Best Places to Retire

[wade moore]

http://money.cnn.com/magazines/moneymag/bpretire/2006/index.html?cnn=yes

Top 5:

1. Walla Walla, WA
2. St. Simons Island, GA
3. Prescott, AZ
4. Holland, MI
5. Williamsburg, VA


So, we come in 5th. How weird is that for a College Town? There was some thread recently where I discussed this odd dynamic here, and this just re-asserts that point. It is a college town/retirement community... When I go to Football games you have a large student section and then a large section of retiree season ticket holders. Very strange.

[k0ruptr]

hawaii sucks.

makes sense to me...

[JonInMiddleGA]

How weird is that for a College Town?

Didn't strike me odd at all ... since Athens, GA has made the same sort of ranking on similar lists.

College towns are becoming the hot choice for retirement locations because, as one expert put it (http://www.retirementliving.com/RLletterarchive_1105.html) "They tend to have cheap entertainment and food plus cultural events because there is a lot of cultural activity," she said. "A college town usually means there will be a major teaching hospital. We also found that low crime rates tend to be associated with college towns."

[King of New York]

The article ignores the fact that the population of the "Greater Williamsburg Area" has to be around 100,000 now, not the 11,000 who live in the city limits.

More and more college towns are going to become like Williamsburg. Retirees are increasingly attracted to college towns because there is a fair amount of cultural activity there, at a fraction of the price that you'd pay in a major urban center.

I always thought it was all the people in powdered wigs that made Williamsburg peculiar.

[King of New York]

Dammit, JImGA, your internet connection is faster than mine.

[JonInMiddleGA]

Dammit, JImGA, your internet connection is faster than mine.

And I'm even on an old spare computer right now, with the modem two floors away. Just wait'll I get my normal stuff set up :)

[JeeberD]

My parents just retired to the outskirts of Denton, TX...a college town.

[oykib]

I met a guy on a plane back to the Far East once who swore by his retirement community in Thailand.

Lots of Japanese people like to retire and move to The Philippines.

[wade moore]

The article ignores the fact that the population of the "Greater Williamsburg Area" has to be around 100,000 now, not the 11,000 who live in the city limits.

More and more college towns are going to become like Williamsburg. Retirees are increasingly attracted to college towns because there is a fair amount of cultural activity there, at a fraction of the price that you'd pay in a major urban center.

I always thought it was all the people in powdered wigs that made Williamsburg peculiar.

Didn't notice the population part. I should have, especially considering I really live in the "Greater Williamsburg Area" since I live in James City County. As you're mentioning, very few people who live in what we call "Williamsburg" live in the "City of Williamsburg"

Anyway, I wish I knew a way to get good population numbers, cause I'd love to know what they are.


You and JiMG make great points about why a college town makes sense for retirees, never thought of it that way. Of course, you also throw in that we're a tourist town and we have all kinds of great cliques we fit into.

[wade moore]

The article ignores the fact that the population of the "Greater Williamsburg Area" has to be around 100,000 now, not the 11,000 who live in the city limits.

I just checked, and I don't think it's 100k.

James City County is 48k. Greater Williamsburg Area is pretty much the City of Williamsburg and parts of James City County. It does include a few parts of York County, which for some reason on http://www.city-data.com/countyDir.html it stops at counties that start with Ya, so I can't check the population there.

So i'd say the toal population is around 75k.

But, the point still stands.