<p>I’m born and raised in south Florida and am more than ready to leave. Having no real experience with hard winters, we don’t want anyplace with snow and ice, although we do want a cooler climate than here. We considered all of the southeastern states but finally decided on Ponte Vedra Beach in NE Florida. </p>
<p>We pay around $7500 a year for homeowners, flood and windstorm insurance down here in hurricane alley, as well as high auto insurance and property taxes. All of those costs will be considerably lower in NE Florida (which almost NEVER gets hit by hurricanes). I know the summers are still hot but I look forward to winters cool enough to be able to use a fireplace. And by staying in Florida we’ll avoid state income taxes.</p>
<p>The only fly in the ointment is that the real estate market down here is still horrible so we will be taking a real hit when we sell our home. Looking forward to downsizing, though!</p>
<p>S2 may end up in the DC area, but the times we’ve been in DC/VA in the summer, it’s been disgustingly hot and humid. Certainly not temperate enough for me. Are there any areas near there where the weather is more tolerable?</p>
<p>A very good friend was just there…she said ONE DAY was plenty for this small town. It is billing itself as a touristy location…has some nice Bread and Breakfast places in the cute downtown. I think it would be great for a visit…but her report indicates…not someplace to stay and live.</p>
<p>For now I think we’ll stay in Madison and use timeshares and rentals to find warm places for Jan-Feb unless the real estate market magically improves and we can get rid of our Madison and Chicago places without much of a loss.</p>
<p>ucsd<em>ucla</em>dad - We live in La Jolla in a very tiny house, but the location is wonderful. We certainly enjoy all there is to offer in San Diego and SoCal in general, but H and I are very open to new places. There are areas of North Carolina that we like so this may be a possibilty. My H has family in Bermuda and there is a family home there (needs lots of work) that belongs to H. Although we wouldn’t live there all the time we may decide to split our time between somewhere in the east and Bermuda.</p>
<p>That whole Research Triangle area including C.H. is very appealing. I wasn’t crazy about Durham, but you’ve got three major colleges, a state capitol and relatively cheap housing costs compared to DC.
Could live on the inner banks, but not the outer…too isolated.</p>
<p>I’m in the SF Bay area, and after living here my entire life, I’m ready to leave this state and coast. Housing here make most other places look very reasonable. We need year round tennis, golf, and easy access to an international airport. (And are too young for the 55 and older communities.)</p>
<p>We checked out Marco Island/South Florida, and it didn’t quite seem like the place for us. We will be heading out to Orlando environs in October, and probably the Charlotte area of NC in Nov. We did look at Phoenix, but I’m not sure about the desert. I’d love to be on a lake…</p>
<p>Yep, Jacksonville is considered NE Florida. I guess it’s not a frequently used term, but I consider NE Florida to be from St. Augustine northward to the state line. Ponte Vedra Beach is the coastal town between Jacksonville and St. Augustine.</p>
<p>No plans to retire, will wait until I am kicked out. Where to retire is a very good question. I cannot see myself sitting inside with AC whole summer long because it is 85+F outside. I cannot be outside when it is so hot. I can see myself moving only under condition that I keep my current house to come back for summers. I went to Florida in a summer only one time in my life, never repeated this mistake. We go on vacation in Dec. or March, in a summer we prefer to be at home. But Florida did not impress us at all, too much traffic, too many people, too many old people, too many bugs and other creatures, beaches are not up to what we are looking for, no snorkeling off shore, too many hurricanes. I have no clue where to buy “fall-winter-spring” house. We have been in VA, but it is about the same, minus ocean. It has to be ocean with very clear (Caribean) water, otherwise there is no sense for us to get a new place at all. Our friends who live in Arizona also stay inside during summer (and no ocean). Well, as I mentioned, anything above 85 F is unbearable in my case. If I had $10mln, maybe Hawaii, but I do not have them and I have never been to Hawaii to know what I am missing. Alaska is too cold and way too far from everything. Looking like home sweet home will do, not big $$ sucker either, cheaper than any reasonable small apartment.</p>
<p>We’re happy that so many want to retire down South, which is where we don’t want to be. First, never officially retiring … will have consulting and non-profit work going until we both die but at a less hectic pace than today’s. Wife likes the ocean and we both like snow (yes, I said the S-word). If we want to swim a lot, coastal Delaware near Lewes is really nice. Close enough to metro DC/baltimore/Wilmington/Philly but not too close. Beautiful beaches and enough “civilization” to be nice. Pricey but not like DC. Other “polar” opposite is Mt. Desert Island, Maine with Bar Harbor and other less touristy towns. Great nature (ocean and mountain), history, and culture makes this very attractive for us. Since we love snow and hope to have money to pay for its removal, it could be an idyllic location. Would love a house at both locations!</p>
<p>In our younger days we’d talked about having summer and winter homes, but I’m not sure that’s still in the budget for us. Nice to dream.
What resources do people use to virtually check out potential retirement areas? I’d like to map out a game plan before actually travelling to these places.</p>
<p>UCDAlum82 - There’s a beautiful lake right outside of Charlotte - [Lake</a> Norman](<a href=“http://www.visitlakenorman.org/]Lake”>http://www.visitlakenorman.org/)
There are areas around Lake Norman that have been overdeveloped, but there are many beautiful spots. The lake is a fun place.</p>
<p>I definitely agree with the earlier poster who mentioned checking out the letters to the editor in the paper to gauge the prevailing political thoughts. Being somewhere really out of sync with me just gets tiring – a lot like getting those unwanted political emails from my brother-in-law.</p>
<p>UCDAlum, you might want to check out the Hilton Head area. We bought a second home there last year and love it. Year round golf and tennis, international airport in Savannah which is half an hour away from us. Beautiful spot! And there are some excellent real estate deals available. Most communities in the area are gated, and each has its own flavor. We looked at several before making a final decision. We had a list of specific criteria we were looking for and found it in our community of choice. Can’t wait til we can spend more time there. Would be happy to give you some further info if you’re interested at some point.</p>
<p>sewhappy - There are some mobile home communities around San Diego. There is one right on Mission Bay that H always use to say he wanted to retire to, but I think this one is going away as the land belongs to the city or something like that.</p>
<p>It’s our plan to downsize and retire in phases. Once our son is out of HS, we plan to move to Florida (Winter Park looks nice, albeit a little expensive) so that a) we qualify for in state tuition for my son, b) no state taxes c) ease of commute to NYC via air. We’d probably rent a studio apt in Jersey City/Hoboken and come up 1 week/month for work purposes for the next 4-5 years. If money is good, maybe we spend some time in Santa Monica or San Diego renting before finally ending up in probably Spain or maybe Gibralter. I’ve watched 2 sets of grandparents struggle with paperwork and upkeep of their houses, medical bills, and more paperwork, trying to drive when they shouldn’t, etc. Sometimes all that stuff just wears you down. </p>
<p>I’m looking for warm, near an intl airport, with a proper town center that we can walk to, good transportation, culture, ethnically mixed, good restaurants, an access to medical care.</p>
<p>this health care thing is the primary fear i have about getting old…i think i’d like to live a slower life in europe or even latam. anyone thought about Costa Rica?</p>
<p>Is it bad i feel this tired before i’m 45?? This cold rainy weather in NYC reminds me that winter is coming… </p>
<p>to quote Mr. Jerry Garcia “I’m going where the climate suits my clothes”</p>