Virginia
Study: VA the fourth most ‘retirement-friendly’ state
PORTSMOUTH, Va. (WAVY) – A new study ranks Virginia fourth among the best states for retirees.
The study by home care agency Polaris Home Care analyzed social and economic factors, including crime rates, annual medical costs, housing costs, and state salaries. This analysis revealed an index score out of 100 for every state based on retirement accessibility.
Virginia received a score of 87.48/100.
Virginia performs well across key factors, notably benefitting from one of the highest average annual earnings of $68,597.
The agency says the state has one of the lowest violent crime rates at 208 incidents per 100,000 people and a total crime rate around 24% lower than the national average at 1,850.7 incidents per 100,000 population, highlighting the above-average safety levels offered in the state.
Idaho ranks as the most retirement-friendly state, with Arizona and North Dakota coming in second and third, respectively.
Complete rankings:
Rank
State
Retirement Index Score (/100)
1
Idaho
100.00
2
Arizona
90.67
3
North Dakota
90.48
4
Virginia
87.48
5
Alabama
86.34
6
Wyoming
84.42
7
Florida
83.77
8
Mississippi
83.56
9
Minnesota
82.98
10
Michigan
82.88
11
North Carolina
82.50
12
Kentucky
81.84
13
Utah
81.74
14
Nevada
81.67
15
Rhode Island
81.36
16
West Virginia
81.24
17
Wisconsin
78.93
18
New York
78.16
19
Hawaii
77.83
20
South Dakota
76.52
21
Colorado
76.12
22
Connecticut
75.82
23
Maryland
74.96
24
Washington
74.74
25
Indiana
74.32
26
Pennsylvania
73.93
27
Tennessee
73.73
28
Massachusetts
73.23
29
Maine
73.13
30
Iowa
73.07
31
Delaware
70.50
32
Arkansas
70.20
33
Vermont
69.22
34
South Carolina
68.94
35
New Mexico
68.43
36
Oklahoma
68.38
37
Montana
68.20
38
New Hampshire
67.28
39
Ohio
66.60
40
Georgia
66.35
41
Kansas
64.41
42
New Jersey
63.38
43
California
63.26
44
Oregon
62.86
45
Illinois
62.64
46
Louisiana
61.55
47
Nebraska
61.52
48
Texas
53.49
49
Missouri
49.69
50
Alaska
41.44