Columbia makes Forbes list of 25 best places to retire in 2024
Columbia, with its longstanding focus on higher education, is known for attracting people in their very first years of adulthood. A recent Forbes article reinforced what many in our city know: Columbia also is a great place to spend your later years.
Columbia made the magazine's list of 25 best places to retire in 2024, published last week. Sifting 800 possible locations, Forbes staffers examined factors such as housing costs, "prospects for the local economy, air quality, serious crime and the availability of primary care doctors, as well as whether a place encourages an active lifestyle by making biking or walking convenient," the article notes.
The Forbes list unfolds alphabetically, without ranking.
In its listing for Columbia, the magazine cited these pros: "Median home price $292,000, 26% below national median. High ratio of primary care doctors per capita. Good air quality. Somewhat bikeable. Top state income tax rate, which covers most filers, just lowered to 4.80% with new complete exemption for Social Security benefits."
Cons the article identified included a serious crime rate above the national average and relative lack of walkability.
Fellow Midwestern locales that made the list included college towns and communities such as Lawrence, Kansas; Iowa City, Iowa; Lincoln, Nebraska; and Rochester, Minnesota.
Other college towns around the country counted among the Forbes top 25: Athens, Georgia (University of Georgia), Lexington, Kentucky (University of Kentucky); and Tucson, Arizona (University of Arizona).
For a look at the full list, and the methodology behind it, read the article at Forbes.
Aarik Danielsen is the features and culture editor for the Tribune. Contact him at adanielsen@columbiatribune.com or by calling 573-815-1731. He's on Twitter/X @aarikdanielsen.
This article originally appeared on Columbia Daily Tribune: Forbes names Columbia, Missouri, one of 25 best places to retire in US
