Why You Should Retire Anywhere EXCEPT Washington State

There are plenty of studies that focus on retirement and the best and worst places to spend your golden years.  Thing is, they all have their own set of factors that support their results. Recently, the website Global Residence Index named Washington State the best state to retire.  Their methodology may be an outlier compared to the majority of other studies that say the opposite.

The latest report regarding retiring in the Evergreen State isn't promising if you're trying to make your green last.  Wallethub.com broke down the best states to retire based on three simple criteria.  To be fair, their criteria may be the three things that are considered most by those looking at the end of their working careers.

They ranked states based on affordability (huge for those on a fixed income), healthcare (also a big factor as we advance in age), and quality of life (22 elements factored in to this category).  Washington came in 4th...from the bottom.  Not exactly inspiring is it?

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It's so bad, that you see more studies now listing the best places inside Washington State to retire than Washington as one of the best states to retire.  FYI...the Tri-Cities along with the eastern suburbs of Seattle are near the top of those lists.

Wallethub's data shows Washington State sitting firmly at 48th most affordable, 23rd in quality of life, and 24th in healthcare.  24th in healthcare may surprise a few people considering how much the state touts it, but in aspects considered by Wallethub, there were some (like in-home care) where Washington is sorely lacking for retirees.

Another area Washington State scored low is an area that has been a concern for some time...property crime rate.  The only state with a worse rate that the namesake of our first President is New Mexico.

The tax burden in the state is also challenging for those on a fixed income as we have the third highest gas prices and sit 45th in overall tax competitiveness according to the non-partisan, non-profit Tax Foundation.  It makes it a tough sell for those on fixed incomes regardless of how many sources of income (social security, pension, etc.) a retiree has.