, but one would need to drive several hours to get specialized health care. Another thing to consider, how good is the broadband internet/cellphones in those areas.
We lived in Colorado from '99-2012, and I'd go back in a heartbeat, but my husband doesn't like the cold weather. It was tough to acclimate to the cold there when we two native Californians were first transferred up there, so don't discount the effects weather might have on you and in the case of Colorado, the effects altitude can have on you. It's not good for someone with heart issues.
Low cost of living and jobs available, the reason for the 10k. Google best places to live with low cost of living.
Found it
https://www.forbes.com/sites/laurabegleybloom/2020/11/12/this-us-region-will-pay-you-10000-to-move-there-and-give-you-a-bike-too/?sh=4a162bc749d5
Check out their TV show; it's one of my favorites!
Wishing you the greatest of good luck. Remember to look at taxes on everything, property especially. When I read the New York Times Sunday edition where they show homes across the country same price? The taxes can range from 2,000 a year to 10,000 a year. Also think of cost of heating in winter months. Can be VERY HIGH.
I hope you will let us know what your search shows. Good luck.
https://worldpopulationreview.com/state-rankings/states-with-lowest-cost-of-living