# Good east coast retirement cities?



## VallelyJ (Nov 21, 2008)

Wife and I are looking to retire and get out of upstate NY. I need to buy a house somewhere between central Maine and the Carolinas that's a good retirement town and where I can put a mooring for my sailboat, and minimize dependence on marinas.
I know that's a pretty wide area. But it's so big that it's hard to know where to start, short of throwing a dart at a map. There are a bizzilion "10 best cities to retire" pages in the internet--seems you can find any city in the US in one of them.
Does anyone know of a city/town/community they'd want to recommend for retirement with a cruising sailboat in the family?
PS--Want an upstate NY farm? I'll throw in a show shovel.
Thanks for any help.
John V.


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## Cruiser2B (Jan 6, 2011)

Oriental, NC if you like sailing and a small community


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## PBzeer (Nov 11, 2002)

Lot depends on what you want in the town. And then how you want to use the boat. Another option is a house with a slip.


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## RobGallagher (Aug 22, 2001)

When you get towards New England, just throwing a mooring out there might not be an option, even if you have waterfront property. Many harbors have long waiting lists for mooring permits.

I waited 10 years for a mooring in Noank, CT. I've been on the list for Stonington, CT for 10 years and it's looking like I might not make it to the top in this lifetime.


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## PBzeer (Nov 11, 2002)

Another thing you might want to think about ... there are many "retirement guides" about various states/regions of the country that furnish things like taxes, cost of living, etc. You might want to start there, since you'll be land based, then start looking for places within those areas that fit your boating needs.


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## steve77 (Aug 5, 2010)

RobGallagher said:


> When you get towards New England, just throwing a mooring out there might not be an option, even if you have waterfront property. Many harbors have long waiting lists for mooring permits.
> 
> I waited 10 years for a mooring in Noank, CT. I've been on the list for Stonington, CT for 10 years and it's looking like I might not make it to the top in this lifetime.


I don't think that's the case in Maine. Pretty sure you can get a mooring in Portland right away. Houses in some communities around there, like Falmouth, give you waterfront access, which I'm pretty sure gives you the right to install a mooring.

The only drawback to Maine might be that the sailing season is a little short, although if you have your own mooring you could probably stretch it beyond what the marinas offer.


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## Sal Paradise (Sep 14, 2012)

A farmer from NY ? Go south!!! Where its warm!!!


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## night0wl (Mar 20, 2006)

I'd say Palm Coast in Florida. No income tax, cheap housing, and while you cant just plop a mooring, anchoring out in Florida cannot be restricted outside of designated mooring fields.


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## sailingfool (Apr 17, 2000)

If your interest is sailing, I would certainly recommend you look in NC or SC, where the cost of living is much less, and you you can use your boat all year. In New England, your boat will spend six months sitting covered in a marina. Now that six month period can still be a happy period if you like to ski as much as you like to sail...but otherwise, as a lifelong New England sailor (and skier), I'd say go south.


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## VallelyJ (Nov 21, 2008)

Thank you all for the replies. I'm tempted by the warm weather in the south, but even coastal Maine will be milder than what I'm used to.
What I really want (besides the usual concerns like available health care, low crime, taxes, etc) is a locality where I can put my own mooring in. It seems some NE towns, as mentioned above, have long waiting lists while others don't.
Do people commonly own their own moorings in harbors in the Carolinas and Florida?
John V


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## PBzeer (Nov 11, 2002)

There's an area here in New Bern, NC where people have put down moorings. Whether one can do so now, I don't know. I know of people with moorings in Oriental and Beaufort. I suggested narrow your search area, because it would be a lot simpler to find where you want to be, and then investigate the mooring situation, as I know it changes from town to town in this area, being a matter of local government.


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## yossarian (Apr 29, 2012)

Mooring laws vary from state to state, but it's often not too hard to get the required permit, particularly as a waterfront property owner.

In some places, it's completely unregulated. Anyone who wants can plop down a mooring wherever they want as long as they don't run afoul of the federal CG regs on navigable waterways (that's pretty easy, mooring can't present a hazard to navigation which has been interpreted to mean that you can't drop a mooring in a maintained commercial channel or in any place that prevents access to a navigable water - imagine a string of moorings across the entrance to a bay).

In most places, there is state/local regulation. That is, the state set out some general guidelines and delegated the job of writing specific rules and enforcing/issuing permits to either the local counties or to a state agency.

In busy areas, the state often delegates all authority to a harbormaster.

In NC, since it was mentioned, you get your permit from the Department of Coastal Maintenance - http://dcm2.enr.state.nc.us/rules/Text/t15a-07h.2200.pdf

From what I hear, it's very easy to get a mooring permit as a waterfront property owner in NC as long as you are not in a busy harbor or right on a federally maintained channel....


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## sailingfool (Apr 17, 2000)

In general I think the major issue with a mooring is the solution to getting to and from the boat. In MA, there is lots of protected waters where a Harbormaster may permit you to drop a mooring...but how do you get to the boat?

The most expensive solution is to join a YC which will provide launch services. The cheapest is to store a dingy on a public beach. 

An intermediate solution, is to rent a mooring from a marina which provides either launch service or in-the-water dingy storage...which may be a better solution than owning a free mooring that is very difficult to get to. 

Or pony up and buy some water front property, and most likely you can drop that free mooring right nearby to your backyard dingy dock...


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## miatapaul (Dec 15, 2006)

Cruiser2B said:


> Oriental, NC if you like sailing and a small community


The more I hear about Oriental, the more I want to move there, and I don't want to wait till I retire!


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## jrd22 (Nov 14, 2000)

My son and daughter in law kept their boat in Oriental, they loved it. Really friendly people, knowledgeable and helpful boat yards, inexpensive moorage and housing. And great cruising areas. I didn't think they were going to come home.


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## PBzeer (Nov 11, 2002)

Outside of the Chesapeake Bay, there is no better inland sailing on the East Coast, than Oriental. From daysails, to 2 day trips, to 7 or more days, there's no end of possibilities, including the Ocean (a half day away). The Broad Creek area (east of Oriental, there's more than one) has many waterfront homes and offers the same possibilities. Also, if you're looking at using the boat primarily for more than daysails, the Bay River has many waterfront properties (you'd need an hour or two to get to where you could really sail). There's also numerous places along the Nuese from Oriental to New Bern, though once past the bend to the NW, the river begins to narrow with some shallow water mid-stream.

Oriental though, is definitely a sailing town. With a West Marine and a local chandlery as well as a consignment store, nearby loft and two boatyards, it's easy to meet your boat needs. It is though, a small town, with few options for the rest of your needs. If I had to move ashore and still wanted to sail, it's where I'd go.


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## hellosailor (Apr 11, 2006)

John, you must be a rich farmer if price doesn't enter the equation. I think once you start looking at PRICES for coastal property, not in a swamp, near any civilization, with enough water to float how much keel? You'll be crossing big pieces off the map.

Look at the retirement guides, see how each area strikes you for amenities if you want them, or health care, or taxes. Big differences. Want to be within an hour of a hospital or airport? More places crossed off the map. Then take what is left, use Zillow or another online site to see what property is going to cost you--including annual fees and taxes. You may be surprised at how quickly you can cross off most of the coast, or where your choices lead you to.

The other way to do it might be to get a boat up to Maine, or buy it in Maine, and start down the coast. When you find someplace that feels like home, buy in.


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## VallelyJ (Nov 21, 2008)

Thanks again for all your ideas and info.
It's a huge country to look for one small house in (especially one that's not necessarily on the water) and it is tough to know where to start. The Oriental, NC area sounds pretty interesting--thanks for the details about it, PBzeer.
I guess I'd better use other criteria than easy mooring availiabilty to narrow down the list.
If I discover a new sailing mecca in the process, I'll let you all know.
John V.


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## bigdogandy (Jun 21, 2008)

In Florida I would recommend checking out the Merritt Island / Cocoa area, Stuart, St. Augustine, Ft. Myers, and Pensacola. Relatively low cost of living, great weather, and excellent boating environment.


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## mdi (Jan 15, 2009)

bigdogandy said:


> In Florida I would recommend checking out the Merritt Island / Cocoa area, Stuart, St. Augustine, Ft. Myers, and Pensacola. Relatively low cost of living, great weather, and excellent boating environment.


In Pensacola property values are just starting a slow rise on waterfront properties after the fall in '08. There are many many locations of waterfront property on bayous and inland water ways that lead to Bay's and their entrance to the Gulf. Depends of course on the type of vessel and the needs of the boat and the owners. For example multihull drafts allow access to some waterfront property's around the Florida Panhandle that deep draft boats can forget about. The shallower draft bayou's tend to have lower waterfront priced properties. We chose this route, securing property for our own dock and slip.

Depends if you are wanting a marina experience as compared to your own place.


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## polaris2.11 (Mar 21, 2012)

In NC, consider the Pamlico river (and the Albemarle), as well as the Neuse (oriental/New Bern). A bit quieter to the north, outstanding sailing, and plenty of places to moor. I especially like Bay River. I really don't think sailing can get much better than in Pamlico Sound.


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## b40Ibis (Apr 27, 2011)

I am surprised no one has mentioned Charleston yet.


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## Hudsonian (Apr 3, 2008)

I live in New York and am considering retiring to Rhode Island, specifically the Narragansett Bay. I find the summer climate south of New Jersey to be unacceptably hot and humid. 

Rhode lsland's economy has struggled during the recent recession but the household income is still slightly higher than the United States average. The median home in the Providence/New Bedford/Fall River Metro sold for $224,900 vs. the national median of $170,000 (NAR). Cost of living in the Providence Metro has a 109 index vs U.S. average of 100. The relatively high cost of living includes the 5th highest state and local tax burden in the country.

In addition to enjoying a temperate climate, the Narragansett Bay is a wonderful cruising ground with a strong racing scene excellent marine services, and interesting shoreside communities with stimulating cultural opportunities. Try a Jamestown or Warren, RI for a couple of days.


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## n8kraft (Dec 31, 2009)

Why do you want to retire to anywhere on the East Coast? I'd consider getting waterfront property anywhere on Puget Sound (Specifically near Everett or Langley) and drop a mooring out front. Great cruising grounds if you ask me.


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## chef2sail (Nov 27, 2007)

I agree with Oriental in some ways, but what about the hurricanes. Many areas of the southern Chesapeake and eastern shore are just as inexpensive.

I think the Chesapeake is the answer. Thats why I moved here. Great sailing 9 months of the year. You dont have to take the boat out of the water as it doesnt usually freeze. Close to the mountains, close to museums and history of Baltimore and Washington DC and Annapolis yet you can sail to the eastern shore and go back in time 200 years and see no one. Huge amounts of creeks, ribvers and anchorages you can visit and not return for 7 years as there are so many. Large sailing community.

Acessable to the Atlantic for coastal trips to cruise the areas of Long Island, and New England, yet return back when their season eands for glorious fall sailing amongst the leaves and bald eagles.


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## Ulladh (Jul 12, 2007)

Lewes Delaware;

No sales tax
No tax on SS benefits
No personal property tax
No inheritance tax
Tax credit on portion of school property tax for seniors
First $12,000 (might be more) of seniors unearned income tax exempt.

Bay and ocean sailing.
One or two day sail to the Chesapeake.

Half day drive to NY City (if you take the Cape May Ferry)
Half day drive to Washington/Baltimore/Annapolis
3hr to 4hr drive to Philadlephia


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## angelfish (Nov 28, 2012)

n8kraft said:


> Why do you want to retire to anywhere on the East Coast? I'd consider getting waterfront property anywhere on Puget Sound (Specifically near Everett or Langley) and drop a mooring out front. Great cruising grounds if you ask me.


When we started looking for retirement areas, we looked real hard at Puget Sound. Boy, is that place expensive!

I think the west coast of Florida would be as nice as the east coast of FL and less expensive. But if I had my way, I'd go to Oriental, NC.


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## Seaduction (Oct 24, 2011)

Like the other post, we like it here in Florida on the Space Coast. Homes on the canals are only half price compared to 2005- 2006 prices. Lots of retirees here. Good health services, etc. We used to be in Pittsburgh! Brrrrr!


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## angelfish (Nov 28, 2012)

That's a lovely photo, Seaduction. The Island Packet is very cool, also. We have a 32 and just love her.


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## Seaduction (Oct 24, 2011)

I sailed the Chesapeake for years. Always thought there are some great retirement areas around the bay.
The Bahamas are closer from E. Coast Florida however.


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## satillasam (Apr 16, 2012)

I have a mooring I might sell in Stockton Harbor, leads out to upper Penobscot Bay. I hurt myself working on my Seafarer Meridian, built in '67, hull #230. Hopefully I'll get fixed. Had my eyes on Oriental, NC as well. Much longer season. Boat is loaded in Inventory. Anyone would love Belfast too. Stay tuned


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