Gallery: 10 best cities in America for retirees
In an era of side hustles and mandatory overtime, the average age of retirees is on the rise—from age 60 in 1995 to 64 years old in 2021, according to a Gallup poll. As the retirement age increases, expectations evolve; so too do the communities that are called home by retirees.
A new ranking by WalletHub ranks the best cities for retirees by considering 46 metrics and specifically comparing four “key factors”—affordability, amount of activities, quality of life and health care access.
“Retirees want to live in a place where they enjoy safety and access to good healthcare, especially in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. The ideal city will also have lots of ways to spend leisure time, along with good weather,” reads a brief about the findings published by WalletHub.
But while there’s plenty of economic uncertainty lingering from the last few pandemic-fraught years, retirees seem to be confidence in their ability to retire well. Seven in ten people surveyed in the Employee Benefit Research Institute’s 32nd Annual Retirement Confidence Survey, the longest running survey of its kind, expressed at least some confidence that they’re financially on the right track to meet retirement goals. Notably, respondents who said they aren’t confident about their retirement savings were the same ones dramatically impacted by the pandemic.
“Those feeling less confident as a result of the pandemic and its economic impact were already among the more vulnerable and less retirement-ready Americans. They are more likely to report poor health, lower incomes and savings levels, and problems with debt,” a report about the findings from the Employee Benefit Research Institute notes.
The five most affordable locations ranked by WalletHub, not taking into account the other three metrics, are: Brownsville, Tx., Laredo, Tx., Fort Smith, Ark., Amarillo, Tx., and Jackson, Miss. Communities with the most recreation and senior centers per capita are: Philadelphia, Penn., Chicago, Ill., Honolulu, Hawai, Washington, D.C., and Los Angeles, Calif. The cities with the highest percentage of their population over the age of 65 are: Pearl City, Hawai, Scottsdale, Ariz., Cape Coral, Fla., Warwick, R.I., and Hialeah, Fla.
The top ten cities with the best composite scores can be viewed in the gallery above. Visit WalletHub’s website for more information.
