wa0mqe
Colorado Springs, CO, USA
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Joined: 06/15/2003
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Don't forget to look at southern New Mexico and for that matter far western Texas. I don't mean El Paso, Texas but some of the outlying areas just east of El Paso. Both these area's have dry climates and although I'm not to sure about New Mexico, Texas isn't bad as far as taxes are concerned. Typically the property tax is a little on the high side, but most all the other taxes aren't bad. No Income Tax is a good plus.
Bob Bowers
2004 Pace Arrow, 8.1 Workhorse W22
Colorado Springs, CO
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bigeking
Arlington, Texas
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Joined: 01/14/2008
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Look at Cottonwood Az, and The Village of Oak Creek, Az. Arizona does have a state income tax, but not sure of overall taxes. Like stated above, visit allot of different places with your camper and find one that you really like and that fits your needs.
Everett & Jayne
2008 GMC Duramax-Allison Extended Cab Dually Locking 3:73 rear end
Line-x bedliner Pullrite hitch Retrax Bed Cover---2008 Nu Wa DA 339RSB
Life is'nt about how you survived the storm...
It's about how you dance in the rain!
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Greyghost
Rapid City, SD
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We had planned on having a home base in Brunswick ME. We even purchased property there. Unfortunately we had to sell it once we found out how high the property taxes are in Brunswick. We've been on the road since July and are now in the process of purchasing a new home base in Queen Creek AZ. We had not planned on buying now but when we witnessed the price of short sales here we felt that we had no other choice than to bite the bullet and purchase now. We decided on Queen Creek because it had ample property with lot sizes of a little over an acre and no HOA's. If you send me a PM I can give you additional info on short sale listings.
Pat & Roger Fisher
2004 Mountain Aire 3501
2007 Honda CRV EX-L 4WD,
Sampson(The Beast) Bouvier Des Flandres
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OnSafari
Alabama
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Joined: 03/28/2009
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DH and I have looked at ST George for a relocation-landing spot. It is very beautiful there. We plan on going back after we sell our house (in a year or two) and spending a season camping there to get more acquainted with the area before we decide to buy.
For a cost of living comparison, you can use this tool:
cost of living comparison
It might be a little out of date due to the recession, but you can get the idea.
We check the real estate prices on realtor.com. Personally, we have decided that we do not want yardwork, worrying about roofs, all the outside stuff of house so are going to look for a condo/townhouse. We want to be able to lock the door and go away for three to six months without worrying about lawncare, etc.
So far we have looked pretty much all over New Mexico and Nevada. So far St. George has the best air quality, water quality, crime rate and recreation combination that we have seen.
1991 Safari Ivory Hi-Tech DP
2008 Ford Escape
Shasta - Border Collie mix
Dakota - Blue Heeler mix
Chuck - Vietnam Vet, USMC
Ayn - Darn good cook
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burlmart
Baton Rouge
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Joined: 03/28/2005
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Back when we thought we were ready to move around and find a new residence, someone on these forums recommended this VERY informative book of data and ideas on how to make decisions...IPlaces Rated Almanac
Well worth the $20 or so
2005 Trail Lite 213 B-Plus w/ 6.0 Chevy
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Craig P.
Southern California
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All VERY helpful information! I espcially like the cost of living calculator and the Places Rated Almanac.
BTW, the web link provided on the Alamanac for Amazon.com actually listed them for much less than $20. I purchased a used one on there for $4 incl. shipping.
Thanks so much!
Craig
* This post was
edited 11/08/09 04:44pm by Craig P. *
2005 Providence 39J
2007 Tacoma PreRunner Double Cab Dingy
2002 EZ-Go Custom Electric Golf Cart
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OnSafari
Alabama
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We also use city-data to review towns we are interested in. I have found the weather charts may be a little off (I understand St. George gets very little snow now) but the information is great.
Just google City State and the word detailed (i.e. St George Ut detailed) and you will find the link. Good stuff.
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tatest
Oklahoma
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Most retirement guides and cost comparators deal with cities down to medium-size towns. My experience has been that the lowest cost of living is in very small towns in rural areas or on rural property, in places that are not popular as vacation destinations, e.g. Cotton Belt anywhere from southern Alabama through New Mexico, or on the Great Plains from west Texas up through the Dakotas, if you don't mind cold winters. There are plenty of ghost towns a few miles off the nearest highway all through Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, Nebraska.
Cost of living, reflected in taxes and property values, is proportional to the amenities and services available. If there are no amenities, there is nothing to pay for. It becomes a question of how far are you willing to live from the nearest hospital, grocery store, gas station, et al. Does your lifestyle require canned entertainment, franchise restaurants, shopping centers? These have a cost.
Once one of these small towns or rural areas becomes popular, as happened to Phoenix, Las Vegas, southern California, the cheap rural property becomes expensive urban property. But if you get in before it happens, buy a big enough parcel, and live long enough, you might get rich as a land baron; if it doesn't happen, you just enjoy a low-cost retirement.
A house that's $40K in our small city, with $800 a year taxes, might be $20K in a nearby rural settlement with half the taxes, or $200K with $8000 taxes in a nearby city of 200,000-400,000 people. It might be a million dollar house in an former big city slum that is becoming re-gentrified.
You won't find these little towns of 15 - 200 people in most retirement guides, but they are out there.
Some even have character, like Archer City, Texas, the setting for "The Last Picture Show" which is not more than 30 minutes drive from a regional market center.
* This post was
edited 11/09/09 12:48pm by tatest *
Tom Test
Itasca Spirit 29B
2001 Ranger Edge
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tpi
Southern CA.
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Joined: 02/22/2005
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Quote:We currently live in Southern California where cost of living is high.
If you have lived in your house for 20+ years under prop 13 your cost of living may not be as high as you think. Check property tax rates in places you are interested in. Are the rates increasing?
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Craig P.
Southern California
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tpi wrote:If you have lived in your house for 20+ years under prop 13 your cost of living may not be as high as you think. Check property tax rates in places you are interested in. Are the rates increasing?
We've only been in our current home 9 years, so Prop. 13 isn't an issue for us. Property taxes are definitely something we're going to consider during our search for a new home base. Thanks.
Craig
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