Disagree on Retiring in Florida (relocate, social security, friends, years)
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I am originally from California [born in Modesto, graduated from Merced High School, attended college in Fresno]. I could never envision retiring there.
Instead we migrated to Maine. We have been to Florida many times. Neither of us liked it.
I would not want to live in any state that taxed my pension. My pension is not very much to begin with, handing a third of it to the state seems crazy to me.
Maine suits us much better
This state has the highest average age of its residents, the highest percentage of retirees, and it is mostly very rural. We live in a town of 235 people.
I am originally from California [born in Modesto, graduated from Merced High School, attended college in Fresno]. I could never envision retiring there.
Instead we migrated to Maine. We have been to Florida many times. Neither of us liked it.
I would not want to live in any state that taxed my pension. My pension is not very much to begin with, handing a third of it to the state seems crazy to me.
Maine suits us much better
This state has the highest average age of its residents, the highest percentage of retirees, and it is mostly very rural. We live in a town of 235 people.
so are you saying that the california state income tax is 33%??
Found this and highest it has is 13% if you make more than a million.
1% for taxable income up to $8,544
2% for taxable income between $8,545 and $20,255
4% for taxable income between $20,256 and $31,969
6% for taxable income between $31,970 and $44,377
8% for taxable income between $44,378 and $56,085
9.3% for taxable income between $56,086 and $286,492
10.3% for taxable income between $286,493 and $343,788
11.3% for taxable income between $343,789 and $572,980
12.3% for taxable income between $572,981 and $999,999
13.3% for taxable income of $1,000,000 or more
I can’t imagine living in Florida. Hot, humid, if you like being outside, summers in Florida are brutal. Couldn’t stand even visiting there. Also just because your children live there now doesnt mean they will in 5 yrs or so. People move around. So then what would you do? I suggest you stay where you are and go visit your children a couple months of the year, split it up. A month here, a month there. Might keep your husband happy and you can see the kids but with breaks built in. Even adult kids have their own lives. Grandchildren too. And while its nice to see Grammy, sometimes visits can last too long.
life goes on.
I too would balk at exchanging CA weather for humidity, bugs & hurricanes. How close to have neighbors is more debatable & may change as years pass; understand not being happy about taxes but if you've ever had to deal with any underfunded state agency or service in FL that's almost as miserable as the weather.
What are the "crazy rules in CA" that are bothering you?
So a little more history. Husband is 64 and still has a couple more years in the aerospace industry. I retired at 66 after 23 years in the aerospace industry. All 3 kids are in the aerospace industry and the 2 daughters moved for a nice promotion in their career fields. My son is in Palmdale with the same aerospace company. They have 2 college-age boys and a 6 year old daughter. My DIL's mother is a germaphobe, helicopter mom and we were not ever allowed to babysit any of the grands. We keep to birthdays, recitals, and some holidays. On the other hand, I am very close to my daughters. Helped with oldest granddaughter while my daughter got her Masters. Youngest daughter is newly-married and very career minded. I doubt that they will have children. So no overreaching with any of my kids/grands.
I am surprised that so many of you are familiar with Tehachapi, CA. It really is "on the edge of Paradise" as the sign coming into town says. Another consideration are the differences in my husband and my personality. He is more on the quiet side, like to bike and fish. Would definitely want a boat if we moved to FL. I am in the middle of intro/extrovert. When in FL, my oldest daughter and I love to go shelling. Walking and jogging on the causeway, some shopping with my youngest daughter is fun. We all miss holidays and birthdays together and the girls routinely text "Miss you. Wish you were here".
Perhaps splitting time in both CA and FL would work best. We have 2 Papillons that require a schedule and daily exercise. My husband loves them, but does pay as much attention as is needed to ensure that they are taken care of properly. We just scheduled 2 weeks in FL at Christmas, so during that time we will talk with a realtor. Bottom-line, even with a packed motorhome ready to leave in case of a hurricane evacuation, do we really want to be concerned every year when hurricane season comes around? Too old to worry about rebuilding at our ages.
Even adult kids have their own lives. Grandchildren too. And while its nice to see Grammy, sometimes visits can last too long.
life goes on.
There is a balance to be maintained.
You don't want to be emotional dependent on your adult children. They should not to take the place of your own friends, activities and hobbies.
In theory, I would like to live near grandchildren (when I have them). However, some adult children expect full time, always available babysitting. My mother-in-law took my divorced sister-in-law kid for 48 hours every single weekend. Not good either.
We moved from ohio to az to be near our son and grandchildren. We knew full well that down the road they may get a job elsewhere but then we were not thinking our current location was our final stop either. It’s been three years and we don’t regret it one bit. Funny thing is we are the ones that are thinking of moving lol! For now though we are needed as grandparents as our son and his wife struggle with three small children under 4, working from home, and the stress of being stuck indoors and isolated. The summer this year has been brutal in az with limited places to go, museums, libraries, theatres shut
I agree with the others. Maybe rent a couple of months in Florida and get a feel of how you will handle the humidity and also if the quality of life is going to be better for both you and your husband.
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