12
Jan
SmartMoney: Try South Dakota For Affordable Retirement
“South Dakota, with its chilly winters and long stretches of desolate land, may be pretty far down on your list of places to retire. But with the average married boomer facing a retirement savings shortfall of $30,000, advisers say the Mount Rushmore State is worth a look, given its low prices on everything from real estate to food.”
That was the opening paragraph of a January 12 article by Catey Hill at SmartMoney.com. The magazine is currently running a series, “Retire Here, Not There,” featuring affordable retirement alternatives in various states. This week’s article featured South Dakota and recommended four retirement destinations: Rapid City, Sioux Falls, Pierre, and Hill City.
Rick was among the sources interviewed for the article, which you can read here.
Rick Kahler, Certified Financial Planner™, MS, ChFC, CCIM, is president & founder of 
The other Rick K Says:
There you go again trying to sell us on South Dakota.
January 12th, 2012 at 3:04 pm
Jim Says:
It’s not so cheap when us old folks have to own another place down south just to survive the winter months.
January 13th, 2012 at 2:06 pm
Rick Kahler Says:
That can be very true if a person lives outside of the Rapid City area. Fortunately, Rapid City has a micro-climate (a Steppe Climate) that is more similar to, say, Colorado Springs, CO, than Sioux Falls, SD.
While winters can have their cold streaks, we commonly get Chinook winds that can warm temperatures above 50 °F. For example, last week we had 5 days in a row with tempuratures ranging from 55 to 75 degrees. This typically happens 20 times from December to February.
Snowfall is greatest in March, with an average 9.1 inches, and totals 41.1 inches for the season. However, extensive snow cover does not remain for long, with only 9 days per year of 5 inches or more on the ground. If you drive 10 miles out of Rapid City, the climate changes significantly!
Even with our more temperate climate,a number of my clients still enjoy going South for a few months. Many are able to afford to go South for a couple of months on their tax savings alone, as SD has no state income tax. The last time I checked, our Effective Buying Index, was 111% of the national average, so a dollar does go further here!
January 13th, 2012 at 3:12 pm