Where do we want to live in retirement?
We have been thinking about this for a while. We have identified two main options.
Staying in NEWARK, DE
We have a nice house. But I have to acknowledge that we're living here because of my job - we even purchased it through the company's relocation benefit when I first started. Furthermore, Newark, DE ranks an "A" on Niche.com for places to live.
Our house is large and nicely appointed. We have space for both my library and organ and plenty of room for guests. Since moving here we have redone the roof and patio, replaced the HVAC units (all three) and put in a customized kitchen.
It has some cons... we do still get water in the basement fitness room immediately after extreme (2+ in.) rains. And I swear that the stairs will someday kill me... they're kind of steep and slippery. (A problem I've noticed when folks build a house and opt for additional height in the rooms.)
So it will need some work... egress windows and water proofing in the basement and maybe some carpet on the stairs in order for it to work long term for us.
Finally, it's biggest draw is that it's only a two-hour drive to go visit our son's family.
Staying put is definitely an option.
Moving to THE VILLAGES, FL
It was about a year ago when YouTube suddenly decided that I needed to know about The Villages in Florida. This is a MASSIVE retirement community built over the past 30 plus years by stringing together what seem to be a huge number of "active 55+ communities". They share amenities across the entire complex, so villagers have access to something like 110 pools, dozens of rec. centers and 700+ holes of golf and more than 3000 clubs & activities. All of this is connected by miles and miles of golf cart pathways so you can essentially live your whole life (if you wanted to) using only a golf cart for travel.
We went there for our "lifestyle visit" last year. I have to say that the place is designed to encourage activity. I have been guilty of leading a relatively sedentary lifestyle apart from my sailing hobby. While down there, I started talking long walks, played a couple of rounds of pitch 'n putt (the most golf we could hack at the time), rode a bike for the first time in 15 years, and even went swimming!
There are some (serious) cons... mainly that it's a two day drive from John and his family. It IS quite centered around the senior lifestyle, and while I'm fine with that, Vicky is 9 years younger than I am, so she's still coming to terms with this.
Also, it IS in Florida. And it gets hot down there. We had previously planned to go down there for the July 4th week... just to see how bad the heat gets in the middle of the summer. I figure as long as I can be active early in the morning and it cools off so you can enjoy the live entertainment at the town squares in the evening, we would just hang indoors in the afternoon (or by the pool).
So time will tell. I do feel we shouldn't keep this hanging over our head too long though. The goal of the July trip is to rule it out if the heat is intolerable. Beyond that, I hope to know by the end of the year what we want to do.
As a final note, I'll add that I understand that the decision to be active or sedentary is in my own head. There are plenty of opportunities to walk, bike, even swim locally. Free live music each night and golf cart travel, however, doesn't exist around here.
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