future retirement requesting opinion input from anyone

[brewerjerry]

Hi All

          Retirement is looming once the house sells

 

  has anyone move from city life to country life ? 

 

  did you cope with the change ok ?

 

  my intention is to stay in BC Canada

 

but i imagine a chsnge from city to country anywhere in the world would be a similar experience

 

 So anyone done the move ?

 

    Country Love it or Hate it  ? 

 

    any regrets ? 

 

     any thoughts ? 

 

        cheers

           jerry 

Edited June 25, 2022 by brewerjerry

[Corsairfoxfouruncle]

I grew up in Rural Wisconsin and currently live in the suburbs of Chicago. Id drop it all to go back to rural living. The biggest thing to remember is the lack of convenience. You will need to travel to get to stores or doctors or anything else. Nothing is right around the corner. We would do a grocery trip once a week and buy everything we thought we may need as it was a decent drive to get there. If you are considering this move think on adding a deep freeze to your appliances. You can buy in bulk and freeze. A bulk discount company like Costco or Sams club may help with groceries and other necessities.

       As for other issues medical response can be delayed in the country, hospitals and Doctor’s are farther apart. Nothing a few extra minutes of planning cant compensate for though. If you know you will need to travel from the country to the city. You tend to organize everything like shopping, doctor’s visits, and similar for your trips into town. Im not sure what the hunting situation is in Canada anymore as the laws have changed a few times over the years. But if you enjoy game foods a deep freeze is also a good option for storing meats.

 

Dennis

[John Laidlaw]

Everything that Dennis said, plus - depending on how deep you get into the country - a generator capable of powering freezers and well pump if that's your only source of water (and you don't have a header tank as a reserve). Inventory control is the key to everything, just to make sure you don't run out of wood, oil or propane, plus petrol or diesel for the generator.

[Swamp Donkey]

I did this in reverse. When I met my wife, I was living to the west of London (I was based at LHR) and Mrs SD lived in a small village in rural Essex. Approaching retirement I sold up and moved to Essex. I ‘hated’ it, I’m not built for country living as all the stuff outlined by Dennis didn’t do it for me. Upon retirement we sold up and moved 300 miles north, now living on the coast just 15 minutes train ride to Newcastle and I love it. I filled the car up the other day, first time this year! City life for me, every time

 

SD

[cmatthewbacon]

TBH, I don’t think the change from city to country is the same anywhere in the world. England is small enough that nowhere is really very far from a city (whether you’d want to go there is another matter), and small towns and large villages abound in more rural areas. So it’s not really an either/or. Yes, you could go lose yourself in the wilderness up a Lake District valley or in the middle of a Cornish moor, but you’d have to be quite deliberate about it. On the bigger question, I lived in London for ten years, and loved it at that age and stage of my life, but when it came to bringing up the kids, moved to a well equipped small town in Yorkshire with good state schools, surrounded by moor and dale.

I think it depends on what you want to do in retirement. If you want to spend lots of time in the man cave punctuated by long walks or other exercise in the fresh air, and are self sufficient, then going country could work (but so could living “15 minutes on the train” from the city). If you want the opportunity to take in a restaurant, hang out in a cafe, join a modelling club and go to the odd music gig, then city could work (but so could etc. as above)

You don’t mention whether you have an “other half” in the equation, but if you do then will they be comfortable with the same things you are, and are you confident that each of you is the only company the other needs if you’re going to be isolated? And if there is no other half, are you comfortable being genuinely alone, with some effort needed to even see another human being, never mind hang out?

If you’ve got a bit of time before the house sells, why not AirBNB in a couple of places of different sorts for a few days at a time and see what you make of the neighbourhood and how you feel?

Good luck — and bear in mind that retirement is a big life change as well as moving is, so you might want to consider not doing both at the same time! See what retired life feels like and what you want to do in your retirement, settle into it, and then make the call on where you want to spend it…

best,

M.

(PS: if you are on your own and want to go full rural, think about getting a dog. A boon companion and they'll keep you honest about getting out of the house and doing some exercise regularly!)

[wombat]

Everything Corsair says...but from the experience of my wife’s grandparents, consider being remote from medical infrastructure not just now, but in 5, 10, 15, 20 years (with luck).  Before too long they had to move back somewhat nearer to “civilisation” as their dependence on medical access increased very significantly as they aged.

[Paul821]

@cmatthewbacons

 

Said most of the things I was going to say but

 

@brewerjerrym

 

IS probably too far down the line for the most important lesson we would pass on in relation to the question. 20 years ago we bought our "retirement" home which allowed us to join local societies and build up a new network of friends, this served us well as our final retirement home is in the next village and as our brush with COVID this week has shown we had plenty of offers of help.

 

planning is key, we were fortunate as both or jobs allowed us the flexibility, and income, to take this approach. I would suggest you review that you have done, outside of work, over the past year and list as much as you can.Add to the list some things that could happen, such as health matters and the price of fuel going up. Then for city / urdan / rural say how each would impact on your quality of life.

 

Lastly the UK is different to Canada for example Amazon Prime deliveries and home deliveries from supermarkets are availablein most places. These have been a lifeline to us since fully moving to the country.

 

Whatever your choice Good Luck in retirement.

[brewerjerry]

Hi All

          Thanks for all the replies, all give me things to think of

     divorced years ago, hence posting here for valued BM input 

  

  keep the opinions going, good or bad 

 

   it all helps, as somethings i hadn't even thought of 🙂

 

      cheers

         jerry

       

[dogsbody]

I retired 7 years ago, but stayed in our small city. Neither me nor the missus really felt like going out to the country. We both grew up on farms some miles from small towns, so that didn't really appeal to us. Also, two of our 3 daughters live here, where they were born and it's nice having them near.

Our city ( population around 80,000 ) is the biggest place in the upper corner of Alberta. A 2 hour drive south puts you at the first place of habitation, a small village of about 100 souls. There are a few small towns as you drive the next 2.5 hours before you get to the city of Edmonton, where there is much more going on. We do make the trip a few times per years, as our middle daughter lives there. Also we will usually do a Costco run on the way out homeward bound, after hitting a few shopping malls and hobby stores.

 

Wherever you go, Jerry, make sure you have Internet connection and keep in touch here, on the forum.

 

 

 

 

Chris

[bootneck]

17 hours ago, brewerjerry said:

  has anyone move from city life to country life ?

Hi Jerry,

 

I thought that everywhere in BC was country life, including Vancouver!   I certainly wish I was back there again.  Here, in England, I retired to a seaside town in the south west ten years ago; however,I have chosen a place that is within walking distance to local shops and the doctors etc.

I would definitely agree with the comments, about being near to health and local facilities, as it can be surprising how soon after retirement that we cannot depend on jumping in the car and going off to shops or pharmacy

 

Mike.

[Pete Robin]

I can't comment as I haven't done it. However, having had to retire "broken" if you like, I would say I am envious and would have loved a country lifestyle when I was a lot younger and able to do it properly. What I can say is whatever you decide, I hope you have a Healthy, Long and Very Satisfying retirement.

Regards

Pete

 

[lasermonkey]

I only lived in a city (London) for the first two years of my life. I grew up in a small town (St Neots) which grew and is still growing into a much larger town. I didn’t like it, so moved to a smaller village over the border in Bedfordshire. That also grew (and is still growing) and is too busy for me and my Mrs. Neither of us are very fond of people, especially the noise they make. 
 

I am semi-retired due to long-term illness, though I still have eleven years to go before I can claim my pension. We are moving to the Suffolk coastal area soon, if the house sale goes ok, as it’s our favourite part of the country. We would have preferred something a bit more isolated than we’re moving to, but the house prices in that part of the country rocketed over the past couple of years and as the Reverend Spooner might say, Cheggers can’t be boozers*.
 

We are calling this is our pre-retirement move. Whether it is our “forever home” remains to be seen, but at least we now have a foothold in the right area. 

 

If I had my way, I’d never visit another city. I hate the crowds, the noise and the bright lights. Give me peace, quiet and nature any day!

 

* sadly ironic, I know.  

[brewerjerry]

Hi

    Again thanks for the input, it all helps with making the decision

 

 

   i sat down & tried talking with my cat, but he just looks and stares at me 😂

 

     cheers

       jerry

[Corsairfoxfouruncle]

54 minutes ago, brewerjerry said:

Hi

    Again thanks for the input, it all helps with making the decision

 

 

   i sat down & tried talking with my cat, but he just looks and stares at me 😂

 

     cheers

       jerry

As long as you feed him and give him the attention he wants he’ll go anywhere with you. Cats are independent but fiercely loyal in my experience. 

[brewerjerry]

2 hours ago, Corsairfoxfouruncle said:

As long as you feed him and give him the attention he wants he’ll go anywhere with you. Cats are independent but fiercely loyal in my experience. 

Hi

      Yep he is a good old cat about 14yrs +  and retired to indoors only now

       he has actually lived longer than the two dogs i had, but both were old rescue dogs

       so thankfully he will be ok with me getting a dog in retirement 

     cheers

        jerry 

[Skodadriver]

I realise Canada is a very different proposition from Scotland but I strongly endorse the advice to think about access to medical, dental and veterinary treatment and look ahead to days when mobility may be an issue and driving may no longer be possible. We don't know what is round the corner and illness or disability can strike suddenly and severely.

 

When my wife and I retired we decided to stay put in our nice house in a pleasant town with good facilities and some of Scotland's finest outdoor areas a short distance away. This decision was significantly influenced by the experience of friends. They were fanatically keen sailors and relocated from Glasgow to a remote area on the Scottish west coast when the husband retired at age 60. Within about three years he was diagnosed with "wet" macular degeneration, unusual but not unheard of for somebody in their early sixties. He quickly became unable to drive, let alone sail, and they really had no choice but to move to Inverness where treatment and support were more readily available. Apart from the upheaval, disruption and expense of two house moves they lost quite a bit of money on a sailing-related business they had been trying to set up.

 

Even if we hadn't been put off by what happened to our friends, we didn't really have any reason to move.  We both grew up in urban areas, we don't have children so there is no issue of moving "closer to the family" (or further away!) and Brexit has completely screwed any thoughts we might have had about relocating to Germany where my sister lives. In many ways we have the best of both worlds living in a good-sized town with the Scottish Highlands on the doorstep.

 

Dave G 🇺🇦

[Admiral Puff]

My .5 of a cent's worth ...

 

I retired earlier than I had intended because my wife was diagnosed with terminal lung cancer. After that reached its inevitable end point in early 2008, I stayed in the Big Smoke (Sydney, where we'd been living for over thirty years) because I had a nice house in a nice area and was close to relatives, friends and facilities. However, the area started to loose its niceness when the developers moved in with serious intent and, having been born in the country and grown up there for most of my pre-teen years, and becoming increasingly peeved by what was going on in the area, I decided that I wanted a change and started to look around towards the end of 2014. My brother and his tribe, who had been living in Orange for quite a while, had been at me ever since Chris died to move up there, and that prompted me to start looking around the Central West. I soon found a place that I liked for the right money, and the move was on. I had little trouble selling the house in Sydney, and eventually made the move up here on the Australia Day weekend (26-7 January) of 2015.

 

I haven't regretted making the move. Although I'm about 20 km south of Orange, I'm still reasonably close to facilities, there's no shortage of medical and other similar services, and Sydney is only a bit over three hours' drive away if I need to go there (which I have to do occasionally, because no-one up here has the technology to service my car). I'm now approaching 76 years of age, and am still quite able to look after myself. However, should the time ever arise when I can't get around - in particular, if ever I become unable to drive - I know I'll have to move into town. That's a bridge I'll cross when and if I have to. At the moment I'm in no hurry to move anywhere.

[Cammer625]

Yeah Orange is gods country. Born and bred, never left and never will.  20km north. Country living is still by far the best thing for your life. Less stress, friendlier and all that.  Whilst you can get around I think the options are broader.  Definitely be near the services you think you might need in the future.  And make sure that when you downsize you can still move somewhere else if need be (like we have some very cheap country towns but if you move there, well, you can’t just sell up and move back to the bigger towns).  We know that at some point in the future we will have to move but, hopefully, that’s 20+ years done the track. 
Good luck with the decision making!

[JohnT]

I'd endorse what @Skodadriver Dave said above.  Again another Scot here so what advice I can give has to be seen through the eyes of a much smaller country.   In the UK 300 miles is a long trip !!

 

I was born, bred, educated and first two jobs in Edinburgh so a city boy.  Moved for job number three to a small country town and decided there was no point in unpacking as its only going to be just for a year or two.  I knew within six weeks I wasn't going back to the city.  Lived in a semi rural environment ever since  and enjoyed it.  I'm still working though past the normal retirement age and will do so as long as life permits.

 

Everyone's needs change though as the years go by.  For example I have two elderly in laws whose medical conditions require good local health care from local doctors and hospital care. 

 

I think the mistake a lot of retirees make is that they go too far from civilisation if I can put it that way.  Fine if one is fit and healthy and in your 50's and 60's but what will it look like in your 70's, 80's and 90's (we hope)?  My suggestion is choose carefully and find a small county town as we would say here.  6000 -15000 people. Big enough to have doctors surgery, dentists, vets, bookshop, stores, garages etc but small enough to be a short walk to the river, woods etc too.   

 

Good hunting 

[brewerjerry]

Hi All

          Many thanks again for all the opinions and taking the time to tell them

     it helps me a lot in trying to figure out my retirement options 

     cheers

        jerry

[brewerjerry]

Hi All

          just to update, sold the house,  and  decided to try  out ' country life '  canadian style for a couple of years at least, to see if it works

       interesting to no longer live in a city, but it is a central hub town for services in the area, so has most things nearby 

  cheers

    jerry

 

 

[IanHx]

Well, the UK govt are talking about bringing forward the rise in retirement age to 68, and thrown a 12 month spanner in the works for me and other 50-somethings.To be honest, the calculation now is not "can I afford a comfortable retirement?" ,   it's  "how early can I retire and survive until state retirement age on existing savings - and then live on catfood and state pension ?".   Disagree on principle to linking retirement age to average life expectancy, as the fairer sex tend to outlive men substantially.

Edited November 26, 2022 by IanHx

[KITCAT]

It all depends on who you are. My heimat is a lovely little village on the Cumbrian coast and when I was old enough I moved to Manchester After a few years I grew up thought for myself so goodbye lonely sunsets and I don't have to drive round mountains go begin a journey. Will the last one out please turn off the lights I mean the local hotel, the last pub in the world which could'nt pay the music licence ounce the chief left all the local derilicts had to sit in silence. The last dance is over there's nothing left to say.

Edited November 26, 2022 by KITCAT

[jenko]

Just a minor point. We are all getting older NOT younger. In the long term think about support networks if / when you are ill. infirm or heaven help it losing your marbles.  The more isolated you are the more difficult it is.  Mrs. Jenko and I have thought about moving away from where we live but as pensioners have decided not to because our friends and support network is here where we live at the moment. 

 

Just something to think about.

 

Dick

[dogsbody]

So, Jerry, did you move closer to the mountains or the sea?

 

 

 

Chris