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We live in a small town in NJ, population 6,600. The median household income is $203,000, the median home value is $1,358,400 and the median property tax is $29,600. I feel like we live in a bubble and given these numbers are much higher than our state averages, which are third highest in the Country, I guess we do.
Between property taxes and HOA fees the minimum annual cost to live in our condo is $24,900.
We live here by choice, wanting to downsize and eliminate stairs a few years after retirement, but also wanting to stay in the same area – we live less than a mile from the house we had for 45 years. In fact, we live five miles from where I, my mother, grandparents and great grandparents grew up.
I knew long before I retired that relocating after retiring was never going to happen. Our roots and most importantly our family are here. We are very fortunate that all of our family are within an hour drive, not scattered around the country. We spend many weekends involved in family activities.
To see any significant decline in the above numbers, we would have to move out of NJ – way out. That means away from family and lifelong friends and that was never going to happen.
The other option was simply to move to our house on Cape Cod. The property taxes there are $2,800 a year, plus then there would only one home to maintain. I had that dream for awhile, but only a dream. Deep down I knew the reality.
As you see, there is a price to pay for our choices. We are fortunate to be able to make those choices, and not relying on relocation to make retirement affordable. Now you know why my views about retirement income are what they are, our expenses were not going down.
If moving to Florida or the Carolinas, as is popular in the East, or Arizona or anywhere sunny and warm is your dream, why not? Millions of seniors do just that.
From my perspective just do your best to assure it’s a real dream, not driven by financial necessity just to make your numbers and retirement date which you may come to regret.
I have moved twice for mostly tax reasons – as state income and local real estate taxes soared, along with government spending that didn’t much benefit me. I am not afraid of moving again, particularly as my current home begins to suffer more than ever from that inability to control spending. However, it is increasingly difficult to find a state near where I grew up (NJ) or where I now live (MD) that offers the other things I find more and more important as I age: family closeness, good medical care, good climate, and an interesting range of things available. That might make it harder to pull up roots. However, one should never underestimate the power of politicians – and their never-ending search for new ways to take your money – to generate anger, and to make one vote with his or her feet.
Living in an almost as expensive NJ town, I have the same thoughts about moving. Our children are out of state – PA and CA. What keeps me here though, is friends and maybe as much: medical availability. It’s like Amazon – the NY suburbs get same day delivery- we also have same day choice of emergency or hospital care. Point of fact, NJ hospitals are in practice superior to NYC ones (personal experience).
Good points all.
Thanks for this, Dick. I have been a long-time reader and have always appreciated your perspective and comments. Your experience is hard to find and often hard to hear, because as many get older they stop being a voice or you can’t hear them because they don’t have a forum. Or they give up for fear of being seen as “outdated”. Sure, nothing runs or works like it did when it was done, but the perspective is invaluable, like any perspective. Honest, humble, distilled perspective is truly hard to find. You have earned a lot of respect for that. Thank you. On your point here, being about 15 years behind you we are still trying to figure out our next place. I used to give a lot of weight to finances, such as taxes, and I still do to some degree, but it is not the overwhelming factor. Family, friends, quality of life and access to what you like to do are most important. Especially for things you do daily — for those things the benefits add up quickly. Of course if finances are tigh