Retirees Who Relocate Often Opt
For Homes in Metropolitan Areas

Americans might envision the ideal retirement as involving a move to a small, slow-moving town in a warm climate, but most retirees don't end up relocating after all.

In fact, even among those who do make a move, most usually choose to live in a major metropolitan center, loath to give up the cultural attractions and other conveniences that are hard to find in more placid settings.

"We have our image of people retiring and they move," said Elinor Ginzler, director for livable communities at AARP.

"That's the national myth. The reality is ... most people don't move," she said. "Community is incredibly important to our older citizens. They feel connected to their community."

A quieter part of a major metropolitan area anchored by a large city, often in a warmer climate, is a popular relocating-retiree choice.

"Generally, people are moving from metropolitan counties where there are dense populations to other metropolitan counties that are less dense," said Ron Manheimer, director of the University of North Carolina's Center for Creative Retirement in Asheville, N.C.

Seventy-one percent of people age 60 and over who have relocated to another state in the five years leading up to the 2000 Census settled in metropolitan counties, Manheimer said, citing statistics from a forthcoming book that he edited: the second edition of "Retirement Migration in America," by Charles Longino.

These days, the county's top county for new retirees is Maricopa County, Ariz., which includes Phoenix. In that five-year period, almost 69,000 people 60 and over settled there.

"People want all the amenities of the big city; they just don't want to live in it," Manheimer said, noting that the availability of shopping, major airports, cultural attractions and medical services figure into the decision on where to relocate.

Going to the sun

It's not surprising that an Arizona county would top the list: Retirees who do relocate often seek warmer climes. Of those 60 and older who moved to a new state in the five years before the turn of the millennium, the top 15 counties nationwide in terms of net migration of those older folks all were in Florida, Arizona and Nevada, according to Longino, also a professor of gerontology at Wake Forest University, in Winston-Salem, N.C.

Other retirees choose to go back to their hometowns. In 2000, 17% of Americans over age 60 who had moved across state lines in the previous five years had moved back to their earlier hometowns.

Still, most retirees don't move. Over the five-year span, 76.1% of those 60 and older stayed put. Of the rest, 18.5% moved within their states, 4.6% moved to other states, and 0.8% moved abroad.

"Some people think everyone moves in retirement. The vast, vast majority stay put," Manheimer said. "They have their friends and families, a familiar environment and their favorite places, or they may not be able to afford moving."

Will baby boomers change that? Some surveys find a majority of boomers hope to stay in their homes for as long as possible, while other research shows boomers planning to move when they retire.

An AARP survey in 2005 found 89% of people aged 50 or older hoped to stay in their current homes as long as possible.

But a poll that year by Harris Interactive for Pulte Homes, the house builder, found 59% of respondents aged 41 to 49 planning to move to a new home upon retirement, with 45% of that group expecting to move out of state. Still, whether their desires will be borne out is uncertain.

On the verge

Is your own retirement imminent? Manheimer, who runs an annual workshop to help retirees sift through relocation issues, said questions about new locations require careful consideration. Visit the center's Web site.

"It's not just a matter of moving. It's all kinds of expectations about starting over a new life, making new friends, getting re-energized, getting into new things they've never done before. There's that, and what are they leaving behind?" he said.

To help ensure you make a relocation decision that's right for you, ask yourself the following questions:

• If you want to continue working in some capacity, are jobs available in your desired location?
• What are the social services and emergency services like?
• Are you going to be welcomed, or will it be hard to meet people?
• What's it like to be single there? Is this a couples' town?

Retirees often forget to explore considerations that initially seem minor, Manheimer reported. For instance, those with severe pollen allergies might not enjoy a place like western North Carolina, which has a large variety of trees.

The best way to answer many questions, including those you wouldn't have thought to ask, is to rent an apartment and live there, Manheimer said.

"Go and spend a period of time, usually picking the worst season and maybe overlapping with a nice season. See it in its worst time. Learn the area, and get to know people."

If you can't afford the time or expense of moving there temporarily, go visit, Manheimer said.

"People visit the place as tourists and they poke around. They talk to people in stores and talk to people they meet and try to get a sense of 'Are people friendly?' "

Email your comments to rjeditor@dowjones.com.