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SmartAsset.com: Wetumpka, Tallassee Named in Top 10 of Best Places to Retire in Alabama

New York financial technology company SmartAsset has completed its sixth annual study, and determined that two Elmore County towns rank in the top 10 places to retire in Alabama.

Wetumpka came in sixth place, followed closely by Tallassee at 7th place.

FROM SMARTASSET.COM

Achieving retirement is a life goal for almost everyone, and each person has a different idea of how they’ll spend their non-working time. Some want to travel the world, while others want to relax by a lake.

In its sixth annual study, New York financial technology company SmartAsset determined the best cities to retire in Alabama by analyzing their tax friendliness, availability of medical care and social opportunities for seniors.

You can see the study results, methodology and interactive map here:

https://smartasset.com/retirement/retirement-calculator#Alabama

Methodology

To find the best places to retire, SmartAsset gathered data on three separate regional factors that affect the quality of life for retirees, including tax-friendliness, medical care and social opportunities.

First, we looked at state and local tax rates, considering two types of taxes: income and sales. We calculated effective rates based on a retiree earning $35,000 annually (from retirement savings, Social Security and part-time employment). We subtracted income taxes paid from the gross income to determine disposable income. Sales taxes paid were calculated based on the disposable income being spent on taxable goods.

Next, we determined the number of doctors’ offices, recreation centers and retirement centers per thousand residents in each location. Finally, we measured the number of seniors in each city as a percentage of the total population.

In our final analysis, we ranked each location on these three factors. Then we calculated an average ranking for each area and weighted the three factors equally. The areas with the highest average ranking were determined to be the best places to retire.

Sources: US Census Bureau 2016 County Business Patterns (CBP) and ZIP Code Business Patterns (ZBP), Avalara, US Census Bureau 2018 American Community Survey, government websites