R.I. climbs to No. 29 in 2014 ranking of best states to retire

A BANKRATE.COM RANKING of the 50 states according to their appeal for retirees placed Rhode Island at No. 29, up from No. 40 last year. Above, from left to right, Lisa and Paul Leonowicz and Laurie and Chuck DiMauro enjoy lunch at Andrea in Westerly. / PBN FILE PHOTO/BRIAN MCDONALD
A BANKRATE.COM RANKING of the 50 states according to their appeal for retirees placed Rhode Island at No. 29, up from No. 40 last year. Above, from left to right, Lisa and Paul Leonowicz and Laurie and Chuck DiMauro enjoy lunch at Andrea in Westerly. / PBN FILE PHOTO/BRIAN MCDONALD

PROVIDENCE – Rhode Island moved up 11 spots in a ranking of best states to retire in, compiled annually by personal finance website Bankrate.com.

The Ocean State’s overall score in the 2014 study put the state at No. 29, an improvement over its 2013 rank at No. 40. The breakdown of Rhode Island’s individual criteria scores is as follows:

    Well-being score: 65.2
    Cost-of-living score: 125.3
    Health care score: 55.6
    Tax burden: 10.5 percent of state income
    Violent crime (per 100k people): 252.4
    Property crime (per 100k people): 2572.3
    Possible sunshine: 58 percent annual average
    Average humidity: 66 percent

Despite year-over-year improvement in the state’s appeal as a retirement destination, Rhode Island ranked lower than any other New England state except Connecticut, which came in at No. 40 this year for its relatively high rate of violent crimes and a high tax burden.

Maine ranked highest among the New England states, at No. 12, followed by New Hampshire at No. 13 and Vermont at No. 14. Massachusetts landed at No. 20, performing particularly well for quality of health care and well-being, despite a violent crime rate of 405.5 per 100,000 people.

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In 2013, Massachusetts tied with Michigan for the No. 36 spot. All six New England states improved in 2014 compared with the previous year’s ranking, including Maine, which jumped 36 spots from No. 46 last year, and Vermont which climbed 30 spots.

New York was named the worst state to retire in for 2014, dragged down by high violent crime rate, a high cost of living and tax burden, and a low health care score. South Dakota ranked highest of any state for its high percent of annual sunshine, low tax burden, and high overall well-being score.

To view the complete study results, visit www.bankrate.com.

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