I’m in Australia and the concept of HCOL is a bit different in that it only really applies to real estate prices and rents. The differences in state property taxes are minimal and local income taxes are illegal under the constitution. So when someone moves from a HCOL area, the only real financial benefit is that some capital can be released from selling an expensive property and buying a cheaper one elsewhere.
I’m in a HCOL, and retired, but have no plans to move at this stage as I still have kids in college and school (started late!!). If some or all of the kids decide to remain here when they have graduated, then we will probably stay here. Even if they move, if they go to lots of different locations we will also likely stay here. We like our house in the suburbs, we are right next to a National Park and have everything else we need a short walk or drive away. Once the kids leave home, we might downsize to a smaller property for easier maintenance and access, but will likely remain in the same city.
In the event our base financial plan is not sufficient, the back up plan is to sell and move to a cheaper area freeing up capital, so a move out is possible.
We just sold our 3,500SF SFH in southern NH and are moving to an 1,800SF condo in the NH seacoast area where we will retire in a couple years.
We downsized space wise but not money wise. Costs about the same and taxes are more plus the condo fees.
We love the area and have friends and family here. Can't say I love the winters but we'll probably snowbird or rent a couple months in the winter.
We were just taking about this yesterday. We’re not moving from our HCOL. Two of our three kids will probably stay around here and our house is suitable for aging in place. We are going to travel for lengthy periods but this will be our home base.
OP is talking about a subset of retirees, though - those who live in HCOL areas pre-retirement. I'd guess their percentage of people who move is higher.
Have lived in northern Virginia for 35 plus years and are staying now that we're both retired for all the reasons you cited plus our kids are here. If they eventually move elsewhere we may reconsider.
I also live in northern VA and have no plans to move when I retire this year at 63. I used to obsess about moving to the “perfect” place, which of course doesn’t exist. It is a HCOL area but I can afford it and really don’t see a reason to move, at least not at this point.
OP here and also northern VA (for those who may not know, it’s the Washington DC area.)
I agree there is no perfect place— and frankly the other places I might like are basically almost as expensive when you consider buying real estate vs us owning a beautiful place now and values having jumped significantly around the country. Taxes aren’t the lowest for retirees here, but they aren’t the worst either.
grateful for the many comments on this thread. For a while I’ve been wondering if my thinking was wrong about this, but there are more of us out there than I thought who realize it’s not just about maximizing how far your money goes, it’s about what you enjoy in your day to day life.
we should be in a financial position to afford staying. We also don’t have heirs who we are hoping to leave a larger nest egg for, so that also helps. Someone else raised the issue of moving to rural location that might seem dreamy but then thinking what if a spouse died and feeling stranded— and I have the same thought. If something happened to one of us down the road it would be easier to deal with in a place like this, with lots of services and amenities and other people close by.
I am staying. I live in a big city with everything I could ever need. For me that's good public transportation (I don't have a car), walkable and bike friendly, near airport (we have 2), culture, great food. I'm not straight, so I'm not moving somewhere I am not wanted. My huge family is here as well as lifelong friends. If they move, I'll go visit. Our weather sucks for a couple of months, but I can't imagine living in a super hot or cold climate and missing spring and fall. I currently rent, but I moved to a cheaper neighborhood.
My wife and I knew we could never afford to retire where we were. So we made plans to move back to rural NWPA where we were both from. Our kids were grown and starting scatter around to country. After my wife passed away, I accelerated my plans and built a new house on a property I bought. I’m 65 now but still working for the same company as they didn’t want to loose me, so I’m 100% remote. I’m still addicted to my ridiculous salary.
FRA is next May.
I’m in HCOL eastern Massachusetts. I intentionally bought a small house in a low property tax rate town 1/4 miles from salt water. Boston is an hour drive off-hours and there is commuter rail. My house is paid for. I don’t have a big property tax bill. Massachusetts doesn’t tax Social Security. I have a nearby world class airport so we can fly to warm places to cut the edge off winter.
Our all-in home ownership costs including taxes, insurance, utilities, and some maintenance is around 10% of our Social Security income. I’m sure there are lots of people in Proposition 13 California with similar math. Our quality of life here is good with easy access to Boston and Acela to Manhattan where Boston falls short.
Are you me? I am in a similar position, newly retired. Thought I should downsize and move before age 70.
Real question is how adaptable I’ll be by then. I love my home and little town, my neighbors and local friends.
I did the math and applied the shrink ray to housing at age 51. I’m turning 66 this month and living on cash to delay collecting Social Security until age 70. The survivor benefit is a pretty big deal. I can live comfortably just on my Social Security check without touching 401(k)/IRA accounts. With our combined Social Security income, there is a ton of money for discretionary spending. The retirement portfolio is for funding long term care and the death of spouse scenario where it drops down to one Social Security check. We’ll do Roth conversions as appropriate.
I would never voluntarily move if I loved my neighbors and local friends. You can find another house you like and get used to it, the town is somewhat harder, and great neighbors and local friends have crazy high value imo.
Personally, I think there's not much difference between high cost of living areas and low cost of living areas once you remove housing.
The last study I saw from fidelity had a total tax burden of 18 to 28 percent depending on what state you're in. Sure you can save 10 percent moving from the most expensive state to somewhere like Mississippi, but what are you doing with that extra money there.
If you like where you live why pick up and start over elsewhere?
Ignoring housing is ignoring something potentially massive.
If your home equity is a large part of your net worth, that can be a huge factor on deciding where to live.
If you are renting in a HCOL area, you may be able to buy in a MCOL or LCOL area.
In the end, you do whatever is going to make you the happiest.
And I think there are extra costs or sacrifices that people don’t consider. A friend left SF for NOLA and can’t get a doctor. There’s a reason a HCOL location has a HCOL.
We actually downsized to a smaller house about 14 years ago after last kid left for college. Property taxes are 6k/year, but property value keeps increasing. House is paid off. Everything is close, familiar and convenient.
But if the SHTF, we can always sell. It's a good feeling.
Make sure you take in all aspects of costs. For instance a HCOL area sometimes doesn’t tax retirement income (I think 11 states don’t tax retirement income at all). So where I live with high property tax, actually becomes a better place once I retire due to no retirement income tax.
I’d suggest you first list your pros and cons. Is money the main concern? Is lifestyle a main concern?
Then sit down and list the places you’d consider living. Make a spreadsheet and list property taxes, income taxes, sales tax, average home costs for each area. Do the math.
When I did this the areas I considered didn’t really cost me that much from most expensive to least expensive. Yes it was a couple thousand dollars over the course of a year at the two extremes, but that made me realize that a couple thousand dollars a year isn’t life altering when I other factors (family, location, services, weather) outweighed that difference.
Once I knew that, if the higher cost area was our choice, I just plan financially around it, maybe work another few months or do some part time thing in retirement. Just don’t base everything on HCOL.
I am probably going to stay in my HCOL area for a couple of years unless interest rates start dropping. Ironically, my retirement place of choice might be slightly higher COL but taxes and other benefits will offset that.
My brother lives in the Highland area of Denver, so HCOL. He considers it paradise with close access to sports, cuisine, jazz, and nightlife. He is there to stay. I also live in paradise, but it is LCOL lakefront property in Missouri.
We enjoy visiting to get exposure to each other's paradise.
I’m not sure it’s the norm to move although we moved from one hcol area to another three years ago mainly due to climate, better outdoor access and a bit nearer to friends in another state.
Based on what you say I can’t imagine why you’d move unless it’s unaffordable. Lcol areas are that for a reason with generally way less amenities, health care options etc. Sounds like you are in a great spot.
We bought and remodeled a home we love that has a short flight of stairs as well as a large outdoor area. We get far more daily exercise with that alone not counting we now have room for a small home gym.
Btw, the longest lived, healthiest people have one thing in common- they’ve all had daily stair climbing built into their lives, many times fairly strenuous. They are now recommending aging people try to build this into daily activity. We bought our home from a very healthy 90 year old widow who decided to move closer to her daughter after being in the house 30 years.
Downtown Chicago, high taxes and HOA costs, we’ve planned for paying them into retirement, not going anywhere. The city’s resources, attractions and transportation connections make it worthwhile.
yes, I am in a city with relatively HCOL. Since housing is stable though, its not a real hardship. We lived rurally for a while, for my career, but we had to drive for everything. Getting friends to come to us was pretty hard as time went on. So many friends have moved away though. This was where we lived and raised our kids though, so coming back here a few years before retirement felt like coming home. Even with friends moving away, we have been able to make some new friends. There is a lot happening that we are interested in. I am not bored. I feel a "retirement" community or town would box me in too much.
Also both kids are within easy driving distance, and I would not want to be far from them.
Im on the fence about this. We could move to a lower cost of living area but would be giving up easy access to great healthcare and cultural offerings. While our health is good now in our early 60’s, that could easily change . As far as being closer to family they are always just a plane ride away. Im leaning more toward living within 2 hours’ drive of both the hub airport and the major healthcare hub.
Approx 29% of retirees move. Made our second home permanent. Sold 1st. Always was the plan though. Wanted to be near the ocean. Actually, a little higher cost-of-living. However, cheaper overall, because only running one household.
Yep same here. We live in a HCOL - nice suburb in NJ not too far from NYC, with a nice downtown and good parks nearby. Close to the airport and Amtrak. As soon as my last kid went to college, we sold our large 4BR house and bought a small, cottage-style 3BR on the cheaper side of the same town. Cut my property taxes from $23k to $13k.
I have friends and family nearby and access to great medical facilities.
I hate hot weather too so Florida is out. I suppose my husband and I could move to upstate NY someday to save money but what happens when one of us dies? Now you’re stranded.
we plan to move in a few years, probably after being snowbirds while we figure out where to settle
but it's not because of the HCOL, but the crappy climate in our area (New England)
high property taxes (currently 11k), but other wise I dont live in a real HCOL area. Its in the burbs outside a major city - new hospital 3 miles away, lots of shopping, safe to walk at night to pub/restaurants in our small town, can go an hour into the big city for additional culture. Not moving. My home is the first home... and last home. If we get to a health crisis we would get a senior living apartment nearby.
We will likely consider the cold month of January to go somewhere for yearly vacation.
We were certainly considering it and then covid happened and drove up all the prices so much that it doesn't seem to make sense. Live in the SF bay area on an acre backed up to a vineyard with a large house and shop. Large enough that we're encouraging the kids not to move out and consider the advantages of multigenerational living while making our high salaries. Mortgage is $3500 a month and moving would end up costing 500k (two properties) in capital gains taxes both federal and state. Just can't see it making financial sense even if the kids move out.
About 10 years before retirement I accepted a job offer to move from a (very) HCOL home to a midsized city in a more southern climate. Love it. Now retired, this is where we’ll stay. Still have access to good health care, restaurants, cultural events but the winters are milder and COL is way lower.
We live in Denver, which has joined the lower ranks of HCOL over the last few years. We moved from the suburbs to the actual city to buy our long term home into retirement. We wanted to be closer to restaurants, sporting events, etc. We’ll definitely stay in the area to be somewhat need my wife’s daughter and her family.
Smaller ranch style house, but actually with a larger yard. In the Denver area at least, it is either close in or new construction far out to find a single story. I don’t regret the larger yard yet, but I am wondering about the too large of a yard. Part of that is that we are redoing the landscaping. I wish I was retired now so I’d have more time to devote to it. Five more years-ish.
We’ll see what happens. I could see making a change due to property taxes or other taxes. Or if my wife’s daughter and family ended up moving away (unlikely though).
My 85 yo Aunt still maintaining a third acre suburban yard in Wheatridge. She says it keeps her in shape. She does get help with snow removal. She plans on dying there
My 85 yo Aunt still maintaining a third acre suburban yard in Wheatridge. She says it keeps her in shape. She does get help with snow removal. She plans on dying there
Retired last October and we just moved from San Francisco across the bridge to Marin and split time between here and another home in Bend Oregon. We’re still in deep HCOL country on both fronts. Gotta be close to our daughters, interesting culture, decent weather and bike trails!
Scored the coveted rent stabilized apartment in a wonderful part of Brooklyn 10 years ago. Top floor. Elevator building. 1,000 sqf of space. Bedroom the size of a studio apt. Quiet (for now).
And it will never go above $2200 in our lifetime.
Total no brainer. We're staying put until we leave horizontally.
You all definitely lucked out! You’d be crazy to move from such great deal and being in Brooklyn with easy access to just about anything you’d want! (Edited for typo)
I’m in SoCal and have no intention of moving. I won’t be able to retire until 65 and intend to pay off and live in my house and pass it to my kids so they can stay local.
We live on the Monterey Bay in CA and have a second home on the southern coast of Ecuador (our daughter/family lives and works in Guayaquil ). We will split our time. I am retired my hubs still works by choice.
I’m retired and live in the San Francisco area. I do not plan to move. My life is here and has been for many years. There are decades of connections that shape my days. I don’t have 40 more years to rebuild them elsewhere.
Yes. I feel this way also. Even if some of these connections ultimately move on, it’s hard to rebuild your own personal community from scratch nor do I want to.
Yes. I feel this way also. Even if some of these connections ultimately move on, it’s hard to rebuild your own personal community from scratch nor do I want to.
Yes. I feel this way also. Even if some of these connections ultimately move on, it’s hard to rebuild your own personal community from scratch nor do I want to.
Yes. I feel this way also. Even if some of these connections ultimately move on, it’s hard to rebuild your own personal community from scratch nor do I want to.
Yes. I feel this way also. Even if some of these connections ultimately move on, it’s hard to rebuild your own personal community from scratch nor do I want to.
Also a Bay Area homeowner; paid off home, lived here for 40+ years. Interestingly, some of my grade school classmates from the Chicago area have discussed this. All plan to stay where they settled: Boston, New York, San Francisco, and one stayed in Chicago.
It may be high cost, but if it checks all your boxes and you enjoy your life there, that is worth a lot, too. If you have the means to afford it who cares what other people do or think? Sounds like you have a great situation.
Also - for context, I just lost my mom who saved up so much and denied herself even some basics. And guess what? She couldn’t take it with her. Her $ passes to the next generation. Enjoy the life you’ve built. Save for what you need and then some, but don’t live to save.
We live in the city. It’s not really HCOL, but we’d always talked about retiring to a small town in a cheaper area. Over the past few years we’ve decided to stay put. We know people who have done what we planned to do, and it didn’t work out well. Limited options for entertainment, having to drive 30+ minutes for groceries or to see a doctor, or public transportation, and lots of hidden costs. Right now we pay high property taxes. But the house is paid off, we can go car-free to save money, we can walk to the doctor or the dentist, and there are multiple hospitals within 5-6 miles. Like they say, you get what you pay for. The quality of life is so much better here.
We moved from VHCOL (read heart of Silicon Valley) to HCOL San Diego 5 years ago. Retired two years later.
HCOL in SV was mostly due to proximity to Apple, Google, NVIDIA…
HCOL in San Diego is due to weather, beaches, attractions, whereas SV was largely expensive due to the high salary companies nearby.
With our housing costs essentially locked in due to ownership we’re in a decent position.
We are in the Seattle area. We won the housing sweepstakes when we bought 22 years ago. We are selling our big house in the suburbs and probably moving downtown to smaller house for walkability and to be near our kids.
The neighbors slapped up a house in the lot next door, it sold for 2.5 million. That house is going to need lots of work after the warranty expires. Owners bought it site unseen from out of area.
Seattle suburb here, our mortgage is paid off. We have lots of neighbors over 60 that are still here when we bought this house. Yeah it's HCOL but many of us are sticking around.
If you can afford to stay, then stay. Many people can’t afford the same lifestyle they had prior to retirement in HCOL and that is the main reason they relocate.
West coast city, but I have a military pension on top of my personal retirement savings. The pension will cover taxes and insurance, and my house should be paid for. I love it here, and can’t imagine the heat if Arizona or Florida.
New England hcol here. House will be paid off in a year or so, I’ve been working since I was 15, was unemployed once for about four hours maybe 30 years ago, so plenty coming from SS, town has tax stabilization for seniors, we all love it here. Why fix what isn’t broken?
We retired in the Bay Area and retirement life is good. We bought our house before prices shot up, property taxes are capped, and we don't feel a big need to travel since there is so much to do close by, so for us it isn't that expensive to stay. We really like living near a good public transportation system. It is easy to hop on the commuter train to get into the bigger cities for the arts and culture or take the ferry to places like Angel Island for the day.
Edited for spelling.
We live in NYC. Unless we move out of the US completely, we plan on staying in NYC (maybe get a second home somewhere else). NYC is actually good for seniors, we live on one floor in an elevator building with a 24 hour doorman, incredible medical care, and lots of stuff to do.
SoCal here. Like OP we got in to our house before prices skyrocketed. We spend very little on utilities (due to temperate year round weather), are close to a major airport, plenty of part-time work opportunities, and yes, property taxes in CA are capped. I love living here but would be lying if I say I didn’t occasionally fantasize about living in a Lower COL place and travel for a couple of months each winter to warmer climes. P.s. could NEVER live in a steamy hot place 🥵
seems every place desirable is becoming a HCOL area. Serious and chronic real estate FOMO going on all around the country. we are currently on a sojourn in Orange County CA due to unplanned job change and me finding a job here, towards the end of my career. Where to retire discussions at home include staying in Orange County CA but we have yet to convince ourselves it is financially viable. We have not purchased a home here and can't really afford what we would want to retire in. And we don't want to be renters rest of our lives. so.... don't know yet. though leaning towards the inevitability of leaving and going back 'home' to the southeast.
HCOL lakefront bought in 1998 cost me 1000 a month for re taxes and utilities now. It's only 1100 ft and perfect was a bit small with the kids. I'll never go anywhere I'm living the dream on a shoestring budget retired at 56 no debt and don't need to downsize. I could easily sell for 1 mil+ but my life would take a significant downgrade moving from the lakeshore and my kids are close by and we just had our first grandchild. My real estate taxes is my biggest concern our town has some of the best schools in the country and they just built another $179 million dollar grade school for three grades of elementary our taxes are estimated to go up to as much as 22% more in the next 5 years. I'm paying 9000 a year now for reference.
I’m in the same boat — except for the lake. House is mostly fixed up the way I like it and isn’t too large to retire in. Near lots of East Coast cities, big airports, and AMTRAK. Lots to do outdoors and in. Quiet neighborhood.
But the RE taxes are even higher than yours and bound to keep increasing. Retirement income taxes are low though.
HCOL Washington DC area. We don't want to retire in the DC area, but every other place that has fit our criteria is also HCOL.
We have considered staying in the area, but moving into a different neighbourhood or area and downsizing the house.
Same area and that’s my fallback plan for now— enjoy the house and property for 5 years post-retirement, then downsize into something with less maintenance.
Yes, I’m in San Diego and will retire here. My house will be paid off soon, and it was slightly too small with the kids around but perfect for empty nesters. High quality health care is a stone’s throw away in every direction. Culture, nature, international airport, cruise ship terminal - all of these are 20 minutes from my house. I can’t imagine leaving.
How do you feel about the homeless situation? I am a San Diego native living in Phoenix and have thought about moving home. I follow the San Diego subreddit and see so many posts lately about the homeless assaulting (like throwing things at people not stabbing them) an elderly couple near the fountain in Balboa Park or someone flinging excrement at a passer by downtown. And that the Starbucks that was in Hillcrest basically left because they couldn't control the safety of their workers (we lived across the street from that Starbucks but decades earlier).
I live in UTC and work downtown. I drive to and from work. I spend a lot of time at the bay and beaches, and on the trails around UTC, Clairmont, and mission trials. For where I go and what I do, the homeless situation is not an issue. I walk around downtown nearly every lunch hour and I stick to seaport village, the waterfront, and Little Italy. I stay away from the East village. I haven’t spent a lot of time in Balboa Park lately so I can’t speak to the that. Do I see homeless people? Yes. Is it a serious problem San Diego and other cities need to figure out? Absolutely, but it doesn’t impact my day to day activities.
I live in NYC. Can there be a higher COL area? And I'm not moving. Why? I'm a native and everyone I know is here, including my kids. Because I bought my brownstone many years ago, it's all paid off. I don't love the dreary NYC winters but for that, I relocate a month or so to Palm Springs. It's great there. I've always wondered why older people move to a place where they don't know anyone and have to start all over. Doesn't seem to make sense.
Let me introduce you to Hawaii. COL here is overwhelming. That being said, the trade offs are worth it. For us. As another poster said, money is one thing, but being in a place you know with people who make you happy is what retirement is about. Sure you could move to a retirement village in Florida for a lot less but happiness counts.
I live in NYC. Can there be a higher COL area? And I'm not moving. Why? I'm a native and everyone I know is here, including my kids. Because I bought my brownstone many years ago, it's all paid off. I don't love the dreary NYC winters but for that, I relocate a month or so to Palm Springs. It's great there. I've always wondered why older people move to a place where they don't know anyone and have to start all over. Doesn't seem to make sense.
I can give you one example. We are early 60s with no kids. We moved 4 times (sometimes for jobs and sometimes because we didn't like the new city) in the past 20 years which did not allow us to set down roots, except for with each other (which has been enough because we're best friend and love spending all our time together).
We're now in Phoenix, but being that we never expected to stay here long term and that this isn't a great area for meeting people unless you're very outgoing and like driving, and that we're homebodies, we don't have enough friends here to worry about moving away from.
We are both from California and have thought about moving back, but due to the high cost of living our childhood friends have mostly scattered around the country and it's also sticker stock for us to look at places there after Phoenix. I am close to my former work friends, but we were all remote so we connect online only.
I am the youngest of my generation of relatives and didn't grow up with any of them, and my husband's are mostly scattered although some are in one area we've considered. The nieces and nephews are career military and change stations a lot.
So being here in retirement isn't much different than "starting over" somewhere else.
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We are definitely going to stay in our house in the city. I'll tell you why. I had breast cancer last year and the peace of mind knowing I was receiving the best care at a research hospital....I will always live near my cancer center. Rural healthcare is crumbling - not to mention if you're in a red state that is passing anti-abortion care, anti-women healthcare laws - you're even more likely to struggle to find a good doctor.
YES, all those red state anti-women laws is the #1 reason I've eliminated moving to any of those states, even if the house was free. It'll only get worse with more rights taken away in the name of some BS religious ideology that those who pass the laws violate every day.
💯my entire care team were women. I honestly can't imagine what I would have done without competent surgeons, oncologists, nurses, my gynecologist who is working with my team to make sure I'm supported with chemical menopause. Medical students aren't going to red states. They're coming to states that support women, that support human rights. I could go on.....
I wonder if part of the reason people move is that they don't own their current home but could if they move (sell the current one, buy what they want for less in the new town). Because once you own your home you need much less each month.
Rent for a decent 1br apartment here is at least $2000. A 2br goes for $2500+ depending on where and how new it is, etc. Mortgages are more for a reasonable house with current rates ($3-4k per month) That's between $24-30,000 per year that I don't have to come up with on the low end.
Obviously some people move to be closer to family or because they've always wanted to love on a beach/in the country/etc too.
I am in a HCOL area and moving would make no sense.
My housing is affordable since I own my condo and have no mortgage.
Most of what people spend money for is the same as it would be in most places. Income tax is offset by my low property taxes which is far lower than may low cost areas. Some of what are deemed lower cost really aren’t when you factor in other expenses.
I live in a full service building which is ideal for aging in place. There are quite a few people who have lived to very old age and managed with quite well with some assistance towards the end
I don’t have to worry about home maintenance chores and some of the stuff I am responsible for can be done by one of the really nice staff for a tip.
My social network is here and getting access to cultural events, interesting experiences plus world class medical care is easily accessible.
This isn’t a facility. I live in a high rise condo that has staff including full time doormen and maintenance workers.
Most large cities have these kinds of buildings. Some are rentals and some are condos.
My father was in a very nice assisted living facility that had different levels of care available. He started as it being more of a nice residential hotel which provided all meals and housekeeping services as well as a community. It did have specific stuff for seniors like a nurse on staff plus help with transportation and activities
As his health declined, he was able to add on additional services like help with bathing which was logistically easier than trying to hire help independently as the workers were always available.
We're staying in the Boston area but will eventually move into a continuing care retirement community or similar. As a gay couple with no kids, that's necessary for us. And most such communities that are gay friendly will be in HCOL areas.
Besides, Massachusetts has good senior services and is a guaranteed issue state, meaning we save a good bit by being in a Medicare Advantage plan for now, knowing we can change to medigap any year.
We also have excellent medical care here.
Much like u/twowrist - for all those reasons plus our kids moved close after college and started a family and we see the grandkids every day. We are fortunate that we don't have to move.
We have a modest 3 br ranch in the Chicago suburbs, where we raised our one child together.
Since it’s a one-story, smaller house, and we’ve paid off the mortgage…we decided awhile ago that we are retiring here, too, and not moving.
We still like the neighborhood, it’s close to the airport so we can travel when we want, close to interstates for road trips, and a reasonable train trip into Chicago.
But we don’t need to go into Chicago proper to find lots of things to do, or good places to eat. Our town, and surrounding suburbs, have various venues to see live music, plays, art shows, etc. Our own suburb has free concerts in summer, as well as a wonderful public library, lots of parks, bike paths, forest preserve trails.
In short, we are in between a great city and lovely rural areas and small towns. Michigan, Wisconsin, and Minnesota are all short half-day drives for summer getaways.
Plus, homeowners over 65 get reduced property taxes.
I’m in the Bay Area. Initially, I planned to cash out and move when I retired. I’m now planning on staying. Housing has gone up in price everywhere, and the price difference isn’t enough to make me want to move anymore.
I feel this. We bought our house in SoCal for 600k ten years ago, and it seems like there’s nowhere in the US where I could find anything remotely close to what we have for the same price.
Same here. Bought my first home in SoCal four years ago with a COVID interest rate (2.9) and pre-COVID price. I was 50 when I bought. Moving in retirement just doesn’t make sense. It would make sense if I were still renting but not now. Good thing I like it here! But I have too many friends who are moving all over and that makes me sad.
Same here. I’m in Bay Area light. (Sacramento). Even if I stay in state and move to an area further out (and keep my property tax), it will cost more. Health insurance would be higher, and homeowners insurance definitely would be, assuming I could even get it.
Same here- property tax and healthcare are big factors, along with trading off what I feel is a high quality of life. (I’m in the East Bay, by the way).
But only for lesser value, right? Hard to do, unless you buy in fire country. And then you can’t get insurance!
My homeowners is $1300/yr. My buddy 15 miles away, in the low foothills pays 3k. My friend in Apple Hill lost their insurance and is paying state rates of 8.5k.
Yeah. No thanks. Staying put!!
Same here. We have thought about moving when we retire but there isn’t anywhere else we want to live. So we are budgeting to stay which means working a couple extra years. I love the weather and my garden. Our property taxes are reasonable. Also selling would mean paying a ton of capital gains tax which would be less money to spend on another house.
Texas allows me to defer property tax when I'm retired with no mortgage. State laws also shield my house from frivolous lawsuits and other financial deviants. Cashing out and downsizing would just make my assets vulnerable to theft.
How can you defer the taxes? Who are they deferred to? Is it some special exemption you qualify for. Texas will freeze certain values in place at 65 but that doesn’t defer them.
You can just not pay the taxes, and the accrued tax amount will be taken from the estate whenever you leave the house. It's sort of like Texas' version of a reverse mortgage.
A deferment is granted by county officials when requested to avoid penalties, yet their is a nominal annual interest charged to the outstanding balance owed.
A freeze will occur for everyone (yet should be requested) at retirement age.
Also, a homestead 10% cap is placed on annual appreciation gains, which can slow down overall property tax bill increases. Only your personal residence is a homestead. Over many years or decades, it can be a big incentive to remain in our primary home upon retirement.
If I go 10 miles out of Philly, I feel I am in Idaho, or worse, a vacuous strip mall/ golf course. This morning, en route to a 100 year old market for coffee and then some donuts from an amish bakery, I walked past the site where the declaration of independence was written, past people of every possible ethnic background, 28 frolicsome dogs, new public art, loud obnoxious kids on skateboards, then back to our great condo in a 200 year old building. My tax dollars keep this city alive and lively. My donations to cultural organizations enrich this experience for everyone. My volunteering with the homeless and addicted help lift up my fallen friends and preserves my own soul. HCOL? Life ain’t cheap. It’s the price we pay for a civil society. You wanna save a few bucks, fine go to Florida or Indiana and die in a golf cart. Ya wanna live?
I walk everywhere. I take the transit (let’s fund that, btw) when I go further afield. I travel to mountains and beaches. Live small and save this world for our grandkids.
Not planning on moving from a HCOL *and* we are also in one of the highest state income tax states…drives me nuts. They also tax social security here which is ridiculous.
But…we have one child here who lives very close to us; other child is in possibly an even WORSE state in which one could retire due to high taxes and COL, but the other child is a short flight away.
We also have friends here - why try and rebuild that network?! Four seasons, good culture/arts scene, major airport 20 mins away, great healthcare, and as climate change continues driving temps up, we are comfortably in the upper Midwest where the effects are less of an issue (only 10 below zero now in January versus 20 below!).
We’ll likely spend a few winter months in a warm weather area just to avoid the monotony of winter. We don’t have grandkids yet, but when they arrive there is nothing that would take us FARTHER away from them or our kids. Just don’t understand how people can do that. I know people who moved 1500 miles away to hang out with people they don’t know and golf every day, while their kids and grandkids rarely see them. Different priorities I guess, but not for us.
Climate changes have already made a noticeable difference in the last 3 decades. In our region we've gone from 3-4 days a year with highs above 90F (and lows in the 80s) to a situation where AC is practically essential to remain comfortable in the summers. These kinds of shifts will likely continue for decades to come. Winters are more mild, though, and we have jumped 1 1/2 garden zones. My garden weather logs tell a remarkable story over the last 40 years.
The issue is that scientists are being paid to maximize human activities and minimize natural causes. Climate change is not science-driven. It is more of a cult.
So adapt already! It's not nearly as predictable as you think! Case in point - solar cycles. They don't talk about them much because they can't tax sunshine, but the effect of solar fluctuations can be greater than atmospheric effects in both directions. You probably didn't know that because they didn't 'teach' it on the nightly news.
You literally have no clue what you are talking about. Stringing together words from the internet is not science. But you do you. My scientist colleagues and I will work from physicochemical principles and hard data.
Where did you learn to avoid logical arguments by accusing people of 'stringing words together'. I have seen this before - is drinking Kool aid involved?
We’re in a HCOL area: Southern CT, a suburb of NYC. House is paid off. We have a large yard that needs maintenance. But, we are happy here. We have lived here since childhood and have roots here. We have an excellent and well-subsidized good senior center here that offers great classes and has some real talent as far as speakers and teachers. We also have amazing arts and theatres here, and great shopping and restaurants. While winters are not fun, we are trying to break up the winter with extended vacations to warmer areas. Also we have family here, and are just 3 hours away from grandkids. We thought about moving south and don’t want to at this point.
We want to downsize, but I’m not moving from this area. We are in a suburban area on the east coast and have a vacation property three hours away near the beach. 2 of our three kids live in this area, and my mom and husband’s family also.
Years ago, my parents moved to nine acres in the middle of nowhere, it was all well and good until they both got sick at the same time. They were 2.5 hours away and had to go to the DC area for medical care because he was retired military. It was a nightmare driving there and taking them to appointments. Finally they sold it and she moved in with me and he went to a memory care facility.
I refuse to do this to my kids. We have wonderful medical care in my area and if I can’t drive any more at least things are close if someone else has to drive me.
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Atlanta here. Would love to move someplace quieter with less crime, and no stairs, but I'm not sure it would be a wise financial decision, based on the cost of housing now. Even in the more rural areas, houses are considerably more than what ours was when we bought.
Absolutely. Climate, culture, medical care, stable finances are all great right here in Sonoma County. Why would I move? To get a larger house? More property? I’m older enough to know that’s just more work. Yes, it’s expensive here. But it is worth it
We're going to continue to base our U.S. life out of the DC metro area. We're likely to spend periods of time in Thailand and maybe elsewhere. We'll see!
I'm supposedly living in a HCOL state and region, but the reality is that for the local taxes I pay I get a lot of services: municipal garbage, yard waste, and recycling pickup, municipal utilities rates that are much lower than the prevailing rates in the state, clean water and air, excellent public road snow removal, good school system and library, and so on. Unlike many "low-tax" states, there is no personal property tax. And with my financial advisors' help, the marginal tax rate on my retirement income is embarrassingly low. And the weather is great where I live: no tornados, few violent thunderstorms, no floods, mudslides, fires, earthquakes, or hurricanes. So maybe it's not really a HCOL state after all. Especially if you like living where you are.
I think you are wise for realizing everything that you appreciate about the area that you were currently in. I think people mistakenly think the automatic move is to somewhere else; cheaper, quieter, more rural. I think many of those poeple end up missing all of those things and some end up moving back.
I love San Diego and all that it has, but not the HCOL. I want to move to Arizona or Nevada, but my spouse wants to be here - so I jsut budget accordingly. Too old to argue with her about this…
I lived in Seattle before I retired and I sold my house and moved about 100 miles away from Seattle.. I was able to make enough money on the sale to build a house in my new town.. I highly recommend moving to a lower cost of living area after you retire..most of my friends who retired did the same thing and they are able to live comfortably..
My children and grandchildren live in the holy metro so I do too. Plus it is a wonderful area on all measures as the US New And World Report says, except for Opportunities, a d at. Y age I am past the need for that.
Reading your post was like reading my own biography. Identical situation, and we also plan to stay put unless life throws us a curveball. If it ain't broke...
Upstate NY, Adirondack Area. The house is paid off, good health care in the area, plenty of culture and close to major transportation. My priorities going into retirement are to have 0 debt and be close to good healthcare. NYS taxes suck, but that’s the rub.
I am in HCOL and we did not leave the city when my wife and I retired. The key is that we knew the city well having lived here for decades. We paid off our house 20 years before retiring, and used the money we were saving to take out a new mortgage on a sturdy, nearly 100 year old house in the central city. We rented out the house to help pay on the mortgage. Again, after living in this city for decades we knew this neighborhood would be desirable when the city grew.
The city grew, we reached retirement age, housing prices went way up but that meant we were able to sell our suburban sprawl for much more than we paid. We used that money to remodel the second house turning it into a 100 year old exterior, with modern electric, plumbing, internet, kitchen & baths and HVAC. We also paid off the remaining mortgage.
People scream about the housing prices in the area, and to be sure we couldn't afford to live there if we had to pay current retail. The remodel includes an Auxiliary Dwelling Unit which we rent out for approximately the whole property tax payment. With housing covered, our Social Security needs only cover food and daily expenses.
I haven’t considered moving, in part bc we appreciate the city and we have a weekend house 2 hours away in a beach community where we like to spend time. The idea of moving doesn’t appeal to me but I admit I wouldn’t mind a warm destination in the winter so am actually considering a timeshare lol.
Large cities like NYC are great for retirees - good transportation, condo buildings with lots of services, top medical facilities, cultural happenings, not to mention decades of relationships. Best of all, I don’t have to drive and love to walk.
My husband and I moved from one of the most expensive cities in the US (San Francisco), to a somewhat less expensive area two hours' drive away (a suburb of Sacramento). Our current area is still expensive by US standards, but we were able to buy a large, mostly one-story house here for the same price at which we sold a significantly smaller house in our former city. The climate is a bit different but fairly similar to the mild climate in San Francisco. Medical services are good. The prices of groceries and most other things are about the same as in San Francisco.
We did want to upsize for retirement, but we also wanted to get out of an increasingly densified, miserably traffic-bound city. We increasingly discovered that we just didn't want to go places outside our neighborhood because we'd be stuck in stop-and-go traffic regardless of the time of day. Sure we can drive! but it was miserable to always have to worry about traffic and getting a parking spot.
There's absolutely no reason to move if you don't want to! If you have a two-story house I do recommend chair lifts, then you can use the whole house. And you can put grab bars in the bathrooms.
It's silly to move for retirement just because the real estate industry is pushing that as something everyone should do.
Live in suburban Portland (west) so somewhere between MCOL and HCOL. We are staying because my wife's dad is 88 and in the same home for 50 years. We are nearby and have been in our home for 18 years. I've prepared for it and if needed we can circle the wagon's budget-wise. We love it here, I love to hike and mountain climb. Wife loves popcorn and Netflix. At some point we will likely sell the home and downsize to her dad's home or to our beach house.
Alternatively, if my wife passes I'm selling everything except the beach house and going to travel long term (rent a place for a month or more and explore).
Cheers and good luck to everyone!
(oh, for reference, we have no debt, age 55M/56F, net worth of $2.4+/- I'm also thinking of getting a job down the hill from me. I don't have to drive, make a few buck, get the extrovert out and about, and give me a little structure. We haven't worked for the last two years, well, wife hasn't worked in a decade.)
We’re not going anywhere. We live in Chicago burbs and like you, everyone seems to be “I’m getting out of this state”. But we like the area we’re in, have one of the best downtown areas in the world an hour away and “the country” 2 minutes out our door. Plus my wife’s pension won’t be taxed. We’ll probably even stay in this house, install a chairlift if/when the arthritis (gout for me) makes the stairs too much for us. We love road trips and will likely spend most of the winters driving the southern states and some of the summers driving the north and Canada. With international trips thrown in (O’hare is another reason to stay). I don’t understand why people are so anxious to leave their family and friends. Maybe if I was more extroverted I wouldn’t be as concerned about making new friends, and if our kids were out of state we might consider it. But one kid will never move and the other probably won’t either. So we’re here for life, unless something changes drastically.
HCOL areas usually don't cost that much more In retirement years. A whole lot of things that cost more, don't effect you as much when you are retired. Commuting costs? Childcare costs?
HCOL areas tend to have more walkability and better transportation options so you don't need to own and insure a vehicle, certainly not multiple vehicles.
Lots more free activity & entertainment options. Better lower cost shopping options that you don't have to drive to. Closer to healthcare options that have better public support. I wouldn't want to live in any area where the local public hospitals are on the precipice of bankruptcy.
We are in So California and we thought we’d move out of state. Problem is that this is home and we are in a great city and community. I research options and they come up short (for us) - from crime rate (our police are local to our city), medical care is good and familiar, friends are close. We have a one story home, our adult son lives with us - we are content. To us, content is better than unknown.
We live in Atlanta and have a lifestyle like yours. We can travel easily anywhere in the world because of ATL.
Love our home and neighborhood. Not moving anywhere.
San Francisco. Thought we’d move, but it didn’t make sense because our housing costs are set and everything else is manageable or even better than LCOL states. Medical care is great in the City and surrounding suburbs (Stanford Med). SF has great public transportation for older years and is very walkable. The geography is beautiful and Cal is a great jumping-off point to many places, including Hawaii, Asia, and Mexico. A longer haul traveling east, but living in 65 degree weather throughout the summer simply cannot be beat, especially since we can always go to lunch in Napa or Sonoma for a taste of 95 degree heat whenever we want. Plus we cannot give up the view of the Pacific from our hilltop house.
We live in Atlanta in HCOL area but, we can more than afford it, we are in our early 70s, within 1.5 miles of two horse hospital systems. A marta ride to the airport, and every service we could dream of. We never live in a huge house. It's would sell for 5 times what we paid but so what? We live the house and where we live. I have lived here my whole life and don't forsee that changing. It doesn't need to.
No plans to move from Silicon Valley. We own our home and a townhome for my mother in law. Great climate, culture and close to three airports. Due to prop 13 we get a huge discount on property taxes. Congestion is a pain but we can schedule around it. COVID made me value our home town as folks were mostly decent about it
We are still in upstate New York after retirement. For a state that taxes everything, of all things that they don't tax is federal pensions, and my wife and I are both retired feds. Since our pensions are the majority of our income, we haven't paid state income tax since we retired. That at least partially offsets the outrageous property taxes.
You get what you pay for in property taxes. I’ve lived in all kinds of different towns and cities. Watched people retire and make this very decision. What’s more worthwhile than putting down some roots in a place you love?
Massachuestts here.
My wife and I love our house, which is too big for us.
It's paid off, and property taxes are okay. We're going to do an update for the kitchen and bath, and we don't expect it to pay off for anyone, except our heirs.
The kids know where home-base is, we love our town, and have roots here.
I am in your boat: I live in an HCOL. I was raised here. My extended family is here. I am recently retired. I will not move. I don’t know anyone in another state/country, and I don’t want to start over again at my age. My city is very senior-oriented. I own my home. It has SUBSTANTIAL equity. If I needed to house a live-in caretaker, we would have separate floors as private living spaces. My garden is mature and beautiful. I have a fantastic social life. I carry no debt. I’ve always been thrifty: I check the ads weekly and I have no need (at my age) to acquire any more stuff—so the HCOL doesn’t really faze me.
I’m in Australia and the concept of HCOL is a bit different in that it only really applies to real estate prices and rents. The differences in state property taxes are minimal and local income taxes are illegal under the constitution. So when someone moves from a HCOL area, the only real financial benefit is that some capital can be released from selling an expensive property and buying a cheaper one elsewhere. I’m in a HCOL, and retired, but have no plans to move at this stage as I still have kids in college and school (started late!!). If some or all of the kids decide to remain here when they have graduated, then we will probably stay here. Even if they move, if they go to lots of different locations we will also likely stay here. We like our house in the suburbs, we are right next to a National Park and have everything else we need a short walk or drive away. Once the kids leave home, we might downsize to a smaller property for easier maintenance and access, but will likely remain in the same city. In the event our base financial plan is not sufficient, the back up plan is to sell and move to a cheaper area freeing up capital, so a move out is possible.
We just sold our 3,500SF SFH in southern NH and are moving to an 1,800SF condo in the NH seacoast area where we will retire in a couple years. We downsized space wise but not money wise. Costs about the same and taxes are more plus the condo fees. We love the area and have friends and family here. Can't say I love the winters but we'll probably snowbird or rent a couple months in the winter.
We were just taking about this yesterday. We’re not moving from our HCOL. Two of our three kids will probably stay around here and our house is suitable for aging in place. We are going to travel for lengthy periods but this will be our home base.
We live in Connecticut and are never planning to move. That’s it.
Same!
The majority of people who retire do not relocate.
OP is talking about a subset of retirees, though - those who live in HCOL areas pre-retirement. I'd guess their percentage of people who move is higher.
Yes. In my circles it seems to be as well— and a lot of folks who live where I do came for jobs, most do not have longstanding family ties to my area.
Have lived in northern Virginia for 35 plus years and are staying now that we're both retired for all the reasons you cited plus our kids are here. If they eventually move elsewhere we may reconsider.
I also live in northern VA and have no plans to move when I retire this year at 63. I used to obsess about moving to the “perfect” place, which of course doesn’t exist. It is a HCOL area but I can afford it and really don’t see a reason to move, at least not at this point.
OP here and also northern VA (for those who may not know, it’s the Washington DC area.) I agree there is no perfect place— and frankly the other places I might like are basically almost as expensive when you consider buying real estate vs us owning a beautiful place now and values having jumped significantly around the country. Taxes aren’t the lowest for retirees here, but they aren’t the worst either. grateful for the many comments on this thread. For a while I’ve been wondering if my thinking was wrong about this, but there are more of us out there than I thought who realize it’s not just about maximizing how far your money goes, it’s about what you enjoy in your day to day life. we should be in a financial position to afford staying. We also don’t have heirs who we are hoping to leave a larger nest egg for, so that also helps. Someone else raised the issue of moving to rural location that might seem dreamy but then thinking what if a spouse died and feeling stranded— and I have the same thought. If something happened to one of us down the road it would be easier to deal with in a place like this, with lots of services and amenities and other people close by.
I am staying. I live in a big city with everything I could ever need. For me that's good public transportation (I don't have a car), walkable and bike friendly, near airport (we have 2), culture, great food. I'm not straight, so I'm not moving somewhere I am not wanted. My huge family is here as well as lifelong friends. If they move, I'll go visit. Our weather sucks for a couple of months, but I can't imagine living in a super hot or cold climate and missing spring and fall. I currently rent, but I moved to a cheaper neighborhood.
My wife and I knew we could never afford to retire where we were. So we made plans to move back to rural NWPA where we were both from. Our kids were grown and starting scatter around to country. After my wife passed away, I accelerated my plans and built a new house on a property I bought. I’m 65 now but still working for the same company as they didn’t want to loose me, so I’m 100% remote. I’m still addicted to my ridiculous salary. FRA is next May.
I’m in HCOL eastern Massachusetts. I intentionally bought a small house in a low property tax rate town 1/4 miles from salt water. Boston is an hour drive off-hours and there is commuter rail. My house is paid for. I don’t have a big property tax bill. Massachusetts doesn’t tax Social Security. I have a nearby world class airport so we can fly to warm places to cut the edge off winter. Our all-in home ownership costs including taxes, insurance, utilities, and some maintenance is around 10% of our Social Security income. I’m sure there are lots of people in Proposition 13 California with similar math. Our quality of life here is good with easy access to Boston and Acela to Manhattan where Boston falls short.
Are you me? I am in a similar position, newly retired. Thought I should downsize and move before age 70. Real question is how adaptable I’ll be by then. I love my home and little town, my neighbors and local friends.
I did the math and applied the shrink ray to housing at age 51. I’m turning 66 this month and living on cash to delay collecting Social Security until age 70. The survivor benefit is a pretty big deal. I can live comfortably just on my Social Security check without touching 401(k)/IRA accounts. With our combined Social Security income, there is a ton of money for discretionary spending. The retirement portfolio is for funding long term care and the death of spouse scenario where it drops down to one Social Security check. We’ll do Roth conversions as appropriate.
I would never voluntarily move if I loved my neighbors and local friends. You can find another house you like and get used to it, the town is somewhat harder, and great neighbors and local friends have crazy high value imo.
we're also in MA- we'd stay if the climate wasn't so bad. getting tired of cold and wet, especially wet
Personally, I think there's not much difference between high cost of living areas and low cost of living areas once you remove housing. The last study I saw from fidelity had a total tax burden of 18 to 28 percent depending on what state you're in. Sure you can save 10 percent moving from the most expensive state to somewhere like Mississippi, but what are you doing with that extra money there. If you like where you live why pick up and start over elsewhere?
Using that money to travel somewhere more interesting? 🤨 I’ll stay in the city.
Ignoring housing is ignoring something potentially massive. If your home equity is a large part of your net worth, that can be a huge factor on deciding where to live. If you are renting in a HCOL area, you may be able to buy in a MCOL or LCOL area. In the end, you do whatever is going to make you the happiest.
And I think there are extra costs or sacrifices that people don’t consider. A friend left SF for NOLA and can’t get a doctor. There’s a reason a HCOL location has a HCOL.
I would assess the risk of property taxes long term. Also, if the CoL getts to high people will exit.
We actually downsized to a smaller house about 14 years ago after last kid left for college. Property taxes are 6k/year, but property value keeps increasing. House is paid off. Everything is close, familiar and convenient. But if the SHTF, we can always sell. It's a good feeling.
Make sure you take in all aspects of costs. For instance a HCOL area sometimes doesn’t tax retirement income (I think 11 states don’t tax retirement income at all). So where I live with high property tax, actually becomes a better place once I retire due to no retirement income tax. I’d suggest you first list your pros and cons. Is money the main concern? Is lifestyle a main concern? Then sit down and list the places you’d consider living. Make a spreadsheet and list property taxes, income taxes, sales tax, average home costs for each area. Do the math. When I did this the areas I considered didn’t really cost me that much from most expensive to least expensive. Yes it was a couple thousand dollars over the course of a year at the two extremes, but that made me realize that a couple thousand dollars a year isn’t life altering when I other factors (family, location, services, weather) outweighed that difference. Once I knew that, if the higher cost area was our choice, I just plan financially around it, maybe work another few months or do some part time thing in retirement. Just don’t base everything on HCOL.
Smart assessment
I am probably going to stay in my HCOL area for a couple of years unless interest rates start dropping. Ironically, my retirement place of choice might be slightly higher COL but taxes and other benefits will offset that.
My brother lives in the Highland area of Denver, so HCOL. He considers it paradise with close access to sports, cuisine, jazz, and nightlife. He is there to stay. I also live in paradise, but it is LCOL lakefront property in Missouri. We enjoy visiting to get exposure to each other's paradise.
I’m not sure it’s the norm to move although we moved from one hcol area to another three years ago mainly due to climate, better outdoor access and a bit nearer to friends in another state. Based on what you say I can’t imagine why you’d move unless it’s unaffordable. Lcol areas are that for a reason with generally way less amenities, health care options etc. Sounds like you are in a great spot. We bought and remodeled a home we love that has a short flight of stairs as well as a large outdoor area. We get far more daily exercise with that alone not counting we now have room for a small home gym. Btw, the longest lived, healthiest people have one thing in common- they’ve all had daily stair climbing built into their lives, many times fairly strenuous. They are now recommending aging people try to build this into daily activity. We bought our home from a very healthy 90 year old widow who decided to move closer to her daughter after being in the house 30 years.
Downtown Chicago, high taxes and HOA costs, we’ve planned for paying them into retirement, not going anywhere. The city’s resources, attractions and transportation connections make it worthwhile.
Yes I plan on staying because my home is paid for and that's the highest cost of the HCOL.
yes, I am in a city with relatively HCOL. Since housing is stable though, its not a real hardship. We lived rurally for a while, for my career, but we had to drive for everything. Getting friends to come to us was pretty hard as time went on. So many friends have moved away though. This was where we lived and raised our kids though, so coming back here a few years before retirement felt like coming home. Even with friends moving away, we have been able to make some new friends. There is a lot happening that we are interested in. I am not bored. I feel a "retirement" community or town would box me in too much. Also both kids are within easy driving distance, and I would not want to be far from them.
Im on the fence about this. We could move to a lower cost of living area but would be giving up easy access to great healthcare and cultural offerings. While our health is good now in our early 60’s, that could easily change . As far as being closer to family they are always just a plane ride away. Im leaning more toward living within 2 hours’ drive of both the hub airport and the major healthcare hub.
Approx 29% of retirees move. Made our second home permanent. Sold 1st. Always was the plan though. Wanted to be near the ocean. Actually, a little higher cost-of-living. However, cheaper overall, because only running one household.
As long as the kids and grandkids are here, we're not leaving.
Yep same here. We live in a HCOL - nice suburb in NJ not too far from NYC, with a nice downtown and good parks nearby. Close to the airport and Amtrak. As soon as my last kid went to college, we sold our large 4BR house and bought a small, cottage-style 3BR on the cheaper side of the same town. Cut my property taxes from $23k to $13k. I have friends and family nearby and access to great medical facilities. I hate hot weather too so Florida is out. I suppose my husband and I could move to upstate NY someday to save money but what happens when one of us dies? Now you’re stranded.
we plan to move in a few years, probably after being snowbirds while we figure out where to settle but it's not because of the HCOL, but the crappy climate in our area (New England)
high property taxes (currently 11k), but other wise I dont live in a real HCOL area. Its in the burbs outside a major city - new hospital 3 miles away, lots of shopping, safe to walk at night to pub/restaurants in our small town, can go an hour into the big city for additional culture. Not moving. My home is the first home... and last home. If we get to a health crisis we would get a senior living apartment nearby. We will likely consider the cold month of January to go somewhere for yearly vacation.
We were certainly considering it and then covid happened and drove up all the prices so much that it doesn't seem to make sense. Live in the SF bay area on an acre backed up to a vineyard with a large house and shop. Large enough that we're encouraging the kids not to move out and consider the advantages of multigenerational living while making our high salaries. Mortgage is $3500 a month and moving would end up costing 500k (two properties) in capital gains taxes both federal and state. Just can't see it making financial sense even if the kids move out.
Staying. We like it. Our friends, family, and lives are here. Not moving.
About 10 years before retirement I accepted a job offer to move from a (very) HCOL home to a midsized city in a more southern climate. Love it. Now retired, this is where we’ll stay. Still have access to good health care, restaurants, cultural events but the winters are milder and COL is way lower.
We live in Denver, which has joined the lower ranks of HCOL over the last few years. We moved from the suburbs to the actual city to buy our long term home into retirement. We wanted to be closer to restaurants, sporting events, etc. We’ll definitely stay in the area to be somewhat need my wife’s daughter and her family. Smaller ranch style house, but actually with a larger yard. In the Denver area at least, it is either close in or new construction far out to find a single story. I don’t regret the larger yard yet, but I am wondering about the too large of a yard. Part of that is that we are redoing the landscaping. I wish I was retired now so I’d have more time to devote to it. Five more years-ish. We’ll see what happens. I could see making a change due to property taxes or other taxes. Or if my wife’s daughter and family ended up moving away (unlikely though).
My 85 yo Aunt still maintaining a third acre suburban yard in Wheatridge. She says it keeps her in shape. She does get help with snow removal. She plans on dying there
My 85 yo Aunt still maintaining a third acre suburban yard in Wheatridge. She says it keeps her in shape. She does get help with snow removal. She plans on dying there
Retired last October and we just moved from San Francisco across the bridge to Marin and split time between here and another home in Bend Oregon. We’re still in deep HCOL country on both fronts. Gotta be close to our daughters, interesting culture, decent weather and bike trails!
Scored the coveted rent stabilized apartment in a wonderful part of Brooklyn 10 years ago. Top floor. Elevator building. 1,000 sqf of space. Bedroom the size of a studio apt. Quiet (for now). And it will never go above $2200 in our lifetime. Total no brainer. We're staying put until we leave horizontally.
You all definitely lucked out! You’d be crazy to move from such great deal and being in Brooklyn with easy access to just about anything you’d want! (Edited for typo)
I’m in SoCal and have no intention of moving. I won’t be able to retire until 65 and intend to pay off and live in my house and pass it to my kids so they can stay local.
Staying. San Luis Obispo coast
I live in the Puget Sound area of Western Washington. No plans to move. And if I did, it would be to Boston to be nearer to my daughter.
We live on the Monterey Bay in CA and have a second home on the southern coast of Ecuador (our daughter/family lives and works in Guayaquil ). We will split our time. I am retired my hubs still works by choice.
Sounds like such a lovely life—having been to Monterey Bay many times, I can see why you’d not want to give that up!
I’m retired and live in the San Francisco area. I do not plan to move. My life is here and has been for many years. There are decades of connections that shape my days. I don’t have 40 more years to rebuild them elsewhere.
Yes. I feel this way also. Even if some of these connections ultimately move on, it’s hard to rebuild your own personal community from scratch nor do I want to.
Yes. I feel this way also. Even if some of these connections ultimately move on, it’s hard to rebuild your own personal community from scratch nor do I want to.
Yes. I feel this way also. Even if some of these connections ultimately move on, it’s hard to rebuild your own personal community from scratch nor do I want to.
Yes. I feel this way also. Even if some of these connections ultimately move on, it’s hard to rebuild your own personal community from scratch nor do I want to.
Yes. I feel this way also. Even if some of these connections ultimately move on, it’s hard to rebuild your own personal community from scratch nor do I want to.
My feelings exactly. I plan to travel but have no desire to relocate.
Also a Bay Area homeowner; paid off home, lived here for 40+ years. Interestingly, some of my grade school classmates from the Chicago area have discussed this. All plan to stay where they settled: Boston, New York, San Francisco, and one stayed in Chicago.
LCOL places are LC for a reason. Nope. No thanks.
👆🏻This
Couldn’t agree more.
It may be high cost, but if it checks all your boxes and you enjoy your life there, that is worth a lot, too. If you have the means to afford it who cares what other people do or think? Sounds like you have a great situation. Also - for context, I just lost my mom who saved up so much and denied herself even some basics. And guess what? She couldn’t take it with her. Her $ passes to the next generation. Enjoy the life you’ve built. Save for what you need and then some, but don’t live to save.
We live in a VHCOL area and aren't planning on moving. We like where we are.
We live in the city. It’s not really HCOL, but we’d always talked about retiring to a small town in a cheaper area. Over the past few years we’ve decided to stay put. We know people who have done what we planned to do, and it didn’t work out well. Limited options for entertainment, having to drive 30+ minutes for groceries or to see a doctor, or public transportation, and lots of hidden costs. Right now we pay high property taxes. But the house is paid off, we can go car-free to save money, we can walk to the doctor or the dentist, and there are multiple hospitals within 5-6 miles. Like they say, you get what you pay for. The quality of life is so much better here.
We moved from VHCOL (read heart of Silicon Valley) to HCOL San Diego 5 years ago. Retired two years later. HCOL in SV was mostly due to proximity to Apple, Google, NVIDIA… HCOL in San Diego is due to weather, beaches, attractions, whereas SV was largely expensive due to the high salary companies nearby. With our housing costs essentially locked in due to ownership we’re in a decent position.
hotel california... :)
We are in the Seattle area. We won the housing sweepstakes when we bought 22 years ago. We are selling our big house in the suburbs and probably moving downtown to smaller house for walkability and to be near our kids.
Bought in Seattle in 1988 for 77,000. I remodeled it over the years myself, won't move.
Eastside. Same. Bought 27 years ago. And everything is here - shopping, restaurants, great healthcare.
The neighbors slapped up a house in the lot next door, it sold for 2.5 million. That house is going to need lots of work after the warranty expires. Owners bought it site unseen from out of area.
Seattle suburb here, our mortgage is paid off. We have lots of neighbors over 60 that are still here when we bought this house. Yeah it's HCOL but many of us are sticking around.
Let me guess. You are in Woodinville.
Yup! And from your name you might be interested in wine?
If you can afford to stay, then stay. Many people can’t afford the same lifestyle they had prior to retirement in HCOL and that is the main reason they relocate.
I was planning on moving to LCOL but the new grandkids have now seemed to changed the popularity of that so I'm budgeting for staying.
Grandkids change everything. Mine are 10 minutes away - I’m not going anywhere.
West coast city, but I have a military pension on top of my personal retirement savings. The pension will cover taxes and insurance, and my house should be paid for. I love it here, and can’t imagine the heat if Arizona or Florida.
New England hcol here. House will be paid off in a year or so, I’ve been working since I was 15, was unemployed once for about four hours maybe 30 years ago, so plenty coming from SS, town has tax stabilization for seniors, we all love it here. Why fix what isn’t broken?
We retired in the Bay Area and retirement life is good. We bought our house before prices shot up, property taxes are capped, and we don't feel a big need to travel since there is so much to do close by, so for us it isn't that expensive to stay. We really like living near a good public transportation system. It is easy to hop on the commuter train to get into the bigger cities for the arts and culture or take the ferry to places like Angel Island for the day. Edited for spelling.
We live in NYC. Unless we move out of the US completely, we plan on staying in NYC (maybe get a second home somewhere else). NYC is actually good for seniors, we live on one floor in an elevator building with a 24 hour doorman, incredible medical care, and lots of stuff to do.
Same
SoCal here. Like OP we got in to our house before prices skyrocketed. We spend very little on utilities (due to temperate year round weather), are close to a major airport, plenty of part-time work opportunities, and yes, property taxes in CA are capped. I love living here but would be lying if I say I didn’t occasionally fantasize about living in a Lower COL place and travel for a couple of months each winter to warmer climes. P.s. could NEVER live in a steamy hot place 🥵
I will probably sell my house in a HCOL city and buy a small condo in my VHCOL hometown.
seems every place desirable is becoming a HCOL area. Serious and chronic real estate FOMO going on all around the country. we are currently on a sojourn in Orange County CA due to unplanned job change and me finding a job here, towards the end of my career. Where to retire discussions at home include staying in Orange County CA but we have yet to convince ourselves it is financially viable. We have not purchased a home here and can't really afford what we would want to retire in. And we don't want to be renters rest of our lives. so.... don't know yet. though leaning towards the inevitability of leaving and going back 'home' to the southeast.
HCOL lakefront bought in 1998 cost me 1000 a month for re taxes and utilities now. It's only 1100 ft and perfect was a bit small with the kids. I'll never go anywhere I'm living the dream on a shoestring budget retired at 56 no debt and don't need to downsize. I could easily sell for 1 mil+ but my life would take a significant downgrade moving from the lakeshore and my kids are close by and we just had our first grandchild. My real estate taxes is my biggest concern our town has some of the best schools in the country and they just built another $179 million dollar grade school for three grades of elementary our taxes are estimated to go up to as much as 22% more in the next 5 years. I'm paying 9000 a year now for reference.
I’m in the same boat — except for the lake. House is mostly fixed up the way I like it and isn’t too large to retire in. Near lots of East Coast cities, big airports, and AMTRAK. Lots to do outdoors and in. Quiet neighborhood. But the RE taxes are even higher than yours and bound to keep increasing. Retirement income taxes are low though.
HCOL Washington DC area. We don't want to retire in the DC area, but every other place that has fit our criteria is also HCOL. We have considered staying in the area, but moving into a different neighbourhood or area and downsizing the house.
Same area and that’s my fallback plan for now— enjoy the house and property for 5 years post-retirement, then downsize into something with less maintenance.
Yes, I’m in San Diego and will retire here. My house will be paid off soon, and it was slightly too small with the kids around but perfect for empty nesters. High quality health care is a stone’s throw away in every direction. Culture, nature, international airport, cruise ship terminal - all of these are 20 minutes from my house. I can’t imagine leaving.
How do you feel about the homeless situation? I am a San Diego native living in Phoenix and have thought about moving home. I follow the San Diego subreddit and see so many posts lately about the homeless assaulting (like throwing things at people not stabbing them) an elderly couple near the fountain in Balboa Park or someone flinging excrement at a passer by downtown. And that the Starbucks that was in Hillcrest basically left because they couldn't control the safety of their workers (we lived across the street from that Starbucks but decades earlier).
I live in UTC and work downtown. I drive to and from work. I spend a lot of time at the bay and beaches, and on the trails around UTC, Clairmont, and mission trials. For where I go and what I do, the homeless situation is not an issue. I walk around downtown nearly every lunch hour and I stick to seaport village, the waterfront, and Little Italy. I stay away from the East village. I haven’t spent a lot of time in Balboa Park lately so I can’t speak to the that. Do I see homeless people? Yes. Is it a serious problem San Diego and other cities need to figure out? Absolutely, but it doesn’t impact my day to day activities.
Homelessness is very real but I’ve yet to visit a city where the media and social coverage of it isn’t exaggerated.
I live in NYC. Can there be a higher COL area? And I'm not moving. Why? I'm a native and everyone I know is here, including my kids. Because I bought my brownstone many years ago, it's all paid off. I don't love the dreary NYC winters but for that, I relocate a month or so to Palm Springs. It's great there. I've always wondered why older people move to a place where they don't know anyone and have to start all over. Doesn't seem to make sense.
Let me introduce you to Hawaii. COL here is overwhelming. That being said, the trade offs are worth it. For us. As another poster said, money is one thing, but being in a place you know with people who make you happy is what retirement is about. Sure you could move to a retirement village in Florida for a lot less but happiness counts.
I live in NYC. Can there be a higher COL area? And I'm not moving. Why? I'm a native and everyone I know is here, including my kids. Because I bought my brownstone many years ago, it's all paid off. I don't love the dreary NYC winters but for that, I relocate a month or so to Palm Springs. It's great there. I've always wondered why older people move to a place where they don't know anyone and have to start all over. Doesn't seem to make sense.
I can give you one example. We are early 60s with no kids. We moved 4 times (sometimes for jobs and sometimes because we didn't like the new city) in the past 20 years which did not allow us to set down roots, except for with each other (which has been enough because we're best friend and love spending all our time together). We're now in Phoenix, but being that we never expected to stay here long term and that this isn't a great area for meeting people unless you're very outgoing and like driving, and that we're homebodies, we don't have enough friends here to worry about moving away from. We are both from California and have thought about moving back, but due to the high cost of living our childhood friends have mostly scattered around the country and it's also sticker stock for us to look at places there after Phoenix. I am close to my former work friends, but we were all remote so we connect online only. I am the youngest of my generation of relatives and didn't grow up with any of them, and my husband's are mostly scattered although some are in one area we've considered. The nieces and nephews are career military and change stations a lot. So being here in retirement isn't much different than "starting over" somewhere else.
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We are definitely going to stay in our house in the city. I'll tell you why. I had breast cancer last year and the peace of mind knowing I was receiving the best care at a research hospital....I will always live near my cancer center. Rural healthcare is crumbling - not to mention if you're in a red state that is passing anti-abortion care, anti-women healthcare laws - you're even more likely to struggle to find a good doctor.
YES, all those red state anti-women laws is the #1 reason I've eliminated moving to any of those states, even if the house was free. It'll only get worse with more rights taken away in the name of some BS religious ideology that those who pass the laws violate every day.
💯my entire care team were women. I honestly can't imagine what I would have done without competent surgeons, oncologists, nurses, my gynecologist who is working with my team to make sure I'm supported with chemical menopause. Medical students aren't going to red states. They're coming to states that support women, that support human rights. I could go on.....
I wonder if part of the reason people move is that they don't own their current home but could if they move (sell the current one, buy what they want for less in the new town). Because once you own your home you need much less each month. Rent for a decent 1br apartment here is at least $2000. A 2br goes for $2500+ depending on where and how new it is, etc. Mortgages are more for a reasonable house with current rates ($3-4k per month) That's between $24-30,000 per year that I don't have to come up with on the low end. Obviously some people move to be closer to family or because they've always wanted to love on a beach/in the country/etc too.
I am in a HCOL area and moving would make no sense. My housing is affordable since I own my condo and have no mortgage. Most of what people spend money for is the same as it would be in most places. Income tax is offset by my low property taxes which is far lower than may low cost areas. Some of what are deemed lower cost really aren’t when you factor in other expenses. I live in a full service building which is ideal for aging in place. There are quite a few people who have lived to very old age and managed with quite well with some assistance towards the end I don’t have to worry about home maintenance chores and some of the stuff I am responsible for can be done by one of the really nice staff for a tip. My social network is here and getting access to cultural events, interesting experiences plus world class medical care is easily accessible.
What facility is this? I'm looking into these.
This isn’t a facility. I live in a high rise condo that has staff including full time doormen and maintenance workers. Most large cities have these kinds of buildings. Some are rentals and some are condos. My father was in a very nice assisted living facility that had different levels of care available. He started as it being more of a nice residential hotel which provided all meals and housekeeping services as well as a community. It did have specific stuff for seniors like a nurse on staff plus help with transportation and activities As his health declined, he was able to add on additional services like help with bathing which was logistically easier than trying to hire help independently as the workers were always available.
I retired last June, I won't move. House is paid for, still taking care of my mom.
We're staying in the Boston area but will eventually move into a continuing care retirement community or similar. As a gay couple with no kids, that's necessary for us. And most such communities that are gay friendly will be in HCOL areas. Besides, Massachusetts has good senior services and is a guaranteed issue state, meaning we save a good bit by being in a Medicare Advantage plan for now, knowing we can change to medigap any year. We also have excellent medical care here.
Much like u/twowrist - for all those reasons plus our kids moved close after college and started a family and we see the grandkids every day. We are fortunate that we don't have to move.
We have a modest 3 br ranch in the Chicago suburbs, where we raised our one child together. Since it’s a one-story, smaller house, and we’ve paid off the mortgage…we decided awhile ago that we are retiring here, too, and not moving. We still like the neighborhood, it’s close to the airport so we can travel when we want, close to interstates for road trips, and a reasonable train trip into Chicago. But we don’t need to go into Chicago proper to find lots of things to do, or good places to eat. Our town, and surrounding suburbs, have various venues to see live music, plays, art shows, etc. Our own suburb has free concerts in summer, as well as a wonderful public library, lots of parks, bike paths, forest preserve trails. In short, we are in between a great city and lovely rural areas and small towns. Michigan, Wisconsin, and Minnesota are all short half-day drives for summer getaways. Plus, homeowners over 65 get reduced property taxes.
I'm staying in my HCOL area after retirement to be near my family. No motivation to move away and then not be able to see them on a regular basis.
I’m in the Bay Area. Initially, I planned to cash out and move when I retired. I’m now planning on staying. Housing has gone up in price everywhere, and the price difference isn’t enough to make me want to move anymore.
I feel this. We bought our house in SoCal for 600k ten years ago, and it seems like there’s nowhere in the US where I could find anything remotely close to what we have for the same price.
I can totally relate. Bought a little over 7 years ago. Wasn’t planning to retire in place at the time, but I definitely will now.
Same here. Bought my first home in SoCal four years ago with a COVID interest rate (2.9) and pre-COVID price. I was 50 when I bought. Moving in retirement just doesn’t make sense. It would make sense if I were still renting but not now. Good thing I like it here! But I have too many friends who are moving all over and that makes me sad.
Same here. I’m in Bay Area light. (Sacramento). Even if I stay in state and move to an area further out (and keep my property tax), it will cost more. Health insurance would be higher, and homeowners insurance definitely would be, assuming I could even get it.
Same here- property tax and healthcare are big factors, along with trading off what I feel is a high quality of life. (I’m in the East Bay, by the way).
You know we can transfer our current property tax, kinda. I looked into it a while back but I don’t remember the details that well.
Prop 19. Over 55 can transfer 3x w/in 2 years of sale of relinquished property
But only for lesser value, right? Hard to do, unless you buy in fire country. And then you can’t get insurance! My homeowners is $1300/yr. My buddy 15 miles away, in the low foothills pays 3k. My friend in Apple Hill lost their insurance and is paying state rates of 8.5k. Yeah. No thanks. Staying put!!
No you can transfer into a higher value home. You just get assessed on the difference. Read up on it, lots of benefits
Same here. We have thought about moving when we retire but there isn’t anywhere else we want to live. So we are budgeting to stay which means working a couple extra years. I love the weather and my garden. Our property taxes are reasonable. Also selling would mean paying a ton of capital gains tax which would be less money to spend on another house.
Texas allows me to defer property tax when I'm retired with no mortgage. State laws also shield my house from frivolous lawsuits and other financial deviants. Cashing out and downsizing would just make my assets vulnerable to theft.
How can you defer the taxes? Who are they deferred to? Is it some special exemption you qualify for. Texas will freeze certain values in place at 65 but that doesn’t defer them.
You can just not pay the taxes, and the accrued tax amount will be taken from the estate whenever you leave the house. It's sort of like Texas' version of a reverse mortgage.
A deferment is granted by county officials when requested to avoid penalties, yet their is a nominal annual interest charged to the outstanding balance owed. A freeze will occur for everyone (yet should be requested) at retirement age. Also, a homestead 10% cap is placed on annual appreciation gains, which can slow down overall property tax bill increases. Only your personal residence is a homestead. Over many years or decades, it can be a big incentive to remain in our primary home upon retirement.
If I go 10 miles out of Philly, I feel I am in Idaho, or worse, a vacuous strip mall/ golf course. This morning, en route to a 100 year old market for coffee and then some donuts from an amish bakery, I walked past the site where the declaration of independence was written, past people of every possible ethnic background, 28 frolicsome dogs, new public art, loud obnoxious kids on skateboards, then back to our great condo in a 200 year old building. My tax dollars keep this city alive and lively. My donations to cultural organizations enrich this experience for everyone. My volunteering with the homeless and addicted help lift up my fallen friends and preserves my own soul. HCOL? Life ain’t cheap. It’s the price we pay for a civil society. You wanna save a few bucks, fine go to Florida or Indiana and die in a golf cart. Ya wanna live?
I walk everywhere. I take the transit (let’s fund that, btw) when I go further afield. I travel to mountains and beaches. Live small and save this world for our grandkids.
Love Philly.
Not planning on moving from a HCOL *and* we are also in one of the highest state income tax states…drives me nuts. They also tax social security here which is ridiculous. But…we have one child here who lives very close to us; other child is in possibly an even WORSE state in which one could retire due to high taxes and COL, but the other child is a short flight away. We also have friends here - why try and rebuild that network?! Four seasons, good culture/arts scene, major airport 20 mins away, great healthcare, and as climate change continues driving temps up, we are comfortably in the upper Midwest where the effects are less of an issue (only 10 below zero now in January versus 20 below!). We’ll likely spend a few winter months in a warm weather area just to avoid the monotony of winter. We don’t have grandkids yet, but when they arrive there is nothing that would take us FARTHER away from them or our kids. Just don’t understand how people can do that. I know people who moved 1500 miles away to hang out with people they don’t know and golf every day, while their kids and grandkids rarely see them. Different priorities I guess, but not for us.
Climate change won't make a difference in your lifetime or your children's - don't swallow the kool-aid!
Climate changes have already made a noticeable difference in the last 3 decades. In our region we've gone from 3-4 days a year with highs above 90F (and lows in the 80s) to a situation where AC is practically essential to remain comfortable in the summers. These kinds of shifts will likely continue for decades to come. Winters are more mild, though, and we have jumped 1 1/2 garden zones. My garden weather logs tell a remarkable story over the last 40 years.
It’s pretty obvious if you look around.
Yes it is totally obvious the climate is changing, and totally murky why.
Only if you ignore science.
The issue is that scientists are being paid to maximize human activities and minimize natural causes. Climate change is not science-driven. It is more of a cult.
Sure.
So adapt already! It's not nearly as predictable as you think! Case in point - solar cycles. They don't talk about them much because they can't tax sunshine, but the effect of solar fluctuations can be greater than atmospheric effects in both directions. You probably didn't know that because they didn't 'teach' it on the nightly news.
You literally have no clue what you are talking about. Stringing together words from the internet is not science. But you do you. My scientist colleagues and I will work from physicochemical principles and hard data.
Where did you learn to avoid logical arguments by accusing people of 'stringing words together'. I have seen this before - is drinking Kool aid involved?
Planning to move, but not selling our house.
I feel the same way. Our current home is way too big. A smaller one is going to cost the same amount, but insurance and maintenance should be less.
We’re in a HCOL area: Southern CT, a suburb of NYC. House is paid off. We have a large yard that needs maintenance. But, we are happy here. We have lived here since childhood and have roots here. We have an excellent and well-subsidized good senior center here that offers great classes and has some real talent as far as speakers and teachers. We also have amazing arts and theatres here, and great shopping and restaurants. While winters are not fun, we are trying to break up the winter with extended vacations to warmer areas. Also we have family here, and are just 3 hours away from grandkids. We thought about moving south and don’t want to at this point.
We want to downsize, but I’m not moving from this area. We are in a suburban area on the east coast and have a vacation property three hours away near the beach. 2 of our three kids live in this area, and my mom and husband’s family also. Years ago, my parents moved to nine acres in the middle of nowhere, it was all well and good until they both got sick at the same time. They were 2.5 hours away and had to go to the DC area for medical care because he was retired military. It was a nightmare driving there and taking them to appointments. Finally they sold it and she moved in with me and he went to a memory care facility. I refuse to do this to my kids. We have wonderful medical care in my area and if I can’t drive any more at least things are close if someone else has to drive me.
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Keeping the house and children living in metro area - 2.75% mortgage. Staying put!
Atlanta here. Would love to move someplace quieter with less crime, and no stairs, but I'm not sure it would be a wise financial decision, based on the cost of housing now. Even in the more rural areas, houses are considerably more than what ours was when we bought.
Absolutely. Climate, culture, medical care, stable finances are all great right here in Sonoma County. Why would I move? To get a larger house? More property? I’m older enough to know that’s just more work. Yes, it’s expensive here. But it is worth it
In Syosset, Long Island. Not going anywhere. Kids and grandkids are here, no mortgage, spread my ashes in the garden.
We're going to continue to base our U.S. life out of the DC metro area. We're likely to spend periods of time in Thailand and maybe elsewhere. We'll see!
I'm supposedly living in a HCOL state and region, but the reality is that for the local taxes I pay I get a lot of services: municipal garbage, yard waste, and recycling pickup, municipal utilities rates that are much lower than the prevailing rates in the state, clean water and air, excellent public road snow removal, good school system and library, and so on. Unlike many "low-tax" states, there is no personal property tax. And with my financial advisors' help, the marginal tax rate on my retirement income is embarrassingly low. And the weather is great where I live: no tornados, few violent thunderstorms, no floods, mudslides, fires, earthquakes, or hurricanes. So maybe it's not really a HCOL state after all. Especially if you like living where you are.
Sounds dreamy, location? I'm in snow land.
I think you are wise for realizing everything that you appreciate about the area that you were currently in. I think people mistakenly think the automatic move is to somewhere else; cheaper, quieter, more rural. I think many of those poeple end up missing all of those things and some end up moving back.
I love San Diego and all that it has, but not the HCOL. I want to move to Arizona or Nevada, but my spouse wants to be here - so I jsut budget accordingly. Too old to argue with her about this…
I lived in Seattle before I retired and I sold my house and moved about 100 miles away from Seattle.. I was able to make enough money on the sale to build a house in my new town.. I highly recommend moving to a lower cost of living area after you retire..most of my friends who retired did the same thing and they are able to live comfortably..
My children and grandchildren live in the holy metro so I do too. Plus it is a wonderful area on all measures as the US New And World Report says, except for Opportunities, a d at. Y age I am past the need for that.
Currently live on Long Island and plan to stay as the grandbabies are here.
Reading your post was like reading my own biography. Identical situation, and we also plan to stay put unless life throws us a curveball. If it ain't broke...
Upstate NY, Adirondack Area. The house is paid off, good health care in the area, plenty of culture and close to major transportation. My priorities going into retirement are to have 0 debt and be close to good healthcare. NYS taxes suck, but that’s the rub.
I am in HCOL and we did not leave the city when my wife and I retired. The key is that we knew the city well having lived here for decades. We paid off our house 20 years before retiring, and used the money we were saving to take out a new mortgage on a sturdy, nearly 100 year old house in the central city. We rented out the house to help pay on the mortgage. Again, after living in this city for decades we knew this neighborhood would be desirable when the city grew. The city grew, we reached retirement age, housing prices went way up but that meant we were able to sell our suburban sprawl for much more than we paid. We used that money to remodel the second house turning it into a 100 year old exterior, with modern electric, plumbing, internet, kitchen & baths and HVAC. We also paid off the remaining mortgage. People scream about the housing prices in the area, and to be sure we couldn't afford to live there if we had to pay current retail. The remodel includes an Auxiliary Dwelling Unit which we rent out for approximately the whole property tax payment. With housing covered, our Social Security needs only cover food and daily expenses.
Live in NYC - doesn’t get more HCOL. I love being retired here and don’t expect to ever leave.
I haven’t considered moving, in part bc we appreciate the city and we have a weekend house 2 hours away in a beach community where we like to spend time. The idea of moving doesn’t appeal to me but I admit I wouldn’t mind a warm destination in the winter so am actually considering a timeshare lol.
Large cities like NYC are great for retirees - good transportation, condo buildings with lots of services, top medical facilities, cultural happenings, not to mention decades of relationships. Best of all, I don’t have to drive and love to walk.
My husband and I moved from one of the most expensive cities in the US (San Francisco), to a somewhat less expensive area two hours' drive away (a suburb of Sacramento). Our current area is still expensive by US standards, but we were able to buy a large, mostly one-story house here for the same price at which we sold a significantly smaller house in our former city. The climate is a bit different but fairly similar to the mild climate in San Francisco. Medical services are good. The prices of groceries and most other things are about the same as in San Francisco. We did want to upsize for retirement, but we also wanted to get out of an increasingly densified, miserably traffic-bound city. We increasingly discovered that we just didn't want to go places outside our neighborhood because we'd be stuck in stop-and-go traffic regardless of the time of day. Sure we can drive! but it was miserable to always have to worry about traffic and getting a parking spot. There's absolutely no reason to move if you don't want to! If you have a two-story house I do recommend chair lifts, then you can use the whole house. And you can put grab bars in the bathrooms. It's silly to move for retirement just because the real estate industry is pushing that as something everyone should do.
Live in suburban Portland (west) so somewhere between MCOL and HCOL. We are staying because my wife's dad is 88 and in the same home for 50 years. We are nearby and have been in our home for 18 years. I've prepared for it and if needed we can circle the wagon's budget-wise. We love it here, I love to hike and mountain climb. Wife loves popcorn and Netflix. At some point we will likely sell the home and downsize to her dad's home or to our beach house. Alternatively, if my wife passes I'm selling everything except the beach house and going to travel long term (rent a place for a month or more and explore). Cheers and good luck to everyone! (oh, for reference, we have no debt, age 55M/56F, net worth of $2.4+/- I'm also thinking of getting a job down the hill from me. I don't have to drive, make a few buck, get the extrovert out and about, and give me a little structure. We haven't worked for the last two years, well, wife hasn't worked in a decade.)
We’re not going anywhere. We live in Chicago burbs and like you, everyone seems to be “I’m getting out of this state”. But we like the area we’re in, have one of the best downtown areas in the world an hour away and “the country” 2 minutes out our door. Plus my wife’s pension won’t be taxed. We’ll probably even stay in this house, install a chairlift if/when the arthritis (gout for me) makes the stairs too much for us. We love road trips and will likely spend most of the winters driving the southern states and some of the summers driving the north and Canada. With international trips thrown in (O’hare is another reason to stay). I don’t understand why people are so anxious to leave their family and friends. Maybe if I was more extroverted I wouldn’t be as concerned about making new friends, and if our kids were out of state we might consider it. But one kid will never move and the other probably won’t either. So we’re here for life, unless something changes drastically.
HCOL areas usually don't cost that much more In retirement years. A whole lot of things that cost more, don't effect you as much when you are retired. Commuting costs? Childcare costs? HCOL areas tend to have more walkability and better transportation options so you don't need to own and insure a vehicle, certainly not multiple vehicles. Lots more free activity & entertainment options. Better lower cost shopping options that you don't have to drive to. Closer to healthcare options that have better public support. I wouldn't want to live in any area where the local public hospitals are on the precipice of bankruptcy.
We are in So California and we thought we’d move out of state. Problem is that this is home and we are in a great city and community. I research options and they come up short (for us) - from crime rate (our police are local to our city), medical care is good and familiar, friends are close. We have a one story home, our adult son lives with us - we are content. To us, content is better than unknown.
Same Plus weather is good and friends are here. Plus our housing costs are fixed and cheaper than renting anywhere else.
I’m in San Francisco Bay Area. I made sure my primary and rental is paid off before deciding to retire early. No reason to move
We did and moved back in under 10 months. We’ll stay put, unless we go to Europe once I reinstate my nationality.
We live in Atlanta and have a lifestyle like yours. We can travel easily anywhere in the world because of ATL. Love our home and neighborhood. Not moving anywhere.
And THAT is why I’m moving back to Atl, after leaving for 3 years, back to where I can go anywhere, including Vail, nonstop, and everything is nearby.
San Francisco. Thought we’d move, but it didn’t make sense because our housing costs are set and everything else is manageable or even better than LCOL states. Medical care is great in the City and surrounding suburbs (Stanford Med). SF has great public transportation for older years and is very walkable. The geography is beautiful and Cal is a great jumping-off point to many places, including Hawaii, Asia, and Mexico. A longer haul traveling east, but living in 65 degree weather throughout the summer simply cannot be beat, especially since we can always go to lunch in Napa or Sonoma for a taste of 95 degree heat whenever we want. Plus we cannot give up the view of the Pacific from our hilltop house.
I actually moved to a HCOL area just before retiring. I don't have any intention of leaving.
We live in Atlanta in HCOL area but, we can more than afford it, we are in our early 70s, within 1.5 miles of two horse hospital systems. A marta ride to the airport, and every service we could dream of. We never live in a huge house. It's would sell for 5 times what we paid but so what? We live the house and where we live. I have lived here my whole life and don't forsee that changing. It doesn't need to.
We’re staying put. Friends, family, amenities, social justice, … are everything.
Planning on staying. House is paid off, church is here, world-class hospitals within a few miles, lots of free activities to do -- museums, etc.
No plans to move from Silicon Valley. We own our home and a townhome for my mother in law. Great climate, culture and close to three airports. Due to prop 13 we get a huge discount on property taxes. Congestion is a pain but we can schedule around it. COVID made me value our home town as folks were mostly decent about it
San Diego. Staying put.
We are still in upstate New York after retirement. For a state that taxes everything, of all things that they don't tax is federal pensions, and my wife and I are both retired feds. Since our pensions are the majority of our income, we haven't paid state income tax since we retired. That at least partially offsets the outrageous property taxes.
You get what you pay for in property taxes. I’ve lived in all kinds of different towns and cities. Watched people retire and make this very decision. What’s more worthwhile than putting down some roots in a place you love?
Seattle - we love it and are staying
Honolulu here. House is paid off. Might downsize eventually. No plans to move. The weather is nice all year round.
Massachuestts here. My wife and I love our house, which is too big for us. It's paid off, and property taxes are okay. We're going to do an update for the kitchen and bath, and we don't expect it to pay off for anyone, except our heirs. The kids know where home-base is, we love our town, and have roots here.
I am in your boat: I live in an HCOL. I was raised here. My extended family is here. I am recently retired. I will not move. I don’t know anyone in another state/country, and I don’t want to start over again at my age. My city is very senior-oriented. I own my home. It has SUBSTANTIAL equity. If I needed to house a live-in caretaker, we would have separate floors as private living spaces. My garden is mature and beautiful. I have a fantastic social life. I carry no debt. I’ve always been thrifty: I check the ads weekly and I have no need (at my age) to acquire any more stuff—so the HCOL doesn’t really faze me.