Deciding Where to Retire: Spousal Conflicts

Do you anticipate conflicts with your spouse when deciding where to retire? Do you already have differences of opinion? Has it caused you to push the “where should we retire?” question to the background? The Wall Street Journal published an interesting article this past week on this very subject.  Read more

Is Now a Good Time to Buy a Retirement Home?

With real estate values depressed, some boomers may be thinking that this is a good time to buy a retirement home. I think there is a lot of logic to that plan, if executed correctly. Read more

Beware of Tougher Mortgage Lending Requirements for Condos

Condominiums have a lot of appeal to some retirees and baby boomers looking to downsize. We are brand new condo owners ourselves. I’m not going to review in this post all of the potential benefits and drawbacks of condominium living, because we are still learning. So far, so good for us. However, other potential condo buyers out there need to be aware of new mortgage lending standards being applied.

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Retire in One of America’s Most Affordable Cities

Forbes likes to publish rankings of places and things based on economic factors. Some are quite helpful to potential retirees and down-sizers, including a recent list of America’s Most Affordable Cities. Read more

The Worst States for Retirement

I enjoy reading lists that rank things of interest to me. You can find many lists that rank locations based on different criteria, including the somewhat nebulous criteria of “retirement.” Read more

Downsizing to a Condo – The Move

Things have been quiet this week at Go To Retirement.  We took another step on our downsizing path. We  drove a U-Haul truck up to the Long Branch Lakes condo with some furniture, closed on the sale, and then have been working hard to settle in. Moving is not a fun process but the excitement of trying life in a brand-new 1500 sq.ft. condo took over. Read more

Cheap Places to Retire – A Foreigner’s Perspective

Lots is being written here in the U.S. about inexpensive retirement locations in foreign countries. Sometimes it is more interesting to read the commentary of those outside the U.S. about retiring in other countries, including the U.S.  The London Daily Telegraph has done just that. Read more

Downsizing: Should You Rent or Buy?

This is an interesting time for baby boomers contemplating downsizing and perhaps relocating to an area having a lower cost of living. Home prices have fallen in general due to difficult economic conditions. Foreclosures and short sales have generated bargains galore in many areas and including the vacation home market. Mortgage rates are at all time lows, although we should strive to avoid mortgages altogether as we prepare for retirement. Still, there is a serious question to be asked as part of the downsizing issue: Rent or buy?

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City Life and Urban Retirement

I have no doubt that there are many retirees living in high density urban areas. Most of them probably lived and worked there long before retirement, so they just stayed to enjoy what they were used to. The question I have is whether it makes sense for a baby boomer to move into a large city as a specific retirement destination. A recent article in Forbes discusses that very issue and identifies some cities where that might make sense.

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Reasons Downsizing Makes Sense

I have written often about downsizing, including our own plans for condo living. Saving $1000 or more on monthly living expenses (mortgage, taxes, insurance, utilities, maintenance, etc.) is the equivalent of adding $300,000 or more of income-generating assets to your retirement nest egg.

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