If you are among the growing number of people thinking about moving in retirement, we have some great suggestions—in fact, 12 of them.
Each of the cities and towns here is home to at least one college or university that offers access to concerts, interesting lectures and sports (without final exams and 8 a.m. French class). Most of our cities have a moderate cost of living, and all are located in states that exempt all or a portion of retirement income from taxes. Because health care is an important concern for retirees, our cities also have at least one hospital nearby that has received four or five stars—the highest rating—from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.
Source: For population figures, we used the most recent U.S. Census Bureau data. Cost-of-living data comes from the Council for Community and Economic Research (100 represents the national median). Median home prices were provided by Redfin, Zillow and local associations of Realtors.
12 Smart Places to Retire | Slide 1 of 9
St. Augustine, Fla.
POPULATION: 14,576
COST OF LIVING: Not available
MEDIAN HOME PRICE: $343,000
5-STAR HOSPITAL: Mayo Clinic (Jacksonville, Fla.)
COLLEGE PERK: Low-cost continuing-education courses on everything from digital marketing to belly dancing.
St. Augustine and the surrounding St. John’s County offer more than just surf and sand wedges.
St. Augustine Beach, located 10 minutes from downtown, is backstopped by laid-back restaurants serving up the day’s catch to folks in flip-flops. If a peaceful hammock is more your vibe, chill with the local wildlife on the secluded beaches of 1,600-acre Anastasia Island State Park.
A short drive north will land you in Ponte Vedra Beach, replete with ritzy beach clubs and golf courses. Here you’ll find TPC Sawgrass, home of The Players Championship, one of the PGA’s most prestigious annual events. The area is also home to the World Golf Hall of Fame and the PGA Tour Academy—for golf legends both real and aspiring.
Also keeping the city young: Flagler College, where retirees can take in free lectures, plays, musicals, concerts and art exhibitions.
Living costs in greater St. Augustine aren’t cheap by national standards, but Florida is among the tax-friendliest states in the country for retirees. There is no state income, estate or inheritance tax.
12 Smart Places to Retire | Slide 2 of 9
Savannah, Ga.
POPULATION: 145,862
COST OF LIVING: 88
MEDIAN HOME PRICE: $225,000
4-STAR HOSPITAL: Effingham Health System (Springfield, Ga.)
COLLEGE PERK: You can buy the work of up-and-coming artists and designers at the Savannah College of Art and Design’s retail store.
Savannah isn’t your typical college town, but if you enjoy the arts—from film to fashion—this city might be for you.
The private Savannah College of Art and Design doesn’t have a traditional campus. Rather, it operates out of historic buildings it has renovated, mostly in the downtown area. Many school-sponsored activities are open to residents. One of the most popular is the annual Savannah Film Festival. It features more than 100 films, some from Hollywood studios, that haven’t yet hit theaters.
Hot and steamy summers are a drawback. But many here escape the heat by heading 18 miles east to Tybee Island’s beach.
Georgia is one of Kiplinger’s top 10 tax-friendly states for retirees. Social Security income is tax-exempt, and so is up to $65,000 of most types of retirement income if you’re 65 or older (up to $35,000 if you’re 62 to 64).
12 Smart Places to Retire | Slide 3 of 9
Richmond, Va.
POPULATION: 228,783
COST OF LIVING: 95
MEDIAN HOME PRICE: $258,000
5-STAR HOSPITAL: Bon Secours Memorial Regional Medical Center (Mechanicsburg, Va.)
COLLEGE PERK: Retirees can join Virginia Commonwealth University’s Commonwealth Society for short courses, lecture series and travel opportunities.
Richmond is historic and southern, but it’s anything but sleepy. Around town, you’ll find a mix of magnolias and colorful murals, preppies in pastels and bohos with turquoise hair and tattoos.
The centers of the city’s intellectual and creative life are Virginia Commonwealth University, a state university; the University of Richmond, a private school; and Virginia Union University, a private, historically black university. Relocating retirees are often alumni or discovered the city when their children attended college there.
The city straddles the James River, which offers some respite on hot summer days. At Belle Isle, accessible via a pedestrian bridge, you can walk on shady paths and watch great blue herons glide down to rocks midstream. Bicyclists, runners and walkers enjoy the Virginia Capital Trail, which runs 52 miles between downtown Richmond and the Jamestown Settlement near Williamsburg. Retirees can visit or volunteer at Maymont, a gilded-era home and 100-acre property with gardens and a nature center.
Virginia is tax-friendly for retirees. It doesn’t tax Social Security benefits, and residents 65 and older can deduct up to $12,000 per person of income from IRAs, pensions and other retirement accounts, subject to income eligibility limits.
12 Smart Places to Retire | Slide 4 of 9
Swarthmore, Pa.
POPULATION: 6,401
COST OF LIVING: 113
MEDIAN HOME PRICE: $237,000
4-STAR HOSPITAL: Penn Presbyterian Medical Center (Philadelphia, Pa.)
COLLEGE PERK: Residents have access to all of Swarthmore College’s libraries with a local library card.
Swarthmore College, one of the nation’s leading liberal arts colleges, occupies about a third of the town of the same name, and with more than 4,000 different kinds of plants stretching across 300 acres, it’s also a designated arboretum. The school has long welcomed town residents by making virtually all of its happenings—concerts, lectures, sporting events and more—open to the public. The town itself is walkable, with plenty of sidewalks and more than two dozen lushly forested trails. “You can’t live anywhere in Swarthmore that’s more than a 10-minute walk to town,” says Carrie Piccard, a local real estate agent since 2003. Add in free public transit for seniors, and “having a car just isn’t a necessity,” says mayor Marty Spiegel.
Because of its small size, the housing market can be tight, but residents say the situation is improving. Swarthmore’s city government recently lifted a zoning law that prevented more than a few unrelated people from living together in a family home—originally intended to prevent a dozen students from cramming into a house. That spells opportunity for retirees who want to give communal living a go.
Pennsylvania is tax-friendly for retirees. Social Security benefits, retirement plan withdrawals and pensions are exempt from taxes.
12 Smart Places to Retire | Slide 5 of 9
Hanover, N.H.
POPULATION: 11,500
COST OF LIVING: Not available
MEDIAN HOME PRICE: $265,000
4-STAR HOSPITAL: Alice Peck Day Memorial Hospital
COLLEGE PERK: Active retirees can work out at the campus gymnasium through Dartmouth’s Fitness and Lifestyle Improvement Program.
Hanover buzzes with a diverse mix of art, culture, and outdoor sporting and recreational activities year-round. Located along the Connecticut River bordering Vermont, the town is home to Dartmouth College. Founded in 1769, it’s the smallest of the eight Ivy League colleges, but it’s big on including all residents, especially active retirees, in its community.
Whether retirees are Dartmouth alums or transplants yearning to spend their retirement years in a bucolic college town, they have numerous opportunities to participate on campus committees, town boards and commissions, often alongside students and college staff. “Getting retirees at the committee level with Dartmouth students on various topics is something you see all the time,” says Julia Griffin, town manager.
Hanover residents young and old participate in the college’s events and activities, from concerts and performing arts events at the Hopkins Center for the Arts—known as The Hop—to sporting events, especially ice hockey. Yes, hockey—winters are chilly and long. In January, for example, the average high is 28 degrees, with an average snowfall of 17 inches.
New Hampshire residents pay no taxes on Social Security benefits, pensions or distributions from their retirement plans. And there’s no sales tax.
12 Smart Places to Retire | Slide 6 of 9
Evanston, Ill.
POPULATION: 74,106
COST OF LIVING: 123
MEDIAN HOME PRICE: $433,000
4-STAR HOSPITAL: NorthShore University HealthSystem Evanston Hospital
COLLEGE PERK: Lectures and classes through the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute.
Situated between Chicago’s city limits and its North Shore suburbs, Evanston is best known as the home of Northwestern University, but it’s hardly a simple college town. Whether you’re drawn to its classes, architecture, theater or music, this “City of Churches” is a rich cultural center with plenty to offer retirees.
Evanston is on America’s so-called Third Coast, Lake Michigan. The freshwater behemoth offers excellent views and miles of biking trails along the water and through town. But the cornerstone of Evanston’s retiree appeal is Northwestern itself. The Osher Lifelong Learning Institute—motto: “Curiosity Never Retires”—offers regular lectures, classes and study groups for any retiree looking for a sense of community and vibrant discourse.
Another draw is Evanston’s historic architecture. It received the attention of architectural greats such as Frank Lloyd Wright in the early 20th century, which earned it the moniker “City of Homes.” There are dozens of iconic structures, such as the Charles A. Brown House, dotting neighborhoods across town.
12 Smart Places to Retire | Slide 7 of 9
Fayetteville, Ark.
POPULATION: 86,751
COST OF LIVING: 87
MEDIAN HOME PRICE: $230,000
4-STAR HOSPITAL: Mercy Hospital Northwest Arkansas (Rogers, Ark.)
COLLEGE PERK: Residents age 60 and older can take classes at the University of Arkansas, tuition-free.
Looking for an active yet funky college town with a bit of southern hospitality? You will feel right at home in Fayetteville. A vibrant, economically and culturally diverse mecca in the Ozarks, Fayetteville attracts a variety of people from around the country, often retirees following their children—mid-career professionals who may work for local Fortune 500 companies such as Walmart, Tyson Foods and JB Hunt Transport Services.
A major driver of the downtown region’s economy is the University of Arkansas. Founded in 1871, U of A’s Fayetteville campus is the flagship of the state university system. Arkansans age 60 and older can enroll in for-credit undergraduate and graduate courses tuition-free (based on space availability).
12 Smart Places to Retire | Slide 8 of 9
Flagstaff, Ariz.
POPULATION: 73,964
COST OF LIVING: 116
MEDIAN HOME PRICE: $362,000
5-STAR HOSPITAL: Flagstaff Medical Center
COLLEGE PERK: Northern Arizona University works with retiree volunteers to partner with the city’s dozens of nonprofits.
At an elevation of 7,000 feet, this mountain town swaddled by sweet-smelling Ponderosa pine trees has plenty to offer retirees by way of outdoor activities, top-tier dining, volunteer opportunities and seasonable weather. Snowbirds, take heed: This is not the sun-bleached Arizona you may be thinking of. Despite its crisp lack of humidity, it regularly receives about 100 inches of snow every winter.
Designated a “Bicycle Friendly Community” by the League of American Bicyclists since 2006, the city offers more than 130 miles of bike lanes and another 56 miles of multi-use “urban trails.” If skiing is your thing, Arizona’s tallest mountains, the San Francisco Peaks, are a 30-minute drive from the city. (If skiing isn’t your thing, take the chairlift for breathtaking views.) The Grand Canyon is roughly 90 minutes north by car. But don’t be fooled by downtown Flagstaff’s sleepy western vibe; it has more than 200 restaurants and award-winning craft beers in abundance along a “brewery trail.”
Arizona exempts Social Security benefits from state taxes, along with up to $2,500 in income from military or Arizona state and local pensions. Income from IRAs and other retirement plans is taxable at a top rate of 4.54%.
12 Smart Places to Retire | Slide 9 of 9
Claremont, Calif.
POPULATION: 36,478
COST OF LIVING: 148
MEDIAN HOME PRICE: $719,000
5-STAR HOSPITALS: Chino Valley Medical Center, Glendora Community Hospital
COLLEGE PERK: Claremont Avenues for Lifelong Learning, which allows people age 60 or older to audit college courses at seven colleges for free.
Claremont has critical college mass with seven colleges that make up The Claremont Colleges: Claremont McKenna College, Claremont Graduate University, Harvey Mudd College, Keck Graduate Institute, Pitzer College, Pomona College and Scripps College. They sponsor innumerable educational, cultural and sporting events. Eight times a year, the colleges publish and distribute a calendar of events open to the public, including live performances, lectures, art shows and more. Most are free or low-cost.
If you want to get outdoors, the city has 23 parks, including the Claremont Hills Wilderness Park. Located at the base of the San Gabriel Mountains and the Angeles National Forest, the wilderness park has plenty of hiking trails. The 86-acre Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden is dedicated to native California plants.
Claremont is almost always sunny. It can be hot during the day, especially in the summer. But it’s dry heat, it cools down at night, and it isn’t buggy, says Danielle Fontes, president of the Citrus Valley Association of Realtors.
To get out of town without fighting L.A.’s notorious traffic, you can hop on a Metrolink train at the Claremont station. Ontario International Airport is about a 15-minute drive away.
Claremont also has four continuing care retirement communities. The oldest of them, Pilgrim Place, was founded in 1915 to serve missionaries returning from overseas.
California doesn’t tax Social Security, and residents over 65 can claim a tax credit of $118 from state taxes. But other retirement income is taxed at a rate of up to 13.3%.
Leave A Comment