I found a home in Ark that would have made him happy. It was beautiful and with a heated garage/shop and room enough for 4 cars. If I had bought it I would have rented out the spaces to boat owners for the winter. It was only $175,000. I did not buy it because it was on 2 acres and I could not maintain that much lawn. Taxes were around $1,500. a year.

Have you considered Delaware....certainly close to NJ and very retiree-friendly tax-wise.....as are the Carolinas, more so than Virginia or Pa.

Anyone who is at all concerned with environmental quality (superfund sites, brownfields, etc) would not want northern Delaware. Dupont esssentially used the state as a dumping ground.

Southern Delaware is less polluted but also has an alarming lack of good medical facilities (hospitals etc) which is often very important to people of retirement age.

Southern Delaware (often called Lower Slower Delaware) is also the chicken-farm capital of the USA. If you are turnd off by the presence of mobile home parks you might not care for that in the region either. Also, someone from the tri-state may find the much slower way of life frustrating when it comes to repair people etc (this told to me by a former NYer who moved down there and ended up coming back).

I currently live in the tri-state myself and know exactly what the OP is talking about, cost-of-living wise... but one has to look at the whole picture. In NJ and downstate NY we pay a lot in taxes but we also get many services that people in other parts of the country can only dream about. There's no such thing as a free (tax) lunch, anywhere.

Lots and lots of research is needed before making a retirement decision. As someone reminded me recently, if you are only looking at the dollars and cents you may be very unhappy after you move.

This post was edited by Helena2013 on Fri, Nov 21, 14 at 15:13

Thanks for the feedback. We have been researching, for a very long time, but have been unable to come up with the right place for us. Helena2013 - you're right, of course. Quality of living is the most important consideration. We would both like nothing better than to be able to stay put, but simply can't afford to do so. Delaware does look appealing...the Lewes area in particular...but has it's drawbacks, as you stated. I still love Virginia, but it's a distance from our family, and we would like to be somewhere we can both enjoy activities. Arkansas? Wow! That's really pushing it! I don't imagine we'd ever see a familiar face again! Anyway, appreciate your comments and advice. Guess we just have to keep looking!

Helena...you are right about Delaware,....I had no idea about the pollution there or it being the chicken capital.....which brings its own form of pollution. I live in the DC area and many people here retire to the Bethany Beach area. Yes, another concern is medical facilities.

I am retiring this month but DH will probably work another 2 years or more. We know we want to move to a more retiree friendly state but haven't come up with any places yet. It's a big decision and so much to consider!