Retirement location

[Mooneymite]

No one has mentioned proximity to kids/grandkids.

I think that's referred to as "roots", or is that pronounced "ruts"?  

[flyboy0681]

Just now, Mooneymite said:

No one has mentioned proximity to kids/grandkids.

I think that's referred to as "roots", or is that pronounced "ruts"?  

This is definitely a major consideration, but how does one weigh the option? I have a friend that lives in a very cold northern state who would love to spend his winters down here in FLA. When I ask him why he and his wife insist on staying up there, the response is always that they want to be near the grandson. Now not being a grandparent I don't have a point of reference, but is it worth the sacrifice of having to put up with short, cold snowy wintry days for months on end?

[glafaille]

19 minutes ago, Mooneymite said:

No one has mentioned proximity to kids/grandkids.

I think that's referred to as "roots", or is that pronounced "ruts"?  

If you retire in a nice place, with a great climate, and lots of recreation opportunities, the kids will come to you.  

[Mooneymite]

38 minutes ago, glafaille said:

If you retire in a nice place, with a great climate, and lots of recreation opportunities, the kids will come to you.  

Ha!  While absolutely true, it is a "Grandpa viewpoint".  Grandmas usually want to be involved in day to day life, not just vacation.

Ask me how I know that.

[HRM]

7 hours ago, flyboy0681 said:

This is definitely a major consideration, but how does one weigh the option? I have a friend that lives in a very cold northern state who would love to spend his winters down here in FLA. When I ask him why he and his wife insist on staying up there, the response is always that they want to be near the grandson. Now not being a grandparent I don't have a point of reference, but is it worth the sacrifice of having to put up with short, cold snowy wintry days for months on end?

I think this is where the 'proximity to a major airport' on the original poster's list comes in. Our daughter and grandson live on the upper west side of Manhattan and our son on the upper east. Short trip via Juno to LGA and ILM has multiple nonstop daily flights there. Then there is Wrightsville Beach which will draw them in our direction when they want to get away from the madness.

[Shiny moose]

Our daughter still has another 4 years of uni time so not sure where in this world she will settle and wifey will want to be near, and not airline near, If we  are Mooney near I would also have to go every time she wants to visit. Call me selfish but I know that’s not gonna work for me

[glafaille]

With that in mind, it sounds like your wife and daughter will decide the location for your retirement.  Sounds like you have a losing hand.  It’s a waste of time to consider where you would like to live, they will decide for you.

Young folks today are very mobile.  Will you be following your daughter all around the country when she moves?  I have a friend that retired and was happy in Arizona, daughter lived in hot and humid East Texas and convinced Dad and Mom to relocate to the area.  2 years after moving, daughter accepted a job in Arizona and split, leaving Dad and Mom “high and dry” or rather “low and moist”.  They have decided to stop chasing the daughter and are staying put despite their preference for Arizona.  Just too much hassle to move again.

If you are forced to live in a place you don’t like for “wifey” and daughter, you may have significant power in deciding the configuration of your retirement facilities as you are the one giving up so much for them.  Airport property, hangar, ownership, man cave, airplane upgrades, etc. are all on the table if you play it right.

 

 

Edited July 13, 2018 by glafaille

[Shiny moose]

9 hours ago, glafaille said:

With that in mind, it sounds like your wife and daughter will decide the location for your retirement.  Sounds like you have a losing hand.  It’s a waste of time to consider where you would like to live, they will decide for you.

Young folks today are very mobile.  Will you be following your daughter all around the country when she moves?  I have a friend that retired and was happy in Arizona, daughter lived in hot and humid East Texas and convinced Dad and Mom to relocate to the area.  2 years after moving, daughter accepted a job in Arizona and split, leaving Dad and Mom “high and dry” or rather “low and moist”.  They have decided to stop chasing the daughter and are staying put despite their preference for Arizona.  Just too much hassle to move again.

If you are forced to live in a place you don’t like for “wifey” and daughter, you may have significant power in deciding the configuration of your retirement facilities as you are the one giving up so much for them.  Airport property, hangar, ownership, man cave, airplane upgrades, etc. are all on the table if you play it right.

 

 

Nope, wife wont move without me checking out the place in advance(her choice ). When I approve then We will go together for her inspection. So I get the first look, if I say no good, its out!!! We would buy a place well in advance of retirement if we find the location we want. 

[laytonl]

Lyons Landing Airpark, 5GA2, is a 3,000 foot grass strip about 25 miles west of the Atlanta airport.  Great, tight knit community of pilots.  Most fly for the airlines or are retired.  Lots of interesting planes, including two Mooney’s, Nanchaing, Chipmunk, Ziln, RVs, c-185, etc. There aren’t any homes for sale at the moment but there is a hangar with an apartment that has a nice lot for building.  We moved here to be close to one set of Grandkids and the Mooney gets us quickly two the other set in Florida.  Lee

[Shiny moose]

19 hours ago, laytonl said:

Lyons Landing Airpark, 5GA2, is a 3,000 foot grass strip about 25 miles west of the Atlanta airport.  Great, tight knit community of pilots.  Most fly for the airlines or are retired.  Lots of interesting planes, including two Mooney’s, Nanchaing, Chipmunk, Ziln, RVs, c-185, etc. There aren’t any homes for sale at the moment but there is a hangar with an apartment that has a nice lot for building.  We moved here to be close to one set of Grandkids and the Mooney gets us quickly two the other set in Florida.  Lee

I will be looking Around Georgia in august, going to visit a friend in southern North Carolina’s mountains not sure if its by moony or by bike . I think northern GA, NC, SC have some of the best motorcycle roads in the US

[Mooneymite]

1 hour ago, Shiny moose said:

I think northern GA, NC, SC have some of the best motorcycle roads in the US

Be sure to check out Heavens Landing in north GA.  You'll enjoy the tour whether you buy, or not.

http://www.heavenslanding.com/mountain_estate_airpark.htm

[Shiny moose]

4 hours ago, Mooneymite said:

Be sure to check out Heavens Landing in north GA.  You'll enjoy the tour whether you buy, or not.

http://www.heavenslanding.com/mountain_estate_airpark.htm

That is one that I have planed to visit, Thanks

[BKlott]

We have lived in Florida for the past thirty four years. For the first twenty nine of those years my wife campaigned for us to move. Then the first grandchild was born. I’m afraid that I am here for the duration.

[Shiny moose]

I have been to FA40, flew in and visited a friend of a friend. Very nice Airpark. 

[TTaylor]

On 7/6/2018 at 5:35 PM, 13scrappy said:

I am less than 2 years from retirement and looking for a more perfect place than my current home of Tucson.  I would only add the requirement of world class medical facilities within an hour to my list and south or southwest instead of southeast.  Tucson already fits the criteria pretty well, but for some reason I have a crazy idea that I would like to try living close to a large lake, river or stream.  

 

An hour by car or plane?  We will retire to Grassy Meadows Sky Ranch (UT47) in a few years. Nice balance of desert and mountains.  Good hospitals in St. George (20 miles) and Salt Lake and Las Vegas are an hour by plane.  20 minutes from Zion N.P.  Great mountain biking and hiking nearby. Sunny about 300 days a year, but also cooler than southern Arizona. Don't have a large lake nearby but Lake Powell and Meade are not too far.

[13scrappy]

I will take a look at UT47.  Thanks for the info.  I love Lake Powell and Utah so it could be a good option.

[TTaylor]

After Florence and Michael I think I will stay with retiring in the Southwest.   I hope everyone is OK after the last two storms.

[Kmac]

I am many years away from retirement...if ever...but I often research places where I think the best weather would be.  I think Alpine TX is the winner...

For the original poster: Big Bend is nearby, dirt cheap real estate, small airport in town, I would assume friendly people...they are everywhere, university in the town, best weather maybe in the country...

[Marauder]

I am many years away from retirement...if ever...but I often research places where I think the best weather would be.  I think Alpine TX is the winner...
For the original poster: Big Bend is nearby, dirt cheap real estate, small airport in town, I would assume friendly people...they are everywhere, university in the town, best weather maybe in the country...

Unfortunately the world evolves. Places I thought would be a great place to retire, now are armpits.

I met a retired Army officer who was in his early 50s and was traveling around the country in a 5th wheel RV. He told me that he and his wife would move from location to location, stay a couple of months, get assimilated into the community and then move on. He said they took notes on the locations and then planned just before they knew they were too old to continue traveling, pick one of them as their final retirement community. I thought that was a unique approach.


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[Mooneymite]

The question often comes down to our preference between "places, or faces".  Do we prefer a place, or faces we love?

Lucky the man who has both!

[Oldguy]

On 10/19/2018 at 3:25 PM, Kmac said:

I am many years away from retirement...if ever...but I often research places where I think the best weather would be.  I think Alpine TX is the winner...

For the original poster: Big Bend is nearby, dirt cheap real estate, small airport in town, I would assume friendly people...they are everywhere, university in the town, best weather maybe in the country...

If you want seclusion, you will have it in bushel baskets there. My daughter went to school there, and loved it, but felt quite isolated. Town doubles in size when the university is in session, and it is not a big school. Having a plane would make going somewhere relatively easy, and it is quite beautiful there.

As a note, the McDonald Observatory is in nearby Ft. Davis. With little to no light pollution, the views of the nighttime sky are magnificent.

[steingar]

If I ever get to retire (doubtful, I spent all my money on that stupid aviation hobby) I would want to be near younger family in case things go south, as they do eventually in old people.  Thankfully I have family in Guatemala.

[johncruce223]

On 6/26/2018 at 11:38 PM, Shiny moose said:

I know its still 4.5 years away but I have to start looking and making decisions. We are looking for a place to retire with our Mooney. Airpark, or great community with a great airport. Any information will be helpful,  Some of our considerations.

 

1. Nature near, biking, walking, kayaking

2. Reasonable  cost of property taxes, and  insurance

3. Large major airport within 2 hours drive

4. Enclosed hanger, no tie down 

5. Friendly people

6. University in the area

7. Great weather more warmer than cold

8. Southeastern US preferred but not mandatory  (wifey wants easier flight to Germany )

 

 

 

I’m not sure if someone mentioned it but there are several air parks in SW Florida and RSW-Ft Myers has direct flights to Germany. 

[Shiny moose]

9 hours ago, johncruce223 said:

I’m not sure if someone mentioned it but there are several air parks in SW Florida and RSW-Ft Myers has direct flights to Germany. 

We have been looking at Florida been there a few times in the last 6 months , thanks for the input 

 

[ZuluZulu]

On 6/26/2018 at 8:38 PM, Shiny moose said:

 

1. Nature near, biking, walking, kayaking

2. Reasonable  cost of property taxes, and  insurance

3. Large major airport within 2 hours drive

4. Enclosed hanger, no tie down 

5. Friendly people

6. University in the area

7. Great weather more warmer than cold

8. Southeastern US preferred but not mandatory  (wifey wants easier flight to Germany )

I'd suggest basing your plane at Jacqueline Cochran Regional Airport (KTRM) in Thermal, CA.  Here's how it does on your criteria:

1. Palm Springs has lots of outdoor recreation, including hiking, Joshua Tree nearby, easy Mooney access to various ocean/lake cities and national/state parks, numerous golf courses if that's your thing.  You are also just short flights away from Catalina Island and Big Bear Lake, which offer opposite ends of the weather spectrum but are rich in recreational opportunities.  There's Santa Barbara and Paso Robles wine country (Temecula Valley is even closer), beach destinations in San Diego, Santa Monica, Santa Barbara, and more, and Northern California's lush forests and redwoods are also within a day's reach.  Pretty much anything you could want outdoors can be found a Mooney ride away.  When you want to get out of California, there's Arizona and the Grand Canyon, Utah, Colorado, Nevada.  You can fly to Las Vegas for the weekend on a whim, see a show, and be back in no time.

2. While you'd be in California, and thus would pay California property taxes, the prices for Coachella/Thermal/Indio-area real estate are much more reasonable than you might think, and certainly more affordable than living closer to Los Angeles or San Diego, let alone the Bay Area.  If you wanted to spend a little more for luxury you could look in the Palm Springs/Palm Desert/Indian Wells zip codes.

3. Palm Springs International is maybe 30 miles away, Ontario International is within an hour's drive, and LAX, BUR, SNA, and SAN are all within reasonable driving distance for direct and connecting flights.  Lufthansa has a major presence at LAX; I see their giant A380's running back and forth to Germany out of LAX every day.

4. TRM is a growing airport with plenty of undeveloped space; there is a great opportunity to build and own your own hangar.  I can't speak to the current existing structure availability but it'd probably be very reasonable to buy and build on the field, and end up with exactly what you want.

5. I've always been treated well when visiting Thermal/Palm Springs.  The local municipalities and politicians proudly support airport development.  A lot of investment in Jackie Cochran Regional has sprung up in the last several years.  There's been some talk it may eventually get an FAA tower but for now it's uncontrolled.

6. Tons of universities in the LA basin alone, including UCLA, USC, Loyola Marymount, UC Riverside, Claremont, and the universities in San Diego are also close by.

7. Warm, desert climate.  TRM is actually below sea level.  Density altitude is a factor to consider when it's hot but all of the airfields in the Palm Springs basin have long enough runways to compensate (TRM's 17-35 is 8,500' while 12-30 is 5,000').  Wind can pick up and gust in the afternoon, but the mornings are more sedate.  I've visited several times and only had gusting winds once, and they were quite manageable thanks to TRM's choice of primary and crosswind runways.

8. Longer flights to Germany than the southeast, there's no denying that, but LAX is close enough for convenience and you can get direct flights on Lufthansa.  People complain about the traffic, but it's more than manageable if you plan ahead and schedule accordingly.  On days when you just can't stand the traffic, Santa Monica (KSMO) and Hawthorne (KHHR) are there as options for Part 91 "connecting" flights to LAX.

With all that said, maybe Palm Springs just doesn't work for you, but in my humble opinion there's a lot of potential for an aviator's retirement destination.