Firsthand Briefs from Real People

After being transferred to Phoenix for work, my wife and I surprisingly love it. We don't want to move, but summer is absolutely ridiculously hot. We found a New Mexico cabin in our price range within a days drive and plan to spend the our retirement summers in the forest. We love the contrast of a big city and rural area, it's perfect for us.

In the summer, we encounter wealthy Florida residents around our community in the North Carolina mountains. Many are known as "halfbacks" which are people from northern states such as New York who stay in the mountainous areas of North Carolina, Virginia and Tennessee instead of returning north. This is because property, houses, and taxes are less expensive and closer to Florida.

The 4,000 foot higher elevations where I am located typically don't get that hot. It hardly ever taps out at 80 degrees Fahrenheit.

I live in a touristy area of the mountains of Northeast Pennsylvania where there's plenty of outdoor activities. Many Floridians and residents from southeastern United States come for the pleasant 75 - 85 degree weather, which is less extreme and nights are cool.

Retirement is very close for me, so my wife and I are actively considering all of our options. We might rent a place in Michigan for about a month, then spend a relaxing week driving to visit friends in Idaho and Colorado before heading home to Arizona. If we buy a place, the cost is at least $22,000 a year for the mortgage and expenses. But we may rent a nice place for $5,000 a month with $1,000 a week for travel expenses such as gas, hotels, food, etc.

For the past several summers we leave our home in Houston, Texas from May-October. The other months in Houston are fine for the most part. Because we are retired we can leave whenever and go wherever the mood strikes. When we find the right place with land, we will eventually move to that property full time.

I have a friend who is close to retirement. His home is in Scottsdale, Arizona and he wants to split his time between Scottsdale and the Seattle area.

When I go on summer vacation, it's usually to Canada and not Southern states.

I've found there are few places during the summer that don't get punishingly hot and/or humid.  Sure, Northeastern states such as Maine might cool off at night, but there's other drawbacks such as tons of bugs. In my opinion, most seniors stay where they are, blast their air conditioning and don't leave.

People I know target states that are more advantageous regarding finances, and stay there for the required time to maintain residential status. It's very common in New England where I live and important to compare the terms based on the state. I have found that snowbirds are also often sunbirds and they escape Florida's heat by traveling up the coast or up into cooler temps of the mountains in the summer. They head south to escape winter.

Take a look at places such as San Diego from June until August and you'll see tons of Arizona license plates. Arizonians flood southern California beaches and the locals dislike it to the point they refer to us as as a derogatory term, "zonies."

Northern NM is top choice for my summer vacations because of the elevation. Santa Fe is the highest US capital city at 7,200 ft above sea level.

I prefer a place with seasons and trees. Never Florida because I hate beaches. I am considering Minnesota, Canada or Montana as well as the Appalachian mountains where there are many housing options.

We live in Florida, but spend the summer in the "Florida Alps of the Carolinas." They call us, "sweatbirds."