what's the strategy in choosing a retirement home?

[vash]

i dont want to muddy up that other thread. beautiful home!!

i have a mental list. initially, i was thinking of picking a place that has GREAT outdoor stuff. hunting, fishing..mtn biking. then it slapped me in the face..BUT I"LL BE OLD!

hunting might be a heated tower blind with a soft toilet seat and wifi for my "i've fallen and cant get up" necklace pendant thing. mtn bike..right..maybe an E-Bike.

i'm thinking small 2 bedroom home. single story. great outdoors living space..as in a nice yard and a nice place to eat outside. maybe an outdoor kitchen.

dont you have to do a dry run? you cant just pick a town and move there..what if you hate it? how about leaving your friends behind? leaving a doctor you're familiar with..or he/she is familiar with you?! i guess it make sense if you move to a town one of your kids (probably your favorite kid) lives? but what else goes into the decision making?

i am 12 years away from giving my organization the finger.. i dont think i want to stay in CA, since i would like my $$ to go further. plus i want a suppressed firearm.

[widebody911]

Just don't pick one that's been featured on 60 Minutes

[widebody911]

dont you have to do a dry run?

At that age, there are no "dry" runs.

(thanks, I'm here all week, try the veal)

[dafischer]

Vash, we picked Punta Gorda since our best friends moved there 3 years ago, and we visit them twice a year. We've really grown to like the area, Publix and Home Despot are 5 minutes away, the area has great dining choices, and the Gulf is a short boat ride away (our friends have a boat). Also, Punta Gorda is central to other areas we like, with Naples, Marco Island, Venice, and Boca Grande are all within a 45 min to 1 hour drive. So in effect, we've "test driven" the area. And the house has never been featured on 60minutes.

[pwd72s]

None of your problems, since the home Cindy & I bought 40 years ago fits us perfectly. 3 bedroom, 2 1/2 baths ranch on 1 1/2 acres. The road in front goes nowhere, so very light traffic. The yard work gets to be a bit much. but I figure I need the exercise. You're right about the slowing down. I'm close to good hunting & fishing areas, but haven't done either for years.

One thing I don't like is that Oregon, like all the west coast states, is a high taxes state. Heavy on bureaucratic regulations, ruled by far left politics. A "California North" if you will.

[Norm K]

1,800-2,200 square foot single-level, ranch-style (on a slab), three bedroom, three bath with a four car garage that has 12' ceilings. Very low maintenance landscaping, no HOA, smallish college town with minimal traffic, regional or larger airport within an hour's drive, all in a low property tax state.

_

[gizmofixer]

are there any companies that answer this question??
more specifically:
give them my parameters, needs, wants, wishes, and they say:
look in this town, this state, or this town, this state.
i would use their services now, then visit and 'test-drive' the area before i retire in 5 years.

[KFC911]

My strategy....

I worked and lived where I wanted to live...

I stopped working

[pwd72s]

Well, I will confess that I never heard of anyone in Florida wanting to move to the NE when they retire...

[scottmandue]

Single story, three bed two bath (wife needs a sewing/crafting room and I'm tired of sharing one bathroom), at least two car garage but also would like a workshop for me to do my thing. Close to mass transit (for when we have to give up the car keys) I'm an outdoorsy guy but don't hunt however would like room to set up my own range (so some LOW MAINTENANCE acreages = no lawn to mow) easy to get to food/shopping via mass transit.

[cantdrv55]

Get an Airstream and live where you want or move around.

[wdfifteen]

We wanted a place where we could pursue our hobbies for 20 years, then sell it and move to an ice floe somewhere on the Bearing Sea.
We needed:
A place for me to hobby farm
A wood shop for me
A toy shed for my toys (3 Porsches, an antique truck, crap load of farm equipment)
A room for photography
A GREAT kitchen
A place for Mrs WD to set up her quilt frame and quilting equipment
Extra rooms so she can host quilting retreats
PEACE AND QUIET!

Not much to ask for really

We found this place at a bargain price. We close on it tomorrow.



More pictures at: Offer accepted as written

[varmint]

Has anyone mentioned...


Minimal Taxes
Minimal Laws
Leave us alone attitude neighbors
Dog friendly

[KFC911]

Originally Posted by wdfifteen

We wanted a place where we could pursue our hobbies for 20 years, then sell it and move to an ice floe somewhere on the Bearing Sea.
We needed:
A place for me to hobby farm
A wood shop for me
A toy shed for my toys (3 Porsches, an antique truck, crap load of farm equipment)
A room for photography
A GREAT kitchen
A place for Mrs WD to set up her quilt frame and quilting equipment
Extra rooms so she can host quilting retreats
PEACE AND QUIET!

Not much to ask for really

We found this place at a bargain price. We close on it tomorrow.



More pictures at: Offer accepted as written

Good luck with the close Patrick...same area you live now?

[wdfifteen]

Originally Posted by KC911

Good luck with the close Patrick...same area you live now?

It's southwest Ohio, yes.
Someone mentioned taxes - yes, taxes and unavoidable fees are a consideration when you have a fixed income. Taxes on this place are $4200 a year (we get an agricultural abatement), but water is $49 a month! It does take a lot to heat the whole place.

[Deschodt]

Originally Posted by vash

i dont want to muddy up that other thread. beautiful home!!

I kinda do, but in a polite way... I don't quite get the Florida retirement thing... I just moved *from* there. Most counties property tax is high, 2x that of say California... Sure there is no state income tax but on a retired fixed income, property tax is a sizeable chunk...

FL homes need constant upkeep, a bug guy monthly, a lawn guy weekly, the electrical bills for AC are not a joke to say the least. Yes, an AC guy too... Insurance is $$$ if you can even afford Hurricane (probably not). When I think FL I remember fondly that I could afford a really nice house vs other states, but for retirement, the weather/hurricane/flood risk/constant maintenance required to beat back the tropical jungle seems excessive... I'm leaning more towards San Diego ;-)

[vash]

yea..i dont think i would gravitate towards a spot prone to natural disasters.

i wont be super tolerant when i'm old.

[dafischer]

Originally Posted by Deschodt

I kinda do, but in a polite way... I don't quite get the Florida retirement thing... I just moved *from* there. Most counties property tax is high, 2x that of say California... Sure there is no state income tax but on a retired fixed income, property tax is a sizeable chunk...

FL homes need constant upkeep, a bug guy monthly, a lawn guy weekly, the electrical bills for AC are not a joke to say the least. Yes, an AC guy too... Insurance is $$$ if you can even afford Hurricane (probably not). When I think FL I remember fondly that I could afford a really nice house vs other states, but for retirement, the weather/hurricane/flood risk/constant maintenance required to beat back the tropical jungle seems excessive... I'm leaning more towards San Diego ;-)

Property tax is 1/3 of what our tax is in NJ. Lawn guy = $80 per month. Bug guy = $360 per year. Homeowners policy on a par with our rate in NJ. Flood insurance is $1500 per yr. Punta Gorda doesn't get hit by many hurricanes. Irma did no damage to the house, and Charley in 2004 resulted in a new roof on the house, so we're good with the roof. So all in all, not too bad.

[GH85Carrera]

We bought the house we are in now 20 years ago. When we decided this is the place, we also said, this is it. They will move us out in a wheelchair or on a gurney. We found a place that was just a little above our comfortable budget, but managed to make it work. We paid it off in 10 years and my wife retired two years ago. I work from home for my own company.

It is tough when the boss's wife makes me stop what I am doing and go fix the toilet, or help with laundry. I get even with the jerk boss by sleeping with his wife, and driving his old air cooled 911 around when I want and goofing off on Pelican a lot.

[KFC911]

Originally Posted by GH85Carrera

...I work from home for my own company.

Thread hijack...when did you begin doing this...missed it?