Move over Florida! Iowa is ranked the best place to retire - while Alaska, New York and California come out worst

Iowa is a surprise, Florida losing the spot is not a surprise. The comments about AK, CA, and NY, no surprise there. IMO NY and CA were neck and neck for years as being the worst, but I'd give the title to CA for being worse than NY now. About the only thing CA has over NY is the weather in Southern CA, that's about it.
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We toured NY State by far a few years back and fell in love with it. Like any state, it’s the large urban centers that ruin it for everyone. If not for Chicago, IL isn’t a bad place, having grown up there.

Deadwood, there is a trail ride coming up in October at the Oak Ridge motocross track in the Tama, IA area. It was a blast last year, though a tad too muddy for me. UTV’s are welcome as well and you pay to get in. Most trails in Iowa are pay to play.

I also cruise the State Parks a lot. Panel State Park in Winterset, IA in one of the pictures below. Oak Ridge is the other two pictures.

Vice Grip Garage just drove an old pickup and camper across Iowa in his last video. He showcases it well.
 

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Cujet said:
That's the thing with location. I like the beach, the ocean, the mountains, the canyons, the rapids, the everglades, the islands.

But when it comes to Iowa, I have not found a dramatic physical feature of any sort. relatively flat, open and well, bland.
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You move to Iowa for the pork tenderloin sandwiches.....
 
Rating a "state" in general is just pointless IMO. I can happily retire in Los Altos but I would be sad in Compton. Whoever put WV as better than CA, I'm not sure what is his or her agenda, and whether retiring in a town losing population due to joblessness and drug problems are really that good for your moral.

The best place to be when you retire is always be close to your family, that's all I'm going to say.
 
PandaBear said:
Rating a "state" in general is just pointless IMO. I can happily retire in Los Altos but I would be sad in Compton. Whoever put WV as better than CA, I'm not sure what is his or her agenda, and whether retiring in a town losing population due to joblessness and drug problems are really that good for your moral.

The best place to be when you retire is always be close to your family, that's all I'm going to say.
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They probably ate at Minard's Spaghetti Inn which definitely puts WV ahead. Same family around 90 years. Interesting story. Delicious meals.
 
Cujet said:
That's the thing with location. I like the beach, the ocean, the mountains, the canyons, the rapids, the everglades, the islands.

But when it comes to Iowa, I have not found a dramatic physical feature of any sort. relatively flat, open and well, bland.
Click to expand...

In generalities, yes, Iowa is flat in some portions of the state. However, there are parts with significant hills like near the Mississippi River in Dubuque for example.
 
Jdeere562 said:
Not all of Iowa is flat and boring. I live in the Loess Hills. Very pretty part of the State They run south into MO.
And yes, the pork tenderloins are great. We have a few "porky women" as well. ;)

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That’s exactly what I was going to say: Loess Hills. The NE part of the state is also very hilly and forested, with great rock outcroppings. You have to be into the outdoors to like that stuff, I suppose

Car and old tractor buffs have a plethora of museums to visit. There are other oddities in IA as well that are worth a look.

As a Jeep guy it’s tough, as there aren’t many options unless you are in a club, but I get some good time in here or there. The classic car scene is huge.

The point about retiring near family is the key though. We stay here if our kids stay here. They move, we decide if we need to based on the distance between them all.
 
demarpaint said:
Iowa is a surprise, Florida losing the spot is not a surprise. The comments about AK, CA, and NY, no surprise there. IMO NY and CA were neck and neck for years as being the worst, but I'd give the title to CA for being worse than NY now. About the only thing CA has over NY is the weather in Southern CA, that's about it.
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The weather is a huge factor. Cali has a healthier lifestyle, too.
 
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