Retirement location

chipgreenberg said:
Low crime depending on where you are like most places. I have to laugh at rural areas having high crime. We live in a town smaller than where Cal lived. Most of my neighbors don't lock their doors. (I do, I'm from New York) We don't have a lock on our garage with all our tools in it. I frequently leave my expensive road bicycle "just in the yard." I could leave a Leica in my unlocked car on the front seat forever and bet I'd always find it there in the morning. Yes we all have guns. Maybe that's why there's low crime, but that's a story for another day too 🙂
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Chip,

I need to clarify. Where I lived (Santa Fe National Forest), I would say the crime was low like you experienced. The break ins that I mentioned were highly previlent were in Santa Fe, Albiqueque, and the outlying areas next to these urban areas. This is also where I would say the alcohol related crime was also concentrated.

The gun fight I mentioned was at Mad-Rid (Spelled Madrid) not far from Santa Fe, but more rural.

I also remember that young pretty women would disappear in Santa Fe. One of those who disappeared body was found not far from my house in La Cueva. No matter where you go there is good and evil.

The only danger one had to be prepared for finding oneself alone and in trouble in an isolated area where survival could be compromised due to isolation.

My friend/neighbor explained to me that it is not like in New York: if you shoot and kill someone on your property in New Mexico it is not manslauter like in New York.

Cal
 
Pherdinand said:
reading therough these 7 pages is a revelation: everybody wants to move AWAY from where he spent most of his life. The ones on the south want more north, the ones on the north want more south, and the ones in the middle...well those want to move to Thailand, or Fiji, or something. 😀

nowhere's good enufff...
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P,

I will stay in NYC for as long as I can, but I think my stay is not sustainable. I'm making the most of it now.

I still have to come up with a plan "B."

Cal
 
don't get me wrong, i'm not against retiring to "someplace else"🙂 and i did my share ov moving across borders as well, tho retirement is far, far away. (Not sure i can ever catch up with the Dutch retirement age increase speed 😀)
it's just interesting to see, that the grass is always greener somewhere else.

OK, not always. There are a few of you that expressed they'd stay put.
 
Pherdinand said:
don't get me wrong, i'm not against retiring to "someplace else"🙂 and i did my share ov moving across borders as well, tho retirement is far, far away. (Not sure i can ever catch up with the Dutch retirement age increase speed 😀)
it's just interesting to see, that the grass is always greener somewhere else.

OK, not always. There are a few of you that expressed they'd stay put.
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I think I could be happy almost anywhere, and I could surely adapt. My gal is very cosmopolitain and would suffer even in a small city let alone some rural area.

I look forward to the challenge, but in the meantime I want to make the most out of NYC where I live now. Retiring somewhere else I think eventually will be a forced move.

BTW thanks for all the sharing by everyone.

Cal
 
An eye opening thread, indeed.

I'm 6-8 years away from retirement but looking already for possible destinations. Now living and working in Switzerland, my targets I'm thinking of are: France, Spain, Italy, Germany.
I'm doing a test run with a rental flat in south Italy near Matera, which we use as holiday destination during the year. Time will show if all pieces come together for a final move. Or it remains exactly as it is now: A 2nd address.
Germany is already known, what remains to test is Spain and France. Or... yes: remain in Switzerland.
 
paulfish4570 said:
i'm retired, still living in alabama halfway between our grandchildren; can't imagine not being within easy driving distance of our grandchildren.
BUT THAT IS JUST ME ...
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No, not just you. I moved here to central Virginia (from Seattle) 24 years ago because I wanted to eventually retire here. Fortunately my sons live not too far away and I get to see the grandchildren fairly often.
 
Even thought I live here, I wouldn't recommend someone from overseas retiring to Dublin - prices are just too high, even after a property crash and the weather is just to variable. I'm very happy here personally but if I was retired, I'd happily trade six months of every year for somewhere warmer with a lower cost of living. That said, I could never see myself leaving Ireland entirely.
 
Austerby said:
I noticed that too. I was one of the few stating I'm planning on retiring where I'm living at the moment . . .
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Me too. I didn't retire to France. I just moved here so I could work less hard: I'm still working, and I'd like to keep it that way. If I'd known what I know now I'd probably have moved to Arles, but it's unlikely that I'd move now.

Before here I was living on the Kent coast (1992-2002); before that, California's central coast (1987-1992); before that, Bristol (1974-1987)... I had no special attachment to any of them, and I'd rather be where I am than in any of them. There are no special family ties: my father is still alive in Scotland, but he's 88 and I have never cared for the Scots climate and the last time I lived with my parents was in Kent again (1973-4, when my mother was dying). Before that Birmingham; before that, Plymouth; before that, Bermuda....

Uprooting to retire seems odd to me, but moving somewhere because you like it, whether you're retiring or not, makes more sense.

Cheers,

R.
 
Austerby said:
I noticed that too. I was one of the few stating I'm planning on retiring where I'm living at the moment (London).

Actually, there's lots of retired people in London. One recent trend has been for retired couples to sell the large family house in the country and buy a smaller property in London (probably for the same money but at least lower upkeep) to enjoy all the free museums, concerts and other events. Plus doctors, hospitals, chemists, etc all on the doorstep via free (for the over 60's) public transport - no need to maintain a car.
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London is a safe city with a lot of infrastructure that supports a great retirement like NYC. I like that you don't need a car and there is so much to do because it is so large a city.

Cal
 
Las Cruces temps. Let me be specific. The 120F temps I mentioned are *unofficial*. However, they are actual temps measured for research at the Jornada Range just outside of town. The "official" high temps from the time period I was in Cruces were either 110F or 115F depending on which "official" weather station you want to use. BTW, this was during the mid-1990s, which was when the hottest temps for Cruces were recorded. Average (average!) summertime high temp is 95F. Still quite hot and when punctuated with those 100+ days it can be a bit too hot for some. The humidity is very low though. In fact, my wood furniture (purchased in other western states) suffered. Wood moisture content will equalize with ambient humidity and in the process, shrink or swell. In Cruces, my wood furniture suffered from shrinking which led to loose joints and even a cracked tabletop -- One day I heard a loud "crrrack!" and went to investigate. Our dressing table suddenly had a foot-long crack right in the middle of its top. Don't even ask me about our piano! That was a challenge.

Been to El Paso plenty. Perhaps its a tad cooler there than Cruces. Still, the hottest official record temp (115F) for El Paso occurred while I was there (1994). Average summertime high is mid-90s.

Now, New Mexico has plenty of locations with plenty nice weather. I love the Sacramento Mountains. I also like the Gila, but the locals there scare me. The Sangres are nice too, but close to ABQ and all that entails. Never been north of Taos (e.g., Angel Fire) but its supposed to be nice. Rural, but nice.

In Colorado, Durango up to Ouray is some of the purdiest country in the country. Gets cold in winter but its absolutely gorgeous.

BTW, I'm not disclosing my retirement location. The fewer people that know about it, the better. I've found that great places to live too often get "discovered" and the hordes of unappreciative, and unfortunately ignorant, people that swarm in will thoroughly and irreversibly destroy the place. I'm not suggesting RFFers are among that group, but this IS the internet. I can't take the chance 😱
 
rfaspen said:
Las Cruces temps. Let me be specific. The 120F temps I mentioned are *unofficial*. However, they are actual temps measured for research at the Jornada Range just outside of town. The "official" high temps from the time period I was in Cruces were either 110F or 115F depending on which "official" weather station you want to use. BTW, this was during the mid-1990s, which was when the hottest temps for Cruces were recorded. Average (average!) summertime high temp is 95F. Still quite hot and when punctuated with those 100+ days it can be a bit too hot for some. The humidity is very low though. In fact, my wood furniture (purchased in other western states) suffered. Wood moisture content will equalize with ambient humidity and in the process, shrink or swell. In Cruces, my wood furniture suffered from shrinking which led to loose joints and even a cracked tabletop -- One day I heard a loud "crrrack!" and went to investigate. Our dressing table suddenly had a foot-long crack right in the middle of its top. Don't even ask me about our piano! That was a challenge.

Been to El Paso plenty. Perhaps its a tad cooler there than Cruces. Still, the hottest official record temp (115F) for El Paso occurred while I was there (1994). Average summertime high is mid-90s.

Now, New Mexico has plenty of locations with plenty nice weather. I love the Sacramento Mountains. I also like the Gila, but the locals there scare me. The Sangres are nice too, but close to ABQ and all that entails. Never been north of Taos (e.g., Angel Fire) but its supposed to be nice. Rural, but nice.

In Colorado, Durango up to Ouray is some of the purdiest country in the country. Gets cold in winter but its absolutely gorgeous.

BTW, I'm not disclosing my retirement location. The fewer people that know about it, the better. I've found that great places to live too often get "discovered" and the hordes of unappreciative, and unfortunately ignorant, people that swarm in will thoroughly and irreversibly destroy the place. I'm not suggesting RFFers are among that group, but this IS the internet. I can't take the chance 😱
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You can send me a PM. 🙂
 
Pherdinand said:
reading therough these 7 pages is a revelation: everybody wants to move AWAY from where he spent most of his life. The ones on the south want more north, the ones on the north want more south, and the ones in the middle...well those want to move to Thailand, or Fiji, or something. 😀

nowhere's good enufff...
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Yes, it fascinated me at work that all the Mauritians wanted to retire to the Seychelles. But all the French were happy in London, mostly because their husbands were British. Most of my young ladies were WW2 brides, of course.

Regards, David
 
I'm retired and still trying to get my (not-retired) wife to consider moving from Atlanta to a less polluted, less expensive, less congested place, but no luck so far...
I read a lot of the suggestions and they all have merit. The South and Southwestern US can definitely offer milder winters and in some cases less expensive housing that large metropolitan areas. However, the quality of life could end up being a challenge as some of the cheaper locales have meager cultural offerings.... Asheville, NC is very nice in some ways, but vey expensive and now very congested. I visited Albuquerque NM and found it nice to visit. Birmingham AL is a nice place meeting many of the requirements. So is Chattanooga TN and Knoxville TN. Atlanta could be an option, but forget cheap housing.

One thing that might be good to remember about most if not all of Latin America is that medical care can be of high quality and in my experience some years ago, it was very inexpensive and doctors made house calls to my hotel in Mexico city! This is not the case in the US and probably the EU, so plan on not getting sick or having great insurance!

If I had my way, I'd spend the warm months in NYC, London, or another large interesting, exciting metropolis. And the cold months in South America near the equator, probably in Ecuador.
 
silver92b@gmail.com said:
... One thing that might be good to remember about most if not all of Latin America is that medical care can be of high quality and in my experience some years ago, it was very inexpensive and doctors made house calls to my hotel in Mexico city! This is not the case in the US and probably the EU, so plan on not getting sick or having great insurance! ...
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Hi,

Our experience of medical care in Europe is that you'll have little to worry about although you won't get it for free unless it's an emergency. OTOH, if you're paying it should be the same as anywhere else when you pay...

Regards, David
 
Pherdinand said:
reading therough these 7 pages is a revelation: everybody wants to move AWAY from where he spent most of his life. The ones on the south want more north, the ones on the north want more south, and the ones in the middle...well those want to move to Thailand, or Fiji, or something. 😀

nowhere's good enufff...
Click to expand...

In big parts of Canada it's about the weather and that's it. I would wager that with milder winters many Canadians would be quite happy with where they are year-round.

In Ottawa this year it was -20 to -30 celsius every day of February. And January and March were hardly better. We get little sunlight and it all starts to make a person quite grumpy. Even at my age I would like to leave here for those three months.
 
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