Who has been able to transition out of Big City for Retirement?

Before COVID wife and I decided once last child became self sufficient (if there really is such a thing) we would start looking to leave DFW and move to smaller town that would be our retirement spot. After being brutalized from work over the last year I told her I'm done at 62 (5 years) and now is the time to start getting those things in order. Finances are in great shape and can comfortably retire and wait out drawing SS at 66. Kids are grown (22/24) have good jobs and seem to be making their way, so that burden seems to be lifted.

Was making the move a big change/shock to your lifestyle, adjustment wise, grocery shopping, church, hobbies, finances, etc? Do you have regrets, or any advice for someone starting down that path? Did your spouse adjust as well as you did or not, etc..?

It wasn't a big shock to the lifestyle. It was what we had been planning and wanting to do. So it was fulfilling. There are adjustments with any move. We are coming up on 8 years since pulling the plug and moving to our retirement site in the country. But we had moved so many times over the past decades that this is the longest we have ever lived anyplace since we got married 34 years ago. That was probably the biggest adjustment for us. Just started getting rid of the moving boxes. LOL! The key for us was researching and then finding the place that we wanted to live for the most of the rest of our lives. We took about a year doing research, and then another year looking at properties. Probably the one thing that still takes a bit of thought and planning is for the "what ifs" that come up. The unexpected costs. We had to have a foundation repair, new roof, and exterior paint job all in one year. Was able to pay cash for all the jobs, but took a bite out of our emergency funds that one summer.

No real big changes and obviously I didn't come from the "Big City" but did move from a residential setting to the "dirt road rural acreage".

Not a huge change IMO as far as lifestyle if you don't mention the peace, quiet, and privacy. I had some background having moved from a residential city setting between my sophomore and junior years in HS to an even more remote rural setting.

Planning is the big thing. You don't forget something at the store and run back. Plan meals as much as possible as well as multi stop trips "to town". The outlier is when things break or need immediate attention (fixing vehicles or home repairs). Church just came to us.

My setting and situation was slightly different in that I knew where I would move to and then just had to fit amenities to that. Also I bought the "economical" ride for trips into the big city. Nearest WalMarx to me is 12 miles and specialty shopping can require 50,60 of 100+ mile trips.

I have no regrets . My wife wouldn't want any different setting but your mileage may vary (my wife came from a very small town out in BFE so already had the distance shopping thing down).

Yes, the what if's is the only thing... I can definitely see the biggest "What If" would be if a Grandkid materializes and Mamaw/Papaw (Wife & I) get caught up in that and decide to stay in city so we can be nearer them.

I’m basically in the exact situation you are in, I cannot stand it any longer. We are also discussing places to live, we have even looked at other countries although that really isn’t likely. One thing for sure, I will not be in a place that can get very cold again, that last blast we had sealed the deal for me on cold weather

Yes, I told my wife the same thing.. I said this last cold front just ended any negotiation on moving back to PNW.

We both of like the Bonham (Fannin County) area and been driving around out there the last 6 months. Covid kind of put a damper on the land situation, but it will come back as soon as the developers start opening up real estate around the lake.

We thought we wanted to move after retirement. Then the what if’s. 3 grandkids here locally and a fourth on the way. House is to large, but I have a green belt behind my 1/2 acre. Plus it’s paid for with the exception of the yearly raping on property tax. I dunno man. Grass is not always greener elsewhere. Good luck with your decision and choice.

I am in the same boat, just submitted my resignation and going full steam ahead on our Texoma Lakehouse build - our retirement house.

Congratulations and good luck with the house! Soon you'll be living the dream!

I looked at google map of the house we owned in San Antonio a couple weeks ago. They are building apartments (https://birdsongalamoranch.com/) in the green zone that was behind our house there. Really glad we moved now. But the main reason we moved was we were tired of the zero lot line living.

Did this the end of last year as well. Been pondering it for years and knew the city was not for me. I'm not retirement age yet, but planning for when that time comes. I had gone to Cleburne to look for some fishing spots and just on the outskirts of the population, I saw a for sale sign on an old farm house with a few acres of land. I plan on taking care of my parents as they transition into the next life, so a hospital nearby was a must. This place has a major hospital exactly one mile away and a lake nearby for me. Still haven't fished it, too much work to do right now. I think we're on the same grid as the hospital, because when the winter storm hit, we never lost power. Had propane for heat and a well, so never lost heating or water either. The seller was a real pain and it took us 6 months just to buy this place. So far, the biggest problems were... getting internet and remodeling. The wiring in this old house is so janked up, you cant run but an appliance or two at the same time. The wire is good, the people who "country engineered" the wiring is to blame. With the exception of traffic noise, this place is well worth what we picked it up for. Needs a little updating, but we paid cash and don't have a mortgage. My only other issue right now is going to work, which is still in Ft. Worth/Arlington. Time to look for a job (for me) out here.

To answer your questions...Not a huge shock to living quality. Major shopping is still 5 minutes away, hobbies have greatly improved and tractor time is a blessing. Make sure you can find reasonable internet around you. Mom had signed up for some RV internet service which was about $150 a month. Make sure you have a generator incase of power issues. Can't tell you how glad I am to be AWAY from the rat race. Hope your dream comes true as well.

I retired in 2016. Sold out in Houston and we moved to our lake house on Rayburn. The absolute ONLY thing we miss is the fact that we don’t get to see our grandson as often as we would like. We have settled in completely. Found a nice SMALLER Church in San Augustine and I enjoy attending my local Masonic Lodge. We have great neighbors, of which we know on a personal basis much more than our neighbors when we lived in Houston for 19 years. We enjoy our retired life and the piney woods of East Texas more than we ever enjoyed city life in Houston. And the fishing is way better too.

This is a really good topic, I have been try to figure out options for wife and I.

When I "slow" down around 58ish I want to have a local getaway , when I stop 62ish I want to summer in LaCrosse and Winter in Florida and come here in the socalled "spring and Fall" months.

we moved out of forney and bought 2 acres in Campbell, right before the land value increases. Built a metal home/barndominum. Best move we have made. Love the rural living. city is 15 minutes either way. best advice- get a generator and big deep freeze. otherwise, no worries. We have a tornado shelter inside the house, bolted to the foundation for added security.

We moved out of the Metroplex several years ago. Small town living is great. There a few minor negatives. Most small towns have good local doctors, but you may have to travel for a specialist or a hospital. Its a 45 minute drive for us to get to specialists in Tyler. Still worth it. Dining out may be more limited, but not a problem in you don't mind a little drive. Some towns are limited as far as high speed internet and cable TV. That is improving everywhere gradually.

We live in Mineola (pop 4500 or so), and love the East Texas lifestyle.

I just got a call from a very good friend of mine, also a co-worker, that lives in Denver. He has announced his retirement at 57 years old. He isn’t going to work elsewhere, he said he is done. He and his wife are moving to Tucson to a big golf community. They have no kids and are probably financially sound. I’m jealous

I didn't grow up in a big city, but ended up in Houston area with work. I have no intention of staying even though I live in a nice area, Friendswood side of League City is a really nice safe area. But its getting off the chart busy along with I45 road contruction will drive a person crazy. Even with my good pention I have no intention of paying 1500 a month and going up Galveston County Tax and Insurance. My wife would stay were we are the rest of her life, she grew up not far from where we live, but she knows its not the right thing to do.

I have not watched local news in years. Harris Co/Houston is Lib central and expanding. All the libs in Austin, DFW, Houston will make Texas blue as it can be in a few years. Yeah a few political seats may swing Rep. short term, but long term will be more blue voters than red. Taxes will get higher and people will be leaving just like CA.

I'm taking off next week, plan to load wife and 32 pound Hank the Wennie dog up and go look. Not sure I can do it again, I've lived in Oklahoms before, but my wife wants to go look at small towns around Tulsa. She has a point in the Okie state income tax is a drop in the bucket compared to Texas Property Taxes. Oklahoma Tax is nothing compared to Texas. She has friends she went to school with in League City that now live in Oklahoma and they will never move back to Texas, they love it. My wife is off the chart conservative Red voter and she like what those Okies do. I kid her about moving to Oklahoma and end up with a bible in one hand, gun in the other while taking a hit off Medical Marijuana.

There are some places in East Texas like Jasper Co. where our place in Rayburn Country is that have very low Tax, but drive into Jasper to shop at Walmart and you can't get out of the place fast enough. As much as I like fishing and hunting in East Texas, living their full time would be tough.

Someone mentioned Bonham/Fannin Co., which I thought about looking. I looked up the taxes and they are over two percent in Fannin Co.. Looks to be about the same as Galveston Co where I am, maybe higher.

Where ever we look, I keep telling myself to have an open mind. I told my boss I'd work until June of 2022, thats when I hit full retirement age, 66 and 4 mo . That time will come quick. We have two houses to sell and lots of stuff to move where ever we go.

I've spoiled my wife building her a house wtih 12 foot Ceilings and 8 ft. doors. I told her I'd do it again, but I can't do it where we have to pay 1500 or more a month in Tax and Insurance.

Feb 3rd, 2024 is my retirement date. The Boss has started dropping hints about moving back closer to the grand kids. I told her the closest we will get is the Oklahoma side of the Red River. I'm not going to pay the Texas Wealth Tax on property. If it is up to me, I will retire here in Alabama. House will be paid for and property taxes locked in at around $750 a year.

I am in between at this time....retired 5 years ago, still have the house in Dallas but have a good chunk of land in NE TX. I bounce back and forth depending on the weather plus I help dad when needed in Dallas. The biggest things I have to get used to when staying for a while on my property is lack of good internet service other than on my phone/hotspot and planning trips to town (20-30 minutes away) so that I get everything that I need to last several days without return trips. Those trips usually eat up half a day! I am way to used to popping down the street whenever I need something or getting parts locally vs waiting for them to ship to me.

We left Dallas after 35+ years and landed in Nacogdoches and can honestly say we are happier now than ever. Some of it is was leaving the job behind, but mostly the stress of living in Dallas had more effect on us than we really ever thought. Since retiring here, my son sold his house on White Rock Lake and built a house in Tyler and my stepson left Dallas and moved his family here. There are some things we miss in the city, but not enough to regret leaving it behind. I would suggest spending a lot of time at you retirement destination before you move. Good medical, good internet and television, and good water and utilities are things you need to learn before you move. I have friends that moved from California and, at their house, they have spotty internet, septic instead of sewer, and rural electric service that goes out when the humidity gets too high. They almost have to climb on the roof to get cell phone service. So, do your due diligence and then get out of Dodge as soon as you find your landing spot. Good luck.

Winnsboro seems like a nice place

I left the metro mess for lake living on carp filled Kentucky Lake. Nearest town is Murray, KY (pop 17K). I live 12 miles outside town.

I love it. The peace and quiet are so calming.

Traffic here means being caught behind a tobacco wagon on its way to the barn.

I do miss the convenience of shopping, and having good restaurants around. An hour away is Paducah or Clarksville, TN.

Just had this conversation with the wife. She wants to be within an hour of DFW airport, so I have to live with that for at least 10 more years until she retires - or maybe she will see how much fun I'm having and pull the plug early. I hope to retire within a couple years.

Would like something outside of town and near a lake, but within hour-ish of DFW. Probably won't be much of a change for us other than less traffic than we have here in Plano and hopefully more neighborly neighbors.

good luck tx_basser!

When we move, I don't even want neighbors!!!

I'll probably end up in Florida, by the St. Johns, living in a trailer, drinking, having a bong, and when I can afford it go fishing. And then watch the months and years go by until my mind is gone and then just fading off into the sunset. Just another old person in a sea of old people in Florida.

Sounds like the way I grew up. LMAO

Astor is your place.

Billy, do you realize going about 5 miles west into Angelina Co. cuts your taxes significantly from Jasper county?

Taxes are very dependent on county and school district. Mine are extremely reasonable. The county and school district just south of me is over 30% higher.

I have but I actually had owned the 80 acres we live on for 16 years before leaving the Metroplex permanently and wife followed suit a year behind me after teacher retirement. I had built the house 10 years earlier as a weekend place but we have made a lot of changes to make it “home” . We are 30 miles from a grocery store.

RayBob,

You mentioned Angelina Co.

I think Lufkin is in that county, but if I recall realistate lady told me you had to get quite a few miles from town to get in the lower Tax rate where there were not large schools. I've never looked east of Lufkin back towards Lake/Sam Rayburn. Might be something to look at. Not to far from Lufkin, but close to the lake. Maybe worth a look.

Me and the little woman, have recently discussed selling out completely. Buying a motor coach and spend our retired years traveling North America. Just bouncing around and taking it all in.

I had rented a place for a few days in Concord Heights (Westwood area) and the folks I rented from lived on the other side of the road and said they lived in Angelina county and the taxes were cheaper. The rental was across the road and in Jasper County. Crazy !

We plan to move to AR to my wife's childhood home in 2023. House was built in 1965 but we've pretty much redone everything but still have one bathroom to redo. My wife retires from her job after 37 years of employment. Only job she's ever had since graduating with her masters degree from UofA. We've been in DFW for 21 years now but I'm ready to move to the country. I will continue to work from home and still travel. It will be culture shock moving to a little bitty community called Ratcliff, AR, pop. 202 as compared to DFW. It will be very different, no doubt. We have 25 acres and an old 1965 built 1800sq ft 3-bedroom house, no neighbors within yelling distance, and a 15acre tank that's loaded with fish that is on 100acres next to us that is SIL and BIL property that we treat as our own. I won't miss the rat race with all that. Just put a new roof on the house. I am fixing to start construction on a 30X50 metal building next to the house. Guttering goes up in two weeks. Full electric reroute from overhead to all underground is underway now. It'll all be ready to go before we know it. As long as my health holds up, I'll prolly work at least another 10 years. I'm 60 now but I also love my job. Why quit when you're having fun? We thank the Good Lord every day for this opportunity that we have. If we don't sell the place once we get too old to take care of it, we will give it to our children. Hopefully, they will have a family someday and be able to enjoy it like we have done. DFW has been an experience, and we've had a blast here. We raised our kids in Texas, so that's what they consider themselves. I'll always be an Okie, though, no matter where I go.....

We have kicked a few things around. I’m like TexDawg and have talked about moving out of the country but realistically that’s probably not going to happen. Thinking about buying a home in Pagosa Springs. We have friends who live there and they love it. Not sure about that plan either as we don’t want to be too far from our kids and hopefully grandkids at some point! Lots to consider. I do know that there is a less than zero percent chance that I will retire where I currently live. I miss the country

You know how to pick 'em. My wife doesn't want anything to do with that. I think it would be fun for a few years.

Sounds like some hard work, good living and a dream plan come true. I wish you - and family - nothing but the best!!!

My mom grew up in Branch.

Thanks, Sawhorse. Davedave....I remember you telling me that. The thriving metropolis of Branch is about 350 population. You know what I mean by adjusting to the culture shock. Nobody moves very fast over there. But there’s a bunch of good folks and that’s all that matters.

Currently investigating places where my SS can cover monthly costs of ownership/rental. Looking very favorably towards the mid-central TX area, near Richland/Chambers reservoir.

There's not many areas that my SS can cover. Sad prospect for VNVets and others. God BlessAmerica ! ! !

I am 61 and have too much [censored] going on to even think about retiring, I have places to go to if I need to get out of the city, fortunately I have what some of you are looking for, good luck to all of you, you have worked your tails off for many years, you deserve whatever you want.

East Texas Dan. Yeah we're all on meth but we're happy livin with our sister/wife in our single wides.

Lowest COL in Texas unless you get down there in the brush country or maybe some of west Texas

58. Planned to retire at 65. Don’t know if I can hold out that long. Already 40 years at the same job so retirement income will be decent. So tired of the city and all the wokeness. Looking forward to small town life somewhere. Need to start figuring it out. Thinking two small homes in different areas of the country. Stay away from both bitter cold and blazing heat.

We bought a little house in Seadrift 12 years ago, strictly fish camp, family place to go. If you're looking for a dullsville nothing going on little town this is it. The gravy maker decided this was going to be where we checked out of society, and we bought the "stick" house knowing it needed a full renovation, but it was cheap, and was on a canal, which is really rare. We started working on it, stripped down to the studs, all new new new new everything from wiring to plumbing to windows, deck etc etc. Did 90% of the work myself, you'd get help and they'd vapor in two days.

Anyway, at the Marble Falls house two years ago, which is way out in the country, fella drives up and says he works with my neighbor (two miles down the road) and said you might want to sell your place. 8 acres, 2 acre pond, house, guest house horse barn, not fancy but solid. Well I haven't really thought about it. Well what would you want for it? Really I haven't thought about it,what would you offer? He spit out a number.....way above anything I would have even dreamed of. Yeah, we can do that. He has cash, no realtor, nothing but sign the deed over. Two weeks later he had the keys.

And last month we officially moved in for good. I travel for work, so home is wherever I want it to be. I am thankful that we are here for the past year, it never changed. Plague, lockdown, election, didn't matter, Seadrift never varied one bit. If some Karen tried to hoard toilet paper or something, the cashier would tell them to put that stuff back, and come get what you need. We're not running out, and especially not running out because of YOU....

Four years and I'm done for good. Don't owe anyone for anything, and live in a place you want to be at. I love Texas and Texans.

Before:


Now:

I've known and met several that have done this. Met many in some of the RV places we've been. I still like having a home base. It is near stores and doctors and hospitals. The best of both worlds would be having a lake house somewhere semi-secluded and rural and a suburb place. If you buy one of those huge Phaeton motor homes, you will still need to buy a puddle jumper car to pull behind it. You wouldn't want to have to disconnect everything every time you needed to run to the Wallmarx.

Really good topic & find myself wanting a barndominium on a quiet 10 acres. Gotta get pretty far out of town to find something affordable in central Texas hill country. Liking Rockdale area, San Saba, Gonzales, Giddings... the list goes on.

Had thought of this too. The lady I was seeing was all about doing that, but you have GOT to have a home base. I would absolutely love to travel the US and do plan on doing that, but you have to have somewhere to come home to and get your mail.

I have an old Air Force buddy that does that. He and his wife sold their home and got a big old motor-coach. They mainly stay at the RV parks on military bases, going around visiting old AF Buddies and chasing the sun. They still go back to what they call their home area in Washington State every summer where they park in a Golf Course RV park where he works at the course driving the mowers and the range ball pickup tractor. Most mail/bills can be done electronically these days.

I got grown children. one lives in Puyallup Washington. the other in east Texas. I figure we can bounce between them spots for home base. Would tow a small vehicle or HD for short trips.

don't count on it... the circle of doom is spreading out. The liberal clan is taking over the burbs, pushing city folk out....housing going up every where, driving property taxes up. My 2006 $210,000 house and 15 acres, is now taxed @ #345,000

Traffic is better, internet speed can be a problem if you like to stream movies. Choices while eating out limited, we have both become much better cooks since retiring.

Doing what you want to go when you wake up each and every day is priceless.

Today I put up a wood duck house close to the edge of the lake. Eat some lunch after while and watch a movie this afternoon. Winds blowing too hard to fish and the lakes muddy from all the rain.


It’s a tough life!

We bailed out of "The Valley" or better know as "El Valle" back in 2001, basically to get the kids out of those, already thug infested, schools. Living in the West Texas boonies as a few down sides, but nothing compared to the hassel of living anywhere near a city.

Not retired but did move from DFW to Amarillo once Covid hit and one thing my wife and I noticed right away is how much lower our grocery bill is. $300 for a basket full in Southlake vs $150 here. That alone really sticks out to me.

I moved to the country Cedar Hill.
Wasnt even a grocery store here.
Had to drive out of town to shop. BUT THEN
Everybody just had to move here.
Now theres 50 to 60 thousand in town and surrounding areas.
You have to move north of Sanger to even find country anymore

Wife and I made the move from the metromess to lakefront on Toledo Bend just over 3 years ago. Best move of our lifetime! I retired so I could work on fixing things up (it was definitely a fixer upper ) she just retired at the beginning of the year. Sitting in our screened in porch in the morning watching the Eagles and all the rest of the wildlife, trying to decide what to do for the day. We call it Heaven. What I learned is if your gonna buy a fixer upper and do the work yourself, be ready for some pain. I spent over 40 years in the fiberglass business and obviously that wasn't physical work because since we moved hear I've had back,knee and hernia operations. I also need both shoulders worked on but that would stop me from fishing, so that's not happening.
Absolutely the best move we've ever made and would do it again in a heartbeat!!!!

Some of you all have some great places. We don't live in the Big City, but in our opinion, anything within an hour or so from the Big City is still the big City. We are several miles west of Wimberley and it's still a nice little town, but not where we want to be in 15 years at retirement. We still own the fishing cabin in Rockport but not sure that's our retirement spot either (Wind Storm and Flood Insurance! We lived on Padre Island for 7 years). I really enjoying reading about some of the east Texas places, the area intrigues us. We thought about North West Arkansas, but we spent a week on Beaver Lake and drove around the lake and Eureka Springs and rented a boat and toured the entire lake. That area is not for us either. Guess we need to explore east Texas more.