Connect with us

Alaska

Should You Retire in Alaska?

Published

on

Should You Retire in Alaska?


If you want to minimize taxes in retirement, Alaska may be on your radar. It has the lowest tax burden of any U.S. state.

Residents also get a cut of the state’s oil wealth, courtesy of annual dividends from the Alaska Permanent Fund, which often exceeds $1,000. But if you’re nearing retirement age, don’t start packing your bags for America’s Last Frontier just yet.

An RV travels against the backdrop of mountains.

An RV travels against the backdrop of mountains.

Image source: Getty Images.

The cost of retiring in Alaska

In addition to stunning scenery, Alaska boasts breathtakingly low tax rates. The total tax burden is just 4.9% when you account for all the taxes the state levies. There’s no state personal income tax, so you don’t have to worry about part of your retirement distributions or Social Security check going into state coffers.

Advertisement

There’s also no state sales tax and a flat property tax rate of just 1.07% of an owner-occupied home’s value. And Alaska hasn’t experienced the dramatic spike in home prices that’s occurred in much of the U.S. since 2020.

But out of the 50 states and Washington, D.C., Alaska has the fifth-highest cost of living. It’s topped only by Hawaii, California, the District of Columbia, and Massachusetts.

Life in Alaska is about 25.1% more expensive than the U.S. average, according to the Council for Community & Economic Research (C2ER) survey. Some costs that are significantly higher than average in Alaska:

The high cost of living may be part of the reason why people 65 and up account for just 13.1% of Alaska’s population. Only Utah has a smaller share of retirees.

Quality-of-life considerations

Money isn’t the only factor to weigh in choosing a retirement destination. Climate, recreation, transportation, and proximity to loved ones are other considerations.

Advertisement

You may find aging in place difficult, given the relative isolation, or find yourself spending more money on travel when you visit loved ones. If you’re thinking about retiring to Alaska, consider renting for a year or two first to see if you’re well-suited to the Last Frontier.

The $22,924 Social Security bonus most retirees completely overlook

If you’re like most Americans, you’re a few years (or more) behind on your retirement savings. But a handful of little-known “Social Security secrets” could help ensure a boost in your retirement income. For example: one easy trick could pay you as much as $22,924 more… each year! Once you learn how to maximize your Social Security benefits, we think you could retire confidently with the peace of mind we’re all after. Simply click here to discover how to learn more about these strategies.

View the “Social Security secrets” ›

The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.



Source link

Advertisement

Alaska

Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport busy with holiday travelers

Published

on

Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport busy with holiday travelers


ANCHORAGE, Alaska (KTUU) -Many of the people arriving to and departing from Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport Sunday agreed that Anchorage’s main airport isn’t as tough to navigate as most right now.

On Dec. 22, three days out from both Hanukkah and Christmas, travelers at the airport were lined up, checking in, waiting for baggage, or going through security; all of those, demanding a wait. However, several travelers told Alaska’s News Source about their experiences and what they were expecting during their flights.

Matt Howard departed from Raleigh-Durham International Airport in North Carolina around 5 a.m. “It was the busiest I’ve ever seen it,” Howard said. He estimated he touched down in Anchorage around 6 p.m., adding Ted Stevens was much “less frantic” than the other airports he was at, but thought the evening time frame might have been a contributing factor.

Flying in from Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport in Atlanta, Georgia, Kimberly Lamar said she visits her mother in Alaska at least once a year.

Advertisement

“It was pretty overwhelming, trying to get through from Atlanta,” she said. “Then I got to Seattle; it was hard to get through to the gates of Seattle. And finally, this is the easiest airport I’ve actually been in all day.”

Born and raised in Alaska, Gideon Mahoney was traveling to Colorado where he recently relocated. “I’m actually really surprised, right now it’s easy and we were a little late, so…” Mahoney said, glancing at the line for security.

Growing up in Alaska, Mahoney said flying into Denver International Airport can be overwhelming at times.

“We’re working on figuring out how to deal with that,” he said. “We’re getting it.”

As for travelers who haven’t left just yet, Lamar’s advice was aligned with a prepared statement from Alaska Airlines: both said arriving early is the key for holiday travels.

Advertisement

“If you’re flying, make sure you leave early because those lines are crucial,” Lamar said.

See a spelling or grammar error? Report it to web@ktuu.com



Source link

Advertisement
Continue Reading

Alaska

Hydroponics provide year-round growing for Alaska farmers

Published

on

Hydroponics provide year-round growing for Alaska farmers


On a recent December afternoon, Soldotna farmer Taylor Lewis preps for a day of harvesting crops. She walks to a tray filled with ripe lettuce and snips a head of it by the stem.

It’s just one of about 900 plants that Taylor and her mother-in-law Jayme Lewis will harvest and process this week – despite freezing temperatures and slushy snow outside. That’s because the duo works for Edgy Veggie, an indoor farm that grows produce year round.

“In the summer, a lot of our business drops off because folks are gardening at home. But in the winter, they’re not, because it costs money to heat your greenhouse,” Jayme said. “It costs a lot of money to heat your greenhouse.”

The company is a hydroponic farm, meaning they grow plants without soil. Hydroponic systems recycle and reuse nutrient-filled water, which minimizes waste. Specially made lighting and climate controlled conditions make it possible for Edgy Veggie to grow indoors during the winter months.

Advertisement
Climate controlled grow rooms like this one at Edgy Veggie in Soldotna make it possible to harvest greens and herbs year-round.

Around Thanksgiving, the company harvested 150 pounds of lettuce, enough to make about 800 salads. That took two days and was one of their biggest hauls of the year. Although not a typical harvest for the company, Jayme says she does see an uptick in business during the winter when Alaska’s produce is almost exclusively shipped up from the Lower 48.

“If you go to the grocery store and pick up a head of lettuce right now, by the time you get it home it will be wilted,” Jayme said. “That’s sad. Literally, that’s sad.”

Jayme says some local restaurants have sourced their vegetables from Edgy Veggie because they last longer and are fresher than grocery store produce.

Nestled between two train cars-turned-restaurants on the other side of town, Henry Krull walks inside his shipping container farm. He points to a wall that’s growing hundreds of bunches of butter lettuce.

Advertisement

Krull is the owner of fresh365, another Kenai Peninsula based hydroponic farm. Just like Edgy Veggie, the farm operates entirely indoors.

“The advantage of growing indoors, in a container like we have, is that we can control the environment,” Krull said. “We can grow no matter what’s going on outside. It can be 30 below outside, but it’s always 70 degrees or so inside.”

fresh365 also sees an uptick in direct-to-consumer sales in the winter. Otherwise, most of their sales go to other businesses, like local restaurants.

Lettuce sprouts, like these seen at Edgy Veggie in Soldotna, are placed in a specially designed watering system and grown without soil.

Lettuce sprouts, like these seen at Edgy Veggie in Soldotna, are placed in a specially designed watering system and grown without soil.

And while indoor farming means fresh, local produce year-round for Alaskans, it faces a number of challenges. Krull says growing in a hydroponic setting is much more expensive than traditional farming methods. So, to offset his farm’s energy costs, he installed solar panels, which were partially funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Rural Energy for America Program, or REAP.

Advertisement

But, Krull says the property doesn’t get much sunlight in the winter.

“The sun is a very valuable commodity, it’s valuable for not only producing electricity, but it helps to lower the energy costs,” he said. “And the energy costs of the farm containers we have is actually very, very high, because we can’t take advantage of the sun.”

Edgy Veggie, on the other hand, doesn’t even have solar panels. Jayme says their energy costs are high year round.

“Electricity, especially, is outrageous,” she said. “I wish that the state had some sort of option with the electric companies to help support farming. We’re providing a service to the community, honestly. We’re trying to, but it might run us out of business.”

Other challenges to hydroponics include faulty pumps and timers, ventilation issues and water leaks. Like traditional farming, hydroponic farmers say it’s backbreaking work.

Advertisement

fresh365 owner Henry Krull says the hydroponic farm recently started growing mushrooms, like

fresh365 owner Henry Krull holds a box of lion’s mane. The hydroponic farm recently started growing mushrooms alongside its greens and herbs.

But, for farmers like Taylor Lewis, offering fresh and local produce year round is a labor of love.

“Being able to supply our community with anything fresh is great,” Taylor said. “What we have as options in the grocery store – it’s not cutting it.”

“These belong in every community,” Krull said. “We’ve been able to prove that as a business model, it works. You can make a profit doing it, you can provide a good service to your community, and I think we can really do good for our community by providing something that is not readily available on a year-round basis.”

According to the U.S Department of Agriculture, only 5% of food Alaskans consume is grown locally. The state also has very short growing seasons.

Advertisement





Source link

Continue Reading

Alaska

Nature: Northern Lights above Alaska

Published

on

Nature: Northern Lights above Alaska


Nature: Northern Lights above Alaska – CBS News

Watch CBS News


We leave you this Sunday morning in the spirit of Christmas, with the northern lights in skies above Alaska. Videographer: Michael Clark.

Advertisement

Be the first to know

Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting.




Source link

Advertisement
Continue Reading

Trending