We're recently retired (forced - somewhat planned). We live near NYC (meaning high cost of living, housing & overall a highway robbery state). We don't want to move - having lived here our entire lives, but having spent the past few weeks researching statistics on cost of living outside of New York and my mouth drops every time. I also researched health care amont the 50 states & learned how different & varied it is.
So is it inevitable we will have to move outside of NYC area? Probably. Yes, salaries are higher here & as a teacher, we receive a generous pension + eligible for Social Security. Reality is the generous pension makes retirement here very challenging. Outside of NYC, our pension can make us look like we can afford a mansion & travel the world (well almost).
The last regular paycheck was Oct. 15th & we're waiting for the 1st pension check to come in Dec. 1st. When we calculate the net check against our budget, we'll come up with what gets axed, changed or how it will affect our retirement lives. Fun, fun, fun. Back to the drawing board & pointing an arrow at a state or place that has low cost of living, low taxes, relatively mild (short cold winters OK), excellent health care & fun things to do in a major city nearby.