Yahoo Finance 10 Best Places in Virginia for a Couple To Live on Only a Social Security Check
The Commonwealth of Virginia lures retirees with favorable tax conditions, low crime rates, nearly 100 hospitals throughout the state, beautiful views and a rich history.
Discover: 10 Places To Retire That Are Just Like Arizona but Way Cheaper
Learn: 3 Ways To Recession-Proof Your Retirement
You won’t pay estate taxes or have your Social Security benefits taxed in Virginia. Withdrawals from your retirement accounts and pension incomes are deductible for seniors — up to $12,000.
Virginia also offers some of the nation’s lowest crime rates. Apartments.com reported earlier this year that the Old Dominion’s violent crime rate is one of the lowest in the U.S. at 2.3% and that burglary rates are well below the national average.
The state has its expensive pockets, particularly in northern Virginia near Washington D.C., but there are multiple locations that are more friendly to retirees on tight budgets.
If you’re interested in retiring to Virginia but plan to live on just Social Security checks, GOBankingRates has done some of your homework for you. We’ve analyzed data from the U.S. Census, Sperling’s Best Places, Zillow, the Bureau of Labor Statistics and the Social Security Administration to compile a top-10 list of places that combine your level of affordability with strong livability scores. We’ve factored in that the average Social Security benefit for couples these days is around $3,580 a month.
Our list includes large and small communities, the state capital and a No. 1 entry where the average monthly rent is less than $1,300. Read on for our full countdown, followed by our complete methodology.
Check out 15 other places you can live on just Social Security.
10. Rustburg
Average rent: $1,395
Average total monthly cost of living: $3,142
Livability score: 75
Tiny Rustburg, home to about 2,000 people, is an unincorporated community located 12 miles south of Lynchburg in south-central Virginia. Retired couples spend about $381 a month for groceries and about $362 a month for utilities here. Rustburg is home to the historic Campbell County Courthouse, build in the late 1840s.
Check Out: 7 Places to Retire in the Midwest That Are Just Like the Coasts But Cheaper
9. Petersburg
Average rent: $1,239
Average total monthly cost of living: $2,938
Livability score: 63
Petersburg has the lowest monthly rent and total cost of living in our list, and it’s one of two places in our list with a total cost of living less than $3,000 a month. Petersburg also has the lowest livability score, but it boasts numerous historic buildings and other sites. It’s located about 20 miles south of Richmond — the state capital — along the Appomattox River.
8. Salem
Average rent: $1,381
Average total monthly cost of living: $3,145
Livability score: 77
Home to multiple baseball and softball tournaments each year, Salem bills itself as “Virginia’s Championship City.” About 25,000 people live here, with nearly 20% of them age 65 or older. You’ll find Salem on the border with West Virginia, about 20 minutes west of Roanoke.
7. Norfolk
Average rent: $1,481
Average total monthly cost of living: $3,215
Livability score: 81
With around 238,000 residents, Norfolk is the most populous city in our top 10. It also has the highest average monthly rent and highest total cost of living in our list, but its livability score is third-highest. Attractions include multiple museums, minor league baseball and hockey, and festivals throughout the year. Norfolk is located in southeast Virginia and is home to Naval Station Norfolk and one of two NATO Strategic Command headquarters.
6. Waynesboro
Average rent: $1,368
Average total monthly cost of living: $3,020
Livability score: 72
Waynesboro’s location at the junction of Shenandoah National Park’s Skyline Drive, the Blue Ridge Parkway and the Appalachian Trail makes it a popular destination for hiking, biking, paddling and fishing. Cost-conscious retirees may also appreciate its reasonable monthly cost of living, just over $3,000.
5. Roanoke
Average rent: $1,269
Average total monthly cost of living: $3,009
Livability score: 75
Historic Roanoke sits along the Blue Ridge Parkway in southwest Virginia. It’s a popular destination for mountain biking, hiking and scenic drives. Roanoke is also within reach for many couples living on Social Security alone, with average monthly costs for groceries coming in around $380 and utilities costing about $347 a month.
4. Richmond
Average rent: $1,453
Average total monthly cost of living: $3,161
Livability score: 84
Virginia’s state capital, home to about 226,000 residents, offers the second-highest livability score on our list. It’s also within reach financially for many retired couples relying on just Social Security benefits. Richmond’s average monthly rent comes in below $1,500, and utilities are reasonable at under $350. There’s plenty to do here, particularly if you’re an outdoors enthusiast or a history buff. Richmond incorporated back in 1742 and is the site of Patrick Henry’s “Give me liberty or give me death” speech, along with many other historical biggies.
3. South Hill
Average rent: $1,325
Average total monthly cost of living: $3,018
Livability score: 76
A small town roughly halfway between Raleigh and Richmond, South Hill has a population of about 4,600 — nearly 24% of whom are age 65 and above. It’s close to two large lakes — Buggs Island Lake and Lake Gaston — and offers attractions like a farmers market and the historic Colonial Center for the Performing Arts.
2. Staunton
Average rent: $1,411
Average total monthly cost of living: $3,049
Livability score: 78
Nearly 300-year-old Staunton is located in the Shenandoah Valley, about 40 miles west of Charlottesville and 157 miles southwest of Washington, D.C. Its numerous cultural offerings include the American Shakespeare Center, the Heifetz International Music Institute, and the presidential library of native son Woodrow Wilson. About 26,000 people live in Staunton.
1. Lynchburg
Average rent: $1,285
Average total monthly cost of living: $2,974
Livability score: 90
Lynchburg manages to combine a high livability score with an average monthly cost of living for retired couples that is below $3,000. Not to be confused with Lynchburg, Tennessee (the home of Jack Daniel’s whiskey), the Virginia version is located near the center of the state at the foot of the Blue Ridge Mountains. About 14% of its roughly 79,000 residents are age 65 or older. Residents and visitors enjoy access to numerous parks, trails and historic sites, as well as a riverfront downtown. Monthly rent for retired couples comes in around $1,285, the second lowest in our top 10.
Methodology: To find the best places in Virginia for a couple to live on only Social Security benefits, GOBankingRates gathered populations for cities in Virginia through the U.S. Census American Consumer Survey. For each city, GOBankingRates checked cost-of-living indexes from Sperling’s Best Places across multiple expenditure categories including groceries, healthcare, utilities, transportation and miscellaneous. Each cost-of-living index was multiplied by each expenditure category’s national average cost as sourced from the Bureau of Labor Statistics 2022 consumer expenditure survey to find the expenditure costs in each city. The average rent for each city was sourced from the Zillow Observed Rental Index. Adding those figures to monthly expenditure costs provides the total monthly cost for living in each city. The average Social Security benefits per month were sourced from the Social Security Administration Monthly Statistical Snapshot and doubled to find a couple’s average Social Security benefits. Every city’s total monthly cost above the monthly Social Security benefits for a couple was removed. The livability index was sourced from AreaVibes, and all locations with scores under 70 were removed from consideration. The livability index was scored and weighted at 1.50, and the total monthly cost was scored and weighted at 1.20. Those scores were combined and sorted to find the best places in Virginia for a couple to live on Social Security benefits alone. All data was collected on and is up to date as of Nov. 9, 2023.
More From GOBankingRates
How Big Is the Average Social Security Check of a Middle-Class Retiree?
These 10 Cars Could Drain Your Savings Through Constant Repairs
This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: 10 Best Places in Virginia for a Couple To Live on Only a Social Security Check
