18 Affordable Southwestern Retirement Towns: 4, #1

By Kris Kelley

UPDATED  September, 2021!  With its abundant sunshine, striking natural landscapes and relaxed lifestyle, the Southwestern United States is wonderful place to retire. Unfortunately, many towns in the Southwest are expensive.  Places such as Flagstaff, Arizona and Georgetown, Texas are often hailed as great places to retire, but they have living costs well above the national average.   Here, though, are 18 Southwestern towns with living costs equal to or below the national average, determined primarily by housing prices.  Some of these spots are fairly well known, while others are still off the national radar.   All of these places have safe neighborhoods, recreational and/or cultural amenities, a local or nearby public library and local or nearby accredited medical facilities.  Each also has a welcoming quality that makes it a desirable place to live.    No one place is perfect, however, so we take a look at each town's drawbacks as well.

 

• Language: English
• Publisher: Kris Kelley
• Release date: Nov 20, 2021
• ISBN: 9781533781031

Kris Kelley

Kris Kelley lives in beautiful Colorado has been finding and reviewing great places to retire since 2006. She is an avid traveler, always looking for that hidden gem of a town, whether it be along an ocean, in a desert or on a mountaintop.

Book preview

18 Affordable Southwestern Retirement Towns

Best Southwestern Towns for Retirement on a Budget

Written and Edited by Kris Kelley

Copyright © 2015-2021 by Webwerxx, Inc.

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced in any way without the express written consent of Webwerxx, Inc.

Note:

Various efforts have been made to verify the content in this book, but some information may have changed since publication.   This especially applies to the median home price and cost of living number in small towns as these are particularly sensitive to market changes. 

As a result, Webwerxx, Inc. cannot guarantee the accuracy of the content contained within this publication and urges you to do in-depth research when seeking a place to retire.

For simplicity’s sake, home prices and population numbers are rounded up.

Cover Image: © Scott Prokop/123RF.COM

Table of Contents

Introduction

Buckeye, Arizona

Cottonwood, Arizona

Glendale, Arizona

Green Valley, Arizona

Mesa, Arizona

Sahuarita, Arizona

Sun City Arizona

Tucson, Arizona

Yuma, Arizona

Laughlin, Nevada

Mesquite, Nevada

Bosque Farms, New Mexico

Rio Rancho, New Mexico

Broken Arrow, Oklahoma

Norman, Oklahoma

Nacogdoches, Texas

San Marcos, Texas

Surfside Beach, Texas

Introduction

What states comprise the Southwestern United States?  Opinions vary, but for the purposes of this book the region includes Arizona, Nevada, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Texas.  The area is characterized by abundant sunshine, striking natural landscapes, big skies and a relaxed lifestyle.

Unfortunately, many towns in the Southwest are expensive.  Places such as Flagstaff, Arizona and Georgetown, Texas are often hailed as great spots to retire, but they have living costs well above the national average. 

Here, though, are 18 Southwestern towns with living costs equal to or below the national average, determined primarily by housing prices.  Some of these towns are well known, while others are still off the national radar.   

All these places have safe neighborhoods, recreational and/or cultural amenities, a local or nearby public library and local or nearby accredited medical facilities.

Each also has a welcoming quality that makes it a desirable place to live.    No one place is perfect, however, so we also look at each town's drawbacks.

Buckeye, Arizona

Buckeye is 35 miles from downtown Phoenix and is the western most city in the Phoenix metro area.  Its agricultural heritage is visible in the surrounding acres of cotton and alfalfa,