10 Affordable Places to Retire

I'm surprised a perennial fave I've seen in so many other magazines was left out on this list... Augusta, GA/SC. Small-to-midsize metro area (200k city, 500k metro) straddling the GA/SC state line, about 2 hours east of Atlanta and 90 minutes north of Savannah. Most well known for being the nation's professional golf capital (due to the National golf course in Augusta and the PGA's annual Master's Tournament held there).

Pros: Although the National course is members-only and unlikely to ever accept any actual Augusta residents, it has spurned a culture of golf, golf, golf, and more golf, with almost every decent residential subdivision having its own course for residents, along with the fact that area residents have access to some of the top public golf courses around. Cheap to live in ($200k gets you a *very* nice house... in a neighborhood with a good golf club!). Unhurried, very Southern pace of life and personality -- this is NOT Atlanta. Dry summers compared to the rest of the South. Nestled in hundreds of square miles of beautiful, rolling evergreen pine hills. Large immigrant populations from all over Asia in particular ensure some semblance of international culture in the city. Retirees upset they couldn't afford Florida can still grow full-size palm trees in their yards as Augusta rarely sees the cold snaps that Atlanta does and has weather almost as frost-proof as that of the Sunshine State.

Cons:

City nickname: DISgusta (I lived there for 4 years and concur somewhat). Apparently the pine trees didn't do enough to mask a rapidly decaying urban core -- nor is the Augusta area home to any major universities; all this is enough to force culture vultures to visit Athens or Savannah (both 90 minutes away) to get their fill of arts and such. Augusta's a place to relax, and not a buzzing, vibrant urban core like Atlanta or a major tourist Mecca like Savannah (save for the week the Master's tournament is held -- which, BTW, is a great time for residents to skip town!!!). Summers, although mercifully un-humid for the South, are among the hottest in the nation. Small but definite probability the city will burn to the ground in a late-spring pine forest fire someday (the nearby town of Waycross was about 500 feet from seeing that exact same fate in 2007).

Verdict: It's a good place to consider if you don't mind the heat (doubt many retirees will!) or lack of culture.

Andy K. of IN 3:19PM July 05, 2011

I grew up in Texas and recently left Honolulu heading back to the mainland. Hawaii is great the first three months, but once you head out of the high dollar tourist area you are met with angry and protesting locals. They hate America still after 50 years, and they extremely hate mainlanders and military. They do love your money however. Milk is nearly $10 a gallon there and gas close to $5 a gallon.

Tallahassee, Florida is nice but the homes are far too priced for the quality.

Amarillo, San Antonio, Dallas/Fort Worth areas, Austin are the best cities in Texas. Great quality home building and at very low prices.

Housing cost for 3BRD/2BTH 1600 sq feet home newly built

Honolulu - $425,000 and that does not include the land

Tallahassee- $220,000

San Antonio/DFW/SA/Austin- $170,000-$190,000

Amarillo- $150,000-170,000

Texas is cheaper by far, easy to Travel, great roads, good people, good food, and great culture.

Brian of FL 4:44PM December 25, 2010

if you are planing on retireing in florida you better have a pocket full of money and the people in florida are the most ignorant i have ever had any contac with thank you

john a smith of FL 9:54AM July 12, 2010

Older folks are leaving here in droves because of the obscene property taxes. The average $100,000 house here carries a tax burden of $5,000. Taxes go up every year. It's truly a tax hell. Stay away...

Edna Crabapple of PA 6:57PM March 13, 2010