Top 10 places to retire
This article makes interesting reading. It reveals the contradictory appeal of rural settlements. On the one hand it shows the clear attraction of rural places to those seeking to retire. On the other it helps explain why an increasing store of elderly people are making some rural settlements hard to sustain economically in the long term. Having said all that as 65 is the new 40 we shouldn’t worry too much about the active elderly (ie those below 80) moving into some rural places where they offer dynamism and enthusiasm as experienced people with time and volunteering capacity on their hands.
The article also flags up the unfairness of the funding formula for local authorities. Grant allocation concentrates on deprivation not vulnerability and therefore the places which appeal most to rural retirees – those with limited deprivation also have to raise more of their council income through councils tax as they are eligible for fewer grants. Hence the places become still more expensive for people of limited means to live in. Read on to see how the information is set out in more detail in the article itself.
The market town of Skipton, “the gateway to the Dales”, and its surrounding area in Craven, North Yorkshire, is the best place to retire to, according to research by Guardian Money in partnership with credit reference agency Experian.
Despite relatively little sunshine, Skipton scored highly on other indicators, including rainfall, crime, house prices, transport, neighbourliness – and access to glorious countryside.
Experian number-crunched 40 measures that make up “quality of life” as rated by people whose children have left home, with a special emphasis on air quality, crime rate, population density, burglary rates, neighbourliness, good health and life expectancy.
We could only obtain data for local authorities in England.
What does it tell us? That Devon and Dorset will remain firm favourites for years to come – but also that several northern districts beat the south hands down when it comes to quality of life.
None of the big cities came anywhere near the top of the rankings, perhaps confirming the first findings from the government’s National Wellbeing Programme that the happiest people live in remote areas. It ties in with a 2009 survey by Saga, which found the single most important factor older people identify as key for their retirement is access to the countryside.
But the retirement idylls come at a price. Typically, a detached home in one of the top 10 locations, will cost £325,000, with surprisingly little difference between north and south; there’s barely a whisker between the Derbyshire Dales and North Dorset. The two top locations for those with a smaller budget were Torridge in north-east Devon and, the perhaps appropriately named, Eden area of Cumbria.
All come with relatively high council tax, typically around £1,500 for a Band D home, significantly higher than the average £1,304 in London