Finding your Shangri-la -- Florida: a retirement tradition -- California -- Arizona -- The southeast coast states -- The Gulf coast states -- The midsouthern hills -- Texas: the B-i-i-g state -- Western mountains and deserts -- The Pacific northwest -- The snowbelt states. About the Authors Coeur d'Alene - Medical Care & Retirement -- Research Methods --- Finding Your Shangri-la - Best Places to Retire? - What to Look For - Evaluating Health Care - Over-50 Communities - Moving to the Country - College Town Retirement - Cost of Living - Working during Retirement - Taxes - Real Estate Prices - the Mobile-Home Alternative - Choosing Your Climate - Personal Safety - Finding a Safe Place to Live - Why Not My State? - The Most Popular States for Relocation --- Florida: A Retirement Tradition - Isn't Florida Overcrowded? - Florida Weather - Florida Real Estate -- North-Central Florida - Orlando Area : DeLand - Winter Haven - Gainesville - Ocala -- Florida's Atlantic Coast : Palm Coast - Daytona Beach -- Cocoa Beach to Melbourne: Melbourne -- Florida's Gold Coast : The Miami Complex - Century Village East -- Florida Keys: The End of the Line -- Florida's West Coast : Fort Myers/Cape Coral - Pine Island - Tampa/St. Petersburg - Sun Coast -- Florida's Panhandle : Panama City - The Emerald Coast - Pensacola --- California : The Pacific Coast -- Southern California : San Diego Area - Los Angeles Region - Pismo Beach/Five Cities Area - San Luis Obispo -- The California Desert : Palm Springs - Desert Hot Springs -- San Francisco Bay Region : Sonoma County - Santa Rosa - Petaluma -- Gold Country : Amador County - Grass Valley/Nevada City - Lake Tahoe - Oroville - Chico - Dunsmuir - Mount Shasta - Fall River Mills/Burney -- Northern California Coast : Mendocino/Fort Bragg - Eureka - Areata - Ferndale --- Arizona - Central Arizona: Between Phoenix & Flagstaff - Sun City - Sun Lakes - Scottsdale - Apache Junction - Wickenburg - Sedona - Prescott - Flagstaff -- Southern Arizona's Sonoran Desert : Bisbee - Sierra Vista -- Tucson : Green Valley -- Western Arizona: Colorado River Retirement : Lake Havasu City - Bullhead City/Laughlin - Yuma --- The Southeast Coast States - Southern Hospitality - Churches in the South - A Geography Lesson -- North Carolina : Blue Ridge & Great Smoky Mountains - Asheville -- North Carolina's High Country : Boone -- The University Triangle : Research Triangle Park - Raleigh - Chapel Hill - Durham - Pinehurst, Southern Pines & Aberdeen -- South Carolina : Columbia - Aiken -- On the Ocean : Myrtle Beach - Charleston - Isle of Palms - Sullivan's Island - Hilton Head Island - Sun City Hilton Head --- Georgia : Savannah - Savannah's Islands - Brunswick & the Golden Isles - Georgia's Blue Ridge Mountains -- Georgia Lowlands : Athens - Valdosta --- Virginia & West Virginia : Charlottesville - Tidewater Region - Williamsburg - Virginia Beach - Appalachian Discovery in the Virginias - Four Seasons Country : Bluefield, Virginia/West Virginia - Tazewell & Richlands, Virginia - Princeton, West Virginia - Lewisburg, West Virginia ---- The Gulf Coast States -- Alabama : Gulf Shores/Orange Beach - Dothan - Alexander City/Lake Martin - Anniston/Oxford - Gadsden --- Mississippi -- Mississippi's Gulf Coast : Oxford - Natchez - Madison - Tupelo -- Louisiana : Acadiana (Cajun Country) - Lafayette & Vicinity - Baton Rouge - Natchitoches - Leesville/DeRidder - Alexandria ---- The Midsouthern Hills -- Kentucky : Bowling Green - Murray - Danville -- Tennessee : Clarksville - Crossville - Fairfield Glade - Holiday Hills - Cookeville -- Arkansas : Fayetteville - Bella Vista - Eureka Springs - Holiday Island - Mena - Greers Ferry Lake Area - Bull Shoals/Mountain Home - Hot Springs - Hot Springs Village -- Missouri : Lake of the Ozarks/Osage Beach - Branson - Columbia - Oklahoma - Grand Lake o' the Cherokees - Bartlesville --- Texas: The B-i-i-g State : On the Texas Coast - Galveston - Corpus Christi - South Padre Island - Port Isabel - The Rio Grande Valley : Mission/Harlingen - South-Central Texas : San Antonio - Texas Hill Country - Kerrville - Wimberley - Austin : Highland Lakes - Georgetown --- Western Mountains and Deserts -- Nevada : Las Vegas - Henderson - Pahrump - Reno - Carson City -- New Mexico - Albuquerque - Rio Rancho - Roswell - Las Cruces - Ruidoso - Santa Fe - Silver City - Taos -- Utah : Salt Lake City - St. George - Cedar City --- The Pacific Northwest - West Coast Weather -- Oregon: Oregon's Inland Valleys : Ashland/Medford - Grants Pass/Rogue River - Merlin/Galice - Cave Junction - Eugene/Springfield - Salem - Portland - The Dalles/Hood River - Oregon Coast - Brookings/Harbor - Gold Beach - Newport - Oregon High Country : Bend - Sunriver - Klamath Falls -- Washington : Seattle Area : Bainbridge Island - Bellingham - Olympia - Port Angeles - San Juan Islands - Whidbey Island - Vancouver, Washington/Portland, Oregon --- The Snowbelt States -- Maine : Camden -- Vermont : Burlington -- Massachusetts : Amherst -- Colorado : Boulder - Durango - Fort Collins - Steamboat Springs - Grand Junction -- Idaho : Boise - Coeur d'Alene - Index - About the Authors
Summary:
Where to Retire offers the best advice not only on where to relocate in the retirement years, but why people should pick up and move just as life is settling down and provides well-researched and completely revised and updated information on how to find the ideal home base for the retirement years. To help the decision-making process, the book offers a list of items to consider when selecting the ideal community: safety; climate; housing availability; cultural and recreation opportunities in the area; social compatibility; affordability; medical care; distance from relatives and friends; transportation; and jobs and/or volunteer opportunities. It gives readers clear snapshots of life in hundreds of the most affordable, comfortable, and stimulating places to retire in the United States, including locations in Florida, California, the Pacific Northwest, the Gulf Coast, the Ozarks, the Appalachians, the Southwest, and the Rockies. It's a must-have guide that helps readers decide where to retire happily.
This resource is supported by the Institute of Museum and Library Services under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act as administered by State Library of Iowa.