Sunset at Naples Beach, Florida. Photo: Susanne Pommer/Shutterstock.com
Florida was ranked the top state in the entire country for places to retire in 2020 by Money-Rates.com back in January. Florida also ranked number one last year for Money-Rates.com, too. It’s not much of a surprise, however. With our great, year-round weather and reasonably affordable rent prices compared to other states, here in Florida we have it made. The sun, sand and surf are not the only things taken into consideration by the finance website when making their ranking decisions.
According to Money-Rates.com, their reasons for ranking the Sunshine State so high are the following:
- Healthcare conditions
Using figures from the Centers for Disease Control on life expectancy at age 65 and available nursing-home capacity, as well as healthcare cost data from the Council for Community and Economic Research (C2ER), the study measured the effectiveness, availability and affordability of healthcare in each state. - Personal security
Based on statistics from the Federal Bureau of Investigation on incidents of violent and property crime in each state, this study measured the risk to your physical safety and your possessions due to crime. - Local economy
Figures on employment from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, on property taxes from the Tax Foundation and on cost of living from C2ER were used to measure the affordability and economic strength of each state. - Weather conditions
Figures on temperature averages and extremes from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) were used to measure how comfortable and consistent each state’s temperatures have been, while precipitation statistics from NOAA were used to measure whether states were particularly drought-prone or experienced heavy amounts of rain or snow. Data from the Universal Ecological Fund were measured relative to the size of each state to determine the frequency of severe weather events. - Popularity with older residents
Finally, to get a bottom-line measure of how popular each state is with older residents, the study considered U.S. Census data on the percentage of each state’s population that is aged 65 or older.
Florida has a higher proportion of people aged 65 or older than any other state, according to Money-Rates.com.
The rate of violent crime in Florida is a little worse than in most states.
There were other winning factors that made Florida stand out on top. When it comes to Florida’s effectiveness and affordability, there is no comparison. As far as healthcare conditions. Money-Rates.com used numbers from the Center for Disease Control (CDC) on life expectancy for those ages 65 and older, plus nursing-home capacity, and overall healthcare cost. When studying availability, Florida ranked quite high across the board.
Personal security and physical safety were taken into account. The local economy was considered, which meant employment stats from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, followed by property tax information. Both were used to measure the affordability of retiring as well as how strong economically each state was. As you can see, Florida came out on top winning in each category.
The weather was also a factor considered. In the grand scheme of things, average temperatures and extremes used from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), as well as data used by the Universal Ecological Fund showed that Florida’s humid and tropical climate was far more appealing than the frigid temperatures year-round up north.
Florida’s overall popularity in the United States was the final component to giving it the best rating for retiring in 2020. Year after year, millions of people from the U.S. and abroad move to the Sunshine State to enjoy the weather, beaches and unique people. Florida ranked high in popularity with older folks based on U.S. Census data.
Once all of the above-mentioned factors were calculated, then sifted through all the data, the answer was clear as the water in a Florida beach — Florida is the best place to retire in the country in 2020.
William is the Managing Editor at FloridaInsider.com. His years of experience in journalism, broadcasting and multimedia include roles as a Writer and Web Producer. He graduated from Florida International University with a Bachelor of Science and Communication.