Finding a Retirement-Friendly State

yahoo ^ | Friday, December 12, 2008 | Mark P. Cussen

[BenLurkin]

From a tax perspective, determining which state is the "right" state to retire in will depend on the type and amount of income that you reasonably expect to receive. The nine states that, as of 2008, do not assess income tax of any kind (Alaska, Florida, Nevada, South Dakota, Texas, Washington, Wyoming, Tennessee and New Hampshire) do not automatically qualify as the best for all retirees. If you own several rental properties, then the best state for you may differ from someone whose primary income outside of Social Security will come from pensions or IRAs.

There are four major categories of income for which states differ in their methods of taxation:

Pensions Social Security Sales Tax Property Tax

Pension Income

If you're looking to escape taxation of your pension at the state level, your options are pretty limited. Currently, as of 2008, there are only three states that do not tax pension income:

Illinois Mississippi Pennsylvania

New York has stipulations for some government employees to receive tax-free pension income, but not all retirees. These three states exempt virtually any kind of income received from tax-deferred accounts, including pensions, IRAs and qualified plans.

If your pension is from the government or the military, then seven more states open up for consideration: Alabama, Hawaii, Kansas, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Michigan and New York.

If the aforementioned states do not appeal to you as retirement havens, seven others exempt at least a portion of pension income from taxation: Delaware, Georgia, Minnesota, New Mexico, Utah, Virginia and West Virginia.

States that tax all retirement income at relatively high rates include California, Connecticut, Nebraska, Rhode Island and Vermont. More complete information on how each state taxes their residents' pension income can be found at RetirementLiving.com.

[Freedom56v2]

Dental Floss?

[HighlyOpinionated]

Ellijay in one of those counties???

Yes, Elijay, Blue Ridge, Morganton, Blairsville, Suches, Hiawassee, Clayton, Dillard, Tiger, Cleveland, Helen, etc.

There are few jobs, but the livin' is easy here. Come on down or over but not up . . . we don't call them Floridiots without a good reason.

Just jokin' with 'em.

[gov_bean_ counter]

My grandparents lived in a log cabin home surrounded by creeks that fed the river across the highway. The home was about 3 miles south of Ellijay on Highway 5. I think it is a gift shop now. I spent several summers with them in the late 60s.

[hunter112]

My intention is to go back to Washington State to establish my domicile, during the warmest six months of the year, anyplace I've experienced on the East Coast is just too damned humid. If you find a place out on the Washington coast, up on the Olympic Peninsula, there's not much employment, thus places to live are relatively cheap.

[demshateGod]

“and bringing their funny ideas with them,”

I don’t understand it. Why do they do that? If California gets so bad that they have to leave, why would they recreate another California? They’re destroying the inner-mountain West.

[elpadre]

it is much like several areas in coastal Carolina where high-end developments attract New Englanders in sufficient numbers and they begin to take an interest in local politics causing a certain pinkness to flavor a normally very conservative area.

[ovrtaxt]

That’s exactly what happened along the Gulf coast of FL. It’s like Long frickin Island around here.

[elpadre]

try Lauderdale and Miami Beach where everyone seems to speak with a Brooklyn/Bronx accent.

[ovrtaxt]

“Oh Oiving look, a poooowm tree! Take a pickcha!” lol

[thefactor]

as much as i would usually dismiss anyone who refers to the place i have chosen to dedicate my life to as a sh-thole, i feel i should reply.

you have been to the city once. your impressions come from a tv show about people in a taxi. hmmmmm, seems you definitely have enough to go on.

when you want to compare the amount of world-class art, theatre, music, architecture, etc... between our 2 cities, just let me know. yes, we have more crackheads/square mile but it's all relative.