12 brain-smart places to retire - BenefitsPro

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Where are the most stimulating locales for retirement? Can you get good health care too? What about no taxes? 

No place is perfect, but Kiplinger has found some good ones.  

In the slides that follow, you’ll find -- in no particular order -- 12 cities it says present some great opportunities for those who want to keep their brains young and sharp in retirement.

12. St. Augustine, Florida.

Population: 14,576 │ Median home price: $343,000 │ 5-star hospital: Mayo Clinic (Jacksonville, Florida) │ College perk: Low-cost continuing-education courses on everything from digital marketing to belly dancing

Not only is higher ed available to retirees here, but don’t forget all the beaches, history (as the oldest city in the U.S., St. Augustine was founded in 1573) and golf available in the area. Flagler College also provides retirees with access to free lectures, plays, musicals, concerts and art exhibitions. 

And no state income, estate, or inheritance tax.

11. Savannah, Georgia.

Population: 145,862 │ Median home price: $225,000 │ 4-star hospital: Effingham Health System (Springfield, Georgia) │ College perk: You can buy the work of up-and-coming artists and designers at the Savannah College of Art and Design’s retail store

The private Savannah College of Art and Design offers the annual Savannah Film Festival, while Savannah State University and the Armstrong Campus of Georgia Southern University are both public institutions that offer free tuition for residents age 62 and older.

For history, Savannah, founded in 1733, has one of the largest National Historic Landmark Districts—and the state is tax friendly for retirees.

10. Richmond, Virginia.

Population: 228,783 │ Median home price: $258,000 │ 5-star hospital: Bon Secours Memorial Regional Medical Center (Mechanicsburg, Virginia) │ College perk: Retirees can join Virginia Commonwealth University’s Commonwealth Society for short courses, lecture series and travel opportunities

Not just Virginia Commonwealth University, a state university, but also the University of Richmond, a private school, and Virginia Union University, a private, historically black university are located here.

There’s also the University of Richmond’s Modlin Center for the Arts, which attracts retirees with programming that includes music, dance, theater, visual arts, live broadcasts, lectures and more. And Virginia is also tax friendly for retirees.

9. Swarthmore, Pennsylvania.

Population: 6,401 │ Median home price: $237,000 │ 4-star hospital: Penn Presbyterian Medical Center (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania) │ College perk: Residents have access to all of Swarthmore College’s libraries with a local library card

Walkable, and with a designated arboretum, the town is just 20 minutes from Philadelphia by train, where access can be had to all sorts of restaurants, museums and theaters—as well as being tax friendly to retirees.

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8. Hanover, New Hampshire.

Population: 11,500 │ Median home price: $265,000 │ 4-star hospital: Alice Peck Day Memorial Hospital │ College perk: Active retirees can work out at the campus gymnasium through Dartmouth’s Fitness and Lifestyle Improvement Program

Home to the Ivy League’s Dartmouth College, Hanover also offers concerts and performing arts events at the Hopkins Center for the Arts—known as The Hop—as well as sporting events, especially ice hockey. 

Not only do retirees get favorable tax treatment, but there’s no sales tax.

7. Evanston, Illinois.

Population: 74,106 │ Median home price: $433,000 │ 4-star hospital: NorthShore University HealthSystem Evanston Hospital │ College perk: Lectures and classes through the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute

Evanston is home to Northwestern University, but also boasts classes, architecture, theater and music, as well as being known as the “City of Churches.” And there are tax breaks for retirees to counter some of its other taxes.

6. Fayetteville, Arkansas.

Population: 86,751 │ Median home price: $230,000 │ 4-star hospital: Mercy Hospital Northwest Arkansas (Rogers, Arkansas) │ College perk: Residents age 60 and older can take classes at the University of Arkansas, tuition free

While Social Security isn’t taxed, and up to $6,000 of retirement income is also tax free, other taxes will take their toll.

5. Flagstaff, Arizona.

Population: 73,964 │ Median home price: $362,000 │ 5-star hospital: Flagstaff Medical Center │ College perk: Northern Arizona University works with retiree volunteers to partner with the city’s dozens of nonprofits

Northern Arizona University offers events year-round that are open to the public, including free summer seminars, symphony concerts with reduced admission for seniors and community-welcome events. 

There are also tax breaks for retirees.

4. Claremont, California.

Population: 36,478 │ Median home price: $719,000 │ 5-star hospitals: Chino Valley Medical Center, Glendora Community Hospital │ College perk: Claremont Avenues for Lifelong Learning, which allows people age 60 or older to audit college courses at seven colleges for free

Seven colleges—Claremont McKenna College, Claremont Graduate University, Harvey Mudd College, Keck Graduate Institute, Pitzer College, Pomona College and Scripps College—sponsor educational, cultural and sporting events.

Eight times a year, the colleges publish and distribute a calendar of events open to the public, including live performances, lectures, art shows and more, most free or low cost. Parks and trains offer different types of escape, and tax breaks for seniors help.

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3. Olympia, Washington.

Population: 52,555 │ Median home price: $345,000 │ 4-star hospital: St. Anthony Hospital (Gig Harbor, Washington) │ College perk: Evergreen College offers free classes for retirees 60 and older

Coffee, wine, beer and cider have their own “trails” here, and the Olympia Film Society showcases independent and classic films at the historic Capitol Theater—and then there’s an Arts Walk, too. 

And don’t forget that Washington has no income tax.

2. Oberlin, Ohio.

Population: 8,312 │ Median home price: $154,000 │ 4-star hospital: University Hospitals Elyria Medical Center (Elyria, Ohio) │ College perk: Oberlin residents can audition to perform with Oberlin College’s Arts and Sciences Orchestra

Not only can all Oberlin residents age 65 and older audit classes for free at the college, many concerts and recitals also offer free admission.

At Lorain County Community College’s Center for LifeLong Learning, anyone 50 and up can attend lectures on art history, personal fitness and music for a fee that ranges from $5 to upward of $100. Retirees also benefit from some tax breaks.

1. Waterville, Maine.

Population: 16,646 │ Median home price: $147,000 │ 4-star hospital: Northern Light Inland Hospital │ College perk: Amateur musicians, including retirees, can audition for the Colby Symphony Orchestra and Wind Ensemble

Retirees can visit the Colby College Museum of Art for free, and there’s golf and skiing for the more athletically inclined. 

There are also retiree tax breaks.

Your job keeps your brain active. So when you retire, you might seek a place that offers stimulation, so that you don’t get bored. But you also have to be able to afford to live there. And, if you’re a benefits professional, you work in an industry that focuses a lot on health care, so you might also be expecting a place that provides access to good medical care.

Kiplinger looked into the most stimulating locales for retirees, then added in those other factors. It came up with 12 that it says not only are moderately affordable but also provide residents with colleges and universities that can not only provide higher education but also access to such outside activities as concerts, lectures and even sporting events.

But it didn’t forget about the issue of access to health care. As a result, each of the cities listed below also has at least one hospital nearby that was rated by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services as worthy of four or five stars—their highest ratings.

In addition, each of these cities is located in a state that exempts all, or at least a part, of retirement income from taxes—a nice perk that can help with affordability.

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