4 Great Senior Vacation Towns

Places With Affordable Homes to Buy, Rent, Exchange, Retire

Aug 28, 2007

Vacation meccas for senior travel, boomer travel or retirement living abound with prices now dipping in favor of home buyers. Check out these destinations.

Senior tourists and boomer travelers might check out these great spots for vacation and even retirement.

It is not often that National Geographic Adventure magazine and AARP Magazine cheer the same place. But this Utah town appeals to young and older vacation home buyers. "A mellow desert oasis with Zion National Park right out the back door, is officially the fastest growing small city in the U.S." says Adventure. The community's mix of red rocks devotees and East Coast transplants comes for the red-rock-meets-alpine setting, perpetual sun, and progressive mindset. A wholesome spirit pervades—there's just one liquor store in town.Median home price is $319,000.

Escape Homes, a useful Web site, sats Myrtle Beach, South Carolina is "one of the fastest growing metropolitan areas in the country," but notes that "city planners are … creating a 20-year comprehensive plan. This allows those buying second homes here to feel secure that issues like zoning, water and environment will continue to be taken care of as well as they have been thus far." Median Costs of Condos and single-family homes: about $207,430 with a good rental market. Also, after one year, if you are over 65, there is a homestead exemption which reduces property tax a bit.

It's on the AARP list in part because because of the "revitalized district known as the Pearl. A local says: “Everything we need is an easy walk, whether it’s the Whole Foods that’s one block over, great restaurants, movie theaters, or parks.” You can get along with one car per family, or none. Portland has "a community-wide commitment to alternative means of transportation, including buses and light rail..”." Median housing price: $280,800

One retirement Web site point to Ithaca, home to Cornell University and Ithaca College, because it is "known for its high quality of life and liberal social and political environment. Situated in the center of New York State on the shore of 40-mile long Cayuga Lake (one of the Finger Lakes), this lovely college town …is growing economically and has a cost-of-living and youthful ambiance that appeals to many seniors. In fact, roughly 28% of the population is aged 45-64 and 17% is 65 or above. Downtown Ithaca sits on a valley floor, and residential neighborhoods dot the lush hills around the city. A good variety of working class and upper-income neighborhoods give new residents many housing options. Cayuga Heights is the high-end neighborhood --homes here start in the $650,000s. Many other areas have cheaper housing.

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