What are the 3 cheapest retirement cities in the US? Hint: None are in Florida
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While the cost of living is rising across the US, there are still many cities where it’s possible to live large and stay below your means in retirement.
A recent analysis from GoBankingRates ranked the best places to retire in the US, assessing cost of living, accessibility of transportation and healthcare in the 100 largest cities in the country.
Below, we’ll share the top 3 cities to spend your golden years, plus our tips on how to save for your retirement so that you can stretch your hard-earned dollars the farthest.
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The top 3 cheapest cities to retire in
3. Memphis, Tennessee
Livability score: 58
Music fans on the brink of retirement should make a beeline for Memphis. Aside from visits to Graceland and Beale Street, this city’s park system covers nearly 7000 acres, and residents regularly attend Memphis Grizzlies basketball games. If you settle down in the pork barbecue capital of the world, you’ll spend an average of $40,409.28 per year on living expenses and find that 14.14% of the population comprises your fellow older adults.
2. Cleveland, Ohio
Livability score: 59
You’ll spend just $37,697.94 per year to live along the southern shore of Lake Erie, where residents enjoy visiting the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and The Cleveland Museum of Art. Weekend trips to Detroit and hopping over the border into Canada give the 14.98% of seniors living in Cleveland plenty to do. GoBankingRates estimates that residents spend $4,204.70 per year on groceries and $5,820.84 annually on healthcare, both below the national average.
1. Toledo, Ohio
Livability score: 62
Topping the list, Toledo ranks as GoBankingRate’s #1 recommendation for retirement, as the cost of living is 27.8% below the national average. The number of your fellow over-65 residents is a little higher, at 16.22% of the population, and the yearly expenditures come in at only $37,645.80. Enjoying all the same lakeside-living benefits of Cleveland, Toledo is just a stone’s throw from the attractions of Detroit and boasts its own art museum, zoo and botanical gardens.
Read more: Cost-of-living in America is still out of control — use these 3 'real assets' to protect your wealth today, no matter what the US Fed does or says
Prep for a comfy retirement anywhere in the U.S.
No matter where you choose to retire, you’ll need to have plenty of funds stashed away in your accounts to cover your living expenses. It’s never too late to begin saving, so here are a few ways to maximize your contributions to your retirement portfolio.
Invest with the future in mind
If you’re still in the stage of preparing for retirement, you know that an IRA is the traditional route for retirement savings. But did you know that you can open an IRA that’s linked to a commodity with stable returns? American Hartford Gold offers the benefits of a traditional IRA paired with the inflation-resistant properties of gold.
This precious metals dealer offers IRAs and direct purchases of metals and coins. Gold has historically acted as a hedge against inflation, and many find it to be a more secure place to invest their retirement fund.
If you’re not sure where to begin with your retirement savings and investing, the best place to start is with an expert consultant.
To ensure your retirement fund is on the right track— and help you spend less time worrying about it — WiserAdvisor allows you to browse advisor profiles selected based on your needs and book a free consultation with your matches.
You get vetted financial advisors suited to your unique needs with no fees to make sure they’re the right fit..
Staying invested during retirement
If you’re already retired and watching your bank balances drop, you can still grow your funds with smart investment vehicles.
Acorns is a saving and investing app that turns your daily spending into a portfolio. Every time you make a purchase with your credit or debit card, Acorns will automatically round up the amount you spend to the nearest dollar and invest the difference into a diversified portfolio of ETFs.
For those who want a balance of automation and control, Acorns offers a unique blend of both. It combines the ease of automated, diversified portfolios with the option to get more involved by picking individual stocks, giving you the best of both worlds in managing your investments.
If you sign up now, you can receive a $20 sign up bonus to kickstart your investing journey.
Real estate in retirement
No matter where you choose to retire, your portfolio probably includes some investments in real estate. Even if you don’t plan on selling your home to fund your retirement, you can leverage the hot housing market in your favorite major city by investing in residential properties in major U.S. cities.
Cityfunds allows you to invest in properties in places like Denver, Austin, Nashville and Miami, without having to drain your bank account to put a downpayment on a home.
The firm offers a diversified portfolio of owner-occupied homes that you can purchase equity in. Cityfunds secures an interest in the home's future value, and as it appreciates, so does the value of Cityfunds’ equity investment, alongside the homeowner.
So you can invest in the housing market of a city you love for as little as $500.
If you’re more interested in rental and vacation homes, Arrived allows you to invest in shares of these properties without taking on the responsibilities of management or homeownership.
With Arrived, you can browse a curated selection of homes, each vetted for their appreciation and income potential.
Once you find a property you like, simply choose the number of shares you want to buy and start investing in real estate with just $100.
Bulk up your savings
If you need to build an emergency fund or add to your retirement nest egg that you don’t want to subject to the whims of the market, you can consider parking your savings in a short term growth vehicle like a certificate of deposit (CD).
CDs allow your money to grow at a better rate over a set period of time. But if you withdraw the money before the end of the term, you’ll likely face a penalty fee.
With CD Valet – an online CD marketplace – users can shop and compare top certificate of deposit rates from various banks and credit unions nationwide.
Their extensive database shows the most competitive rates without bias, with daily rate updates and earnings calculators which give consumers an array of free tools to help them find the right CD to meet their savings goals.
You can also check out Moneywise's Best High Yield Savings Accounts of 2024 to find some savvy savings options that earn you more than the national average of 0.4% APY. — and make checking your bank balance a little more exciting.
Cut down your monthly costs
No matter where you live, rising costs are sure to eat into the value of your retirement fund. Whether you’re pre- or post-retirement, you can find savings to add to that fund by shopping around for better rates on your home and auto insurance.
With OfficialHomeInsurance, you can find the lowest rates on your home insurance for free.
In under 2 minutes, you can enter your info and browse for low-cost offers in your area, from a list of over 200 reputable insurance companies.
It’s easy and convenient — Simply fill in a bit of information and quickly find the coverage you need. You could save up to $482 a year!
It’s just as quick and easy to find out whether your auto insurance is optimized for coverage and expense. OfficialCarInsurance helps you instantly sort through the best policies from car insurance providers in your area, including trusted names like Progressive, GEICO and Allstate. With rates as low as $29 per month, you can find coverage that suits your needs and potentially saves you hundreds of dollars per year.
To get started, fill in your information and OfficialCarInsurance will provide a list of the top insurers in your area. You’re closer than ever to maximizing your savings for retirement!
This article provides information only and should not be construed as advice. It is provided without warranty of any kind.
