I like to look at Bestplaces.net when reviewing a new area.

According to those statistics Aiken is relatively young and affluent (for the South). I have been through it and it is a nice looking town..You will be able

to tell a lot about it if you stay a week on your visit.

Near Augusta GA. Agree with Dee as far as social and political inclinations. I would be miserable.

One small branch of my family tree has generations of deep roots in Aiken. I visited some as a youngster, haven't been there in decades.

If you have any particular questions I'm happy to pass them along to see what they say.

It's a lovely southern town and i would expect winter climate to be pretty mild. Can't wait to hear about your visit!

3 katz, I thought I had read something about Aiken in Southern Living magazine, and here it is: it was named one of the best small towns in the south by that magazine. Here is what they said:

”The equestrian town of Aiken could pass for a postcard. Home to the Aiken Horse Show, which has been running for over a century, this South Carolina spot is made for saddling up and going for a trail ride, cozying up in gracious inns and bed-and-breakfasts, and enjoying the splendor of lush parks. There's the Aiken Art Annex; Boyd Pond; Aiken Arboretum Trail; Center for African American History, Arts, and Culture; Hitchcock Woods; Henderson Heritage Preserve; DuPont Planetarium—we could go on and on. Hop aboard an electric bike rental, or take your seat on an Aiken trolley tour for an introduction to the town.

Visitor center: 406 Park Avenue SE, Aiken, SC, 29801, visitaikensc.com”

Thanks @Kswl. I think I may have seen that piece - sounds charming and interesting. We will have to try to immerse ourselves for a week to see what it might be like to actually live there vs. visit as a tourist. Hoping to do that in early November.

In the meantime I've been looking at real estate listings - one of my favorite activities. Everything is SO formal and traditional. I had to tell my husband it wouldn't be so much that way once you pulled out all the current owners furnishings and replaced a few light fixtures. I've convinced myself I can live with all white cabinetry and woodwork as long as there's a real wood floor which many have.

That was pretty much the case when we made our coastal SC visit earlier this year so I've surmised that is typical in the south. Or maybe it's the age of the people selling the properties I've been looking at.

My good friend’s DD and son-in-law moved there a few years ago. He accepted an assistant professorship at the USC campus there (doctorate in physics) and she had no trouble finding a position as an Occupational Therapist (master’s degree with several years experience). They love it and enjoy getting tickets to the Master’s now and then, fairly close proximity to Atlanta and the coast and mountains when they want a quick getaway.

It's way too flat for me but I think some people don't care about that.

Don't forget the two-tier property taxes in SC.

I find almost all rankings to be worthless, because they weigh things that I do not care about. For example, I don't care about the job market or local schools. (yes, I understand they impact resale, but I assume markets are pretty efficient and that is already priced in). And I have to laugh at places that get low ratings because housing is expensive .... honestly the way I can tell if I will like a place is if the housing is expensive, LOL.

@mtnrdredux_gw - yeah, I agree rankings aren't very useful. Facts about taxes and weather are objective and useful and there is factual information about crime. As far as housing prices, I just do my own research and if there's housing I like in my price range then great as long as other factors are favorable. We'd establish residency there for tax purposes - income tax is more favorable than MN and to accommodate the SC property tax situation. As long as we kept a place in MN we'd probably only have a desire to be here for 3-4 months in the summer and maybe a visit over the holidays.

What is hard to discern, and rankings don't help, is what the local culture and other intangibles are like which is why I ask my forum friends what they know. And of course we'd have to see what we think in person.

Sounds like a road trip to me!

Maybe though I think I might need to minimize the length of the trip with my current cat situation.

Personally, if it's in your budget, I'd move to the Highlands Cashiers area. It's gorgeous.

@Bumblebeez SC Zone 7 - hadn’t heard of that area but just checked it out briefly. It is beautiful but could be too rich for my blood and I’d need to investigate the mountainous climate and terrain a bit more. I will look into it - thanks for the tip!

ETA: Looked at it a bit more and realized it's near the location of a wedding we attended last year. That is a beautiful area but I think it's not warm enough in the winter and maybe a bit too far away from "civilization". I don't care to live in a large city anymore but would like to be relatively close to one. Also I played mountain golf when I was there for the wedding and I don't think I'll ever be a good enough golfer for that. 😊

For fun, have you taken a ” Where to Retire?” quiz?

Greenville, SC is very popular. It's my hometown and an hour away from me.

Eld, Now that is a great quiz.... because it allows you to weight what is important to you. Brava!

It told me to look in Southern Maine, the Boston area, and Connecticut. hahaha

Eld, that quiz is awesome! It puts me smack in the area I would ideally like to live, although I live close by. North East Georgia mountains, Hiwassee area. Although my ideal area morphs into the NC mountains too. Waynesville, Brevard etc.

Well that was an interesting quiz. In spite of the fact I said it was high priority to avoid hurricanes and floods, and proximity to beach was not a priority, it recommended a variety of coastal areas in FL, SC and GA.

It didn’t do such a great job for me either.

My results were all over... New Orleans was #1. Then PA and OH. ?

I have a colleague at USC Aiken. He has lived there many years and is originally from Michigan. He has a gorgeous old home in the historic district. He has school-aged children. November will be great weather.

My #1 (100%) was Monterey County, California. Perfect.

The others were scattered around Washington and Oregon, and on the other coast New Hampshire, Mass, and Vermont.

Oh, and in the middle — Connecticut. MTN.

I got some good ones: Blowing Rock, NC, San Luis Obispo, Greeley, Colorado.

New Hampshire Seacoast, Mississippi Gulf Coast and San Luis Obispo. Interesting.

Mine was all over too but I think it was because I kept forgeting the how important question at the bottom.

There are pretty much no places free from natural disasters or potential for, unfortunately, with climate change.

Yes, Eld, I'd like to retake it again when I have more time to consider those "how important" elements. I also gave no thought to elderly resources and housing options, other than I want good access to healthcare.

I've been watching some YouTube videos of a woman who just moved to Aiken. In this video, she does a tour of her neighborhood:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7MF_CLwrFX0&t=591s

New Hampshire Seacoast! LOL we always joke about that. I had no Idea they even named it. It must be about a mile of seacoast that poor state gets!

I went to get a map to show you, and this one came up: https://smile.amazon.com/Posterazzi-Collection-United-States-Josefina/dp/B07NWXVT9J/ref=asc_df_B07NWXVT9J/?tag=hyprod-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid=492296907568&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=2175888936393275893&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9003451&hvtargid=pla-1158797446545&psc=1&sa-no-redirect=1

To add insult to injury, this map abbreviates New Hampshire as "NE," which, is, umm, Nebraska. Maybe they meant Nebraska Seacoast ?

NH ("NE") is the pale orange one cozying up to VT. Maine and Massachusetts hogged all the coast. They left them a port and thats about it. Though Portsmouth is cute!