Where to Retire, 5th: America's Best and Most Affordable Places (Paperback)

~ John Howells (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

When the joints start to ache, the salary dwindles, and freedom is yours at last, it's time to reflect upon where you'd like to spend your retirement years. Your obligations are few and the world is your oyster. If you're approaching those golden years, John Howell's guide to retirement living is a boon. It's not about retirement communities, it's about the towns and cities of the United States--what they offer the senior citizen in terms of recreation, culture, health care, and lifestyle; what to expect from their weather; and how much it costs to live in them. Howells investigates the relative tax burdens of each state, looking at property taxes, sales taxes, and whether each taxes pensions and Social Security. He also ranks the cost of living for housing, groceries, and utilities; provides the daily high and low temperatures; and lists the amounts of rain and snowfall across the seasons. From Georgia's Valdosta (population 40,000 and nicknamed "Azalea City") to Washington's Bellingham (18 miles from Canada, views of the San Juan Islands to the west and Mount Baker to the east), Howells paints portraits of more than 150 communities and their surroundings. Doubling as a guide for exploratory vacations and a pointer for anyone looking for a better place to live, Howells's research answers all the relevant questions. --Stephanie Gold --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Review

"This careful, detailed book should be required reading for any retiree considering moving to a better area. . . . You won't find a better retirement book than this one." --Robert Bruss, nationally syndicated real estate columnist
-- Review

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 384 pages
• Publisher: Globe Pequot; 5th edition (August 1, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0762722029
• ISBN-13: 978-0762722020
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 6.6 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 2.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #835,467 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

  Popular in this category: (What's this?)

  #41 in

  Books > Travel > Specialty Travel > Senior Travel

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

41 of 42 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars This could (should) be a much better book., January 9, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Where to Retire (Paperback)

I have lived in or near several of the places reviewed in this book and find the descriptions to be less than 100% and the weather data to be quite different than I experienced while living there. Since I know the data for these places was less than 'on track', I did not have confidence in the information presented for other areas of the country. I recommend "Retirement Places Rated". It seems to present data that agrees with my experience.

47 of 49 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A solid primer - sorting out the best places, December 16, 2003

By	Allan M. Gathercoal "fdoamerica" (Norcross, GA) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

I took `Where to Retire' with me (along with several good State guides - like Fodor's) when I went on a sixteen day journey through three Southwestern States (Nevada, Arizona & New Mexico) where I was looking for "the place" to relocate and semi-retire. Howells' guide gave me a `leg up' on the destinations that were `definite maybes'. The guide was extremely valuable in leading me to destinations I would not have considered without the guide. (Las Cruces and Ruidoso in New Mexico and Bisbee and Ajo in Arizona).

I found Howell's writing to be friendly and informative. He succinctly describes the best side of each of his selection, but, and I consider this a detraction, seldom does he point out negative aspects or flaws a community, town or city might have.

Sadly, there is no web-page references, appendixes or references that could give you additional information on his locations. He omits information as basic as Chamber of Commerce contact information, or the names of the main newspapers.

Finding a new place to live is a lot like dating - most places leave you wishing for more, a few are provocative enough to warrant placing them on your "maybe list" , and one, or at best two, will tantalize you enough to want to come back for more.

So, if you are at the beginning of your search for a new place to live, then this guide is a great first step. "Where to Retire" will speed up your search and give you a general feel for various places. This guide needs to work in tandem with other guides such as a State, Region or Country guide. Recommended 3.5 stars.

51 of 58 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Almost but not quite, January 21, 2000

By	Nancy (New Jersey) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Where to Retire (Paperback)

I found the information and the slant of this book both useful but it didn't supply enough information. It might be retitled Where men may retire. The descriptions seem to stress activities as golf and fishing, which to my mind are more male activities. I would have liked more extensive information about cultural activities and availabilty of libraries. These are touched on but not in enough detail. The bulk of retirees are women and their needs differ from men and couples. More information on specialized services, such as public transporation,would be desireable. The of attitudes of native residents is touched on but not in depth. My experience with some of these areas has been very negative.

Over all this book is a very good place to start. It deals with areas that are not normally thought of as retirement destinations. Weather, housing prices and taxes are often described. The author also provides addesses for more infomation. Websites would have been helpful.