13 Worst Places to Retire
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Retiree Hot Spot? Not!
If you plan on relocating to live out your golden years in a new locale, you may want to make sure it's not to one of these 13 places. Depending on what's important to you, these destinations could turn your dream into a nightmare.
Click through our gallery to see which places freelance writer Carol Vinzant says seniors may not want to call home.
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Next: Worst Place No. 1More Worst Places:
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Clearwater City, Fla.
Too Many Fellow Seniors
This Tampa Bay area hamlet has the highest percentage of seniors of any U.S. city. This "graying" of Florida in general, has caused many retirees to change their mind and leave, fleeing the bland culture, extreme weather and high real estate and homeowner's insurance prices of Florida.
Next: Worst Place No. 2More Worst Places:
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Austin, Texas
Hard Time Getting a Doctor Who Takes Medicare
The rate Medicare pays doctors is so low that many are refusing to take new Medicare patients. That used to be a problem primarily for rural areas, but now it's spreading to cities. A 2006 Texas Medical Association survey found that only 43 percent of Austin doctors would take new Medicare patients.
Next: Worst Place No. 3More Worst Places:
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Anchorage, Alaska
Fewest Fellow Seniors
If you like to be with people your own age, Alaska may be lonely. The state has only about half the percentage of seniors as the rest of the country. Anchorage is at the bottom of rankings for percentage of residents over 65. It ranked 240 out of 245 cities with at lest 100,000 people. Only 5.5 percent of Anchoragites are seniors.
Next: Worst Place No. 4More Worst Places:
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Bridgeport, Conn.
Highest Taxes
In retirement, income taxes aren't going to matter much. It's the property taxes that are going to kill you. This year Connecticut ranked as having the highest taxes if you consider state, local and federal contributions. In 2003, Bridgeport, a troubled city with some lovely beachfront neighborhoods, ranked as tops in local taxes: 17.7 percent.
Next: Worst Place No. 5More Worst Places:
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Washington, D.C.
Most Poor Seniors
Nearly one in five Washington seniors is poor. In the 2005 American Community Survey, the Census Bureau found that 17.4 percent of those over 65 were living in poverty in the District of Columbia (with a margin of error of 2.4 percent).
Next: Worst Place No. 6More Wost Places:
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Rhode Island
Least Older Men
Ladies of a certain age have a hard enough time finding male companionship. That's because men die younger. In Rhode Island, the odds are even worse: 59 percent of those aged 65 and over are female. On the flip side, if you are looking for female companionship, the odds are in your favor.
Next: Worst Place No. 7More Worst Places:
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Provo, Utah
Most Youthful Population
The median age in Provo, Utah is a mere 22.9 -- the lowest median age of any place with a population of 100,000 or more. You might find it hard to fit in with all those youngsters. Plus, towns like Provo may offer more services geared toward families with small children.
Next: Worst Place No. 8More Worst Places:
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Queens, N.Y.
Violence and the Boulevard of Death
Senior citizens in Queens have had it hard. First there was the Boulevard of Death, a stretch of Queens Boulevard with a long way to cross in a short time. After dozens of deaths, largely of seniors, officials finally gave pedestrians a few more seconds to cross. This spring a crack-addicted mugger targeted the elderly.
Next: Worst Place No. 9More Worst Places:
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Connecticut
Deficient Nursing Homes
About 17 percent of nursing homes in the U.S. have been found to have a serious deficiency -- something that causes actual harm, impairs the patient's ability to function or puts a patient in jeopardy. In Connecticut, however, that percent is a scary 43 percent.
Next: Worst Place No. 10More Worst Places:
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Image Source
Your Kid's House
'King of Queens' may be a funny show, but nobody wants to be the crotchety senior in-law causing trouble for the next generation. According to a 2005 survey, only 2 percent of retirees want to move in with their kids.
Next: Worst Place No. 11More Worst Places:
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Matt York, AP
Green Valley, Ariz.
Trouble in a Sheltered Community
This once idyllic retirement town is now facing a drug violence problem. It lies just 40 miles north of the Mexican border where gangs of bandits known as bajadores carry AK-47s and ambush trucks of smugglers sneaking up from Mexico.
Next: Worst Place No. 12More Worst Places:
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Scott S. Warren, Aurora / Getty Images
Corpus Christi, Texas
Hottest Feeling City
Storms may be scarier, but heat usually causes more American deaths than any kind of weather. And Corpus Christi is the hottest city in the U.S., averaging a heat index of 110 for July and August. At that temperature, sunstroke, heat cramps and heat exhaustion are all likely.
Next: Worst Place No. 13More Worst Places:
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David McNew, Getty Images
Riverside, Calif.
Declining Property Values
Retirees are leaning more heavily on the value of their homes, so communities poised for price declines could be dangerous places to move. The Riverside-San Bernardino area was ranked as the most likely metro area in America to suffer housing price declines over the next two years.
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More on AOL: Hot Senior Living Trends
Don't let the Worst Places to Retire list discourage you! There are plenty of great places to retire. For example, check out these hot trends in retirement living.
· Hot Senior Communities
Next: Ideal Retiree CitiesMore Hot Places:
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More on AOL: Ideal Cities for Retirees
If you are looking for vibrant cultural and education amenities, reasonable health-care costs, a high concentration of doctors per capita and low total crime rate, you'll want to check out Kiplinger's Best Cities for Retirees.
· See Ideal Cities for Retirees
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