3 Reasons You Don’t Want To Retire in Los Angeles
Written by
T. Woods
Edited by
Zuri Anderson
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Earlier this year, the data collection agency SmartAsset noted that retirees are fleeing from California and New York more than any other states in America due to a confluence of multiple factors.
Specifically, Los Angeles is bleeding retirees at a rate of 9,280 people per year, as it is one of the least retirement-friendly cities in the country. Why?
Housing Costs
Likely the primary reason the City of Angels makes retirement nearly impossible is the extraordinarily high cost of living. Residents of every age can find rental costs in LA a struggle, but they can be extraordinarily strenuous on folks living on a fixed income or retirement budget.
As reported by Apartments.com, “housing prices are some of the highest in the nation” in Los Angeles, with the median home value of LA County topping off at $810,311.
Renting isn’t much easier, with a median monthly rental price of $2,966. Trying to make monthly rent or mortgage payments on a fixed retirement budget in Los Angeles can be next to impossible.
Traffic and Lack of Reliable Public Transportation
Apartments.com also noted that Los Angeles has the worst traffic in America, with drivers spending, on average, 81 hours a year stuck on the freeway.
Moreover, while LA has a bus and rail systems, neither are exactly famous for their efficiency or reliability, making affordable or easy transportation throughout the city almost as impossible as the cost of living.
The ‘Fabulous’ Factor
A condition rather unique to Los Angeles, as described by Financial Planner LA, is the “fabulous factor” — the inclination to live the high life.
LA is known somewhat for a ritzy culture of high living, and residents can sometimes feel the lure of the glitzy life — “clothing, Botox, food, drinks at the Mondrian all add up,” as they put it.
Add to that the fact that nearly everything in Los Angeles is more expensive than elsewhere in the country, and you’ve got a recipe for draining your retirement savings before you know it.
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