[decafninja]

As a NYer, I never understood why so many people from here retire to Florida. Yes the beaches are beautiful, but the weather is also scorching - and humid. And hurricanes. Maybe it's the cost?

If I had to pick a warm weather retirement destination, Hawaii would be #1 on my list. Second would probably be SoCal somewhere. I guess both are more expensive than Florida.

[codegeek]

From what I have heard, it is due to Taxes/Costs etc. Most people who move from places like NY/NJ are saving tons on taxes especially things like property tax. Just to give you an example, a 500K home in NY/NJ can average b/w 15k-20K in taxes per year. Yep, you read that right.

[ceilingcorner]

Hawaii is an island in the middle of the ocean. Florida is a quick plane right from anywhere on the East Coast and a reasonable amount of time from Europe. It also happens to be filled with other NYC retirees. People care about people.

[mrfusion]

Believe it or not the weather is beautiful in Florida November through May. And June still gets quite a few nice days.

You really just have four super hot months to struggle through but you’ve got pools and beaches everywhere so not a huge deal.

[mattbrewsbytes]

Florida is one of several states with zero state income tax. If you retire there then you will pay less taxes when withdrawing from retirement accounts. I believe Texas, Arizona and Nevada also have zero state income tax.