5 Things To Know Before Retiring in These Southern States

Commitment to Our Readers
GOBankingRates' editorial team is committed to bringing you unbiased reviews and information. We use data-driven methodologies to evaluate financial products and services - our reviews and ratings are not influenced by advertisers. You can read more about our editorial guidelines and our products and services review methodology.
20 Years
Helping You Live Richer
Reviewed
by Experts
Trusted by
Millions of Readers
The Sunny South has long been a popular retirement destination for Americans because of its warm climate and affordable costs, at least for folks from the colder and pricier parts of the country. That still holds true today. If anything, the South has become even more popular among retirement-age Americans in recent years.
Eight southern states ranked in the Top 10 in terms of net inflow of people ages 60 and over from out of state, according to a SmartAsset analysis of U.S. Census Bureau data. The only outliers were Arizona and Nevada. Here are those rankings based on net movement of seniors moving in vs moving out:
- Florida: 77,290
- Arizona: 23,515
- South Carolina: 20,895
- Texas: 18,742
- North Carolina: 11,339
- Georgia: 10,235
- Alabama: 8,593
- Tennessee: 8,329
- Nevada: 6,091
- Kentucky: 5,878
If you’re considering retiring in the South, it helps to know what to expect in terms of important considerations such as living costs, taxes and crime.
To gauge these and other factors, a GOBankingRates study looked at data from the Missouri Economic and Research Information Center, Zillow Home Value Index, U.S. Census American Community Survey, FBI Crime Data Explorer and the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Consumer Expenditure Survey.
Among its findings: If you value low costs of living in the South, you should retire in Mississippi or West Virginia rather than Florida or Virginia. If violent crime is a big concern, you should avoid retiring in South Carolina or Louisiana and instead settle in Kentucky.
Here are five things to know before retiring in these Southern states, per GBR data:
Alabama
- Average monthly cost of living: $3,075
- Average monthly mortgage cost: $1,342
- Median effective property tax rate: 0.41%
- Violent crime rate per 1,000 people: 3.31
- Property crime rate per 1,000 people: 20.0
Arkansas
- Average monthly cost of living: $2,916
- Average monthly mortgage cost: $1,232
- Median effective property tax rate: 0.62%
- Violent crime rate per 1,000 people: 4.97
- Property crime rate per 1,000 people: 19.58
Florida
- Average monthly cost of living: $4,353
- Average monthly mortgage cost: $2,446
- Median effective property tax rate: 0.86%
- Violent crime rate per 1,000 people: 3.47
- Property crime rate per 1,000 people: 19.23
Georgia
- Average monthly cost of living: $3,788
- Average monthly mortgage cost: $1,972
- Median effective property tax rate: 0.90%
- Violent crime rate per 1,000 people: 3.38
- Property crime rate per 1,000 people: 20.40
Kentucky
- Average monthly cost of living: $3,080
- Average monthly mortgage cost: $1,243
- Median effective property tax rate: 0.85%
- Violent crime rate per 1,000 people: 0.95
- Property crime rate per 1,000 people: 10.93%
Louisiana
- Average monthly cost of living: $2,919
- Average monthly mortgage cost: $1,201
- Median effective property tax rate: 0.56%
- Violent crime rate per 1,000 people: 6.28
- Property crime rate per 1,000 people: 25.45
Mississippi
- Average monthly cost of living: $2,837
- Average monthly mortgage cost: $1,067
- Median effective property tax rate: 0.79%
- Violent crime rate per 1,000 people: 3.02
- Property crime rate per 1,000 people: 20.21%
North Carolina
- Average monthly cost of living: $3,844
- Average monthly mortgage cost: $1,976
- Median effective property tax rate: 0.80%
- Violent crime rate per 1,000 people: 4.18
- Property crime rate per 1,000 people: 27.19
South Carolina
- Average monthly cost of living: $3,608
- Average monthly mortgage cost: $1,773
- Median effective property tax rate: 0.56%
- Violent crime rate per 1,000 people: 6.32
- Property crime rate per 1,000 people: 31.65
Tennessee
- Average monthly cost of living: $3,602
- Average monthly mortgage cost: $1,903
- Median effective property tax rate: 0.66%
- Violent crime rate per 1,000 people: 4.21
- Property crime rate per 1,000 people: 18.59
Texas
- Average monthly cost of living: $3,615
- Average monthly mortgage cost: $1,814
- Median effective property tax rate: 1.74%
- Violent crime rate per 1,000 people: 2.76
- Property crime rate per 1,000 people: 16.95
Virginia
- Average monthly cost of living: $4,205
- Average monthly mortgage cost: $2,356
- Median effective property tax rate: 0.82%
- Violent crime rate per 1,000 people: 2.46
- Property crime rate per 1,000 people: 20.52
West Virginia
- Average monthly cost of living: $2,804
- Average monthly mortgage cost: $992
- Median effective property tax rate: 0.59%
- Violent crime rate per 1,000 people: 3.36%
- Property crime rate per 1,000 people: 20.15%