Should We Leave Minnesota for a Small Town in Nowheresville?
Category: Best Retirement Towns and States
June 10, 2025 —Note: This article was contributed by our friend and frequent contributor, Ed LaFreniere. It is from his column, The Retirement Sage, that he wrote as part of a humor hobby before and during covid. He and his wife spent years researching retirement spots around the country, and one of their conclusions was that choosing a community is one thing — but the surrounding has to work for your lifestyle as well. A number of great suggestions are included in this column.
Dear Retirement Sage:
My Dear Bride of 40 years has been scouring the Internet for
our retirement mecca and has decided that she wants to move to
a small town in Louisiana. It’s on a little lake and that is
known for having two attractive parks, a dozen nice restaurants,
and very low taxes. It was on one of the countless best-places-to-
retire lists, this one created by some website that I’ve never
heard of that probably picked the only ten places it had photos
of.
We are both water rats, having grown up on lakes in the
Midwest, but our lakes are not part of a state that has 2 million
alligators! Nevertheless, she’s convinced that this is our new
Shangri-la. I, however, am far from persuaded, and am
concerned that this could turn into a fiasco – way too abrupt a
departure after decades in the same area of Minnesota. My
thought would be to keep the moving van outside our new place
for a week in case we have to turn right around and come back
to our familiar surroundings. Better yet, I have encouraged her
to rent down there for a year or for a few months and see if we
like the area, but she thinks that would be a waste of money. She
tells me to trust her intuition. Would you?
Comments on "Should We Leave Minnesota for a Small Town in Nowheresville?"
Kate says:
Excellent advice in this article! Especially about medical care. My kids are in health care, and they did the research for me in destinations I was considering ... and the information they found was very distressing (like hospital rankings, need to travel to find an oncologist and other specialists, etc.). But I'd also suggest looking at grocery stores, local libraries, and other lifestyle needs. You might discover that an area actually appeals more as a second home, and that a lot of "residents" disappear during hot, muggy summers or holidays. I also found the local newspapers online, that were EXTREMELY informative (as newspapers disappear, they may have been replaced with community websites, town police logs and other resources). I learned that one popular 55+ community when I was looking was dealing with sinkholes, criminal children moving in with their parents after prison, homes that were abandoned after owners died, and that its large number of elderly residents were being targeted by scammers. In another case, I learned that there was a class action against the developer for bad siding in all the homes. I'm not naming these communities here, since it was a few years ago. In another location I visited, I spoke to residents who bragged about how they all went in & out of each other's homes freely. That might appeal to some people, but I didn't want to be the only unfriendly neighbor who locked my doors LOL. I also met a woman from another community who mentioned she had been ostracized because she disagreed with her neighbor's politics. My point is that you can't do enough research if this would be a major change. I definitely liked the suggestion to rent or sublet for a while to check out the destination. It's cheaper than making a big mistake.
Gerald says:
Odds are if you coming from Minnesota you will absolutely hate the humidity you will find in Louisiana. Also, the odds are you will hate the politics. Even the most conservative Minnesotans will be considered radical liberals in Louisiana.
Larry says:
That is some Sage advice. As Bob Dylan wrote, “Don’t go mistakin’ paradise for that home across the road.”
Admin says:
Two of our friends just left the area where they have lived for 40 years to be near one of the kids and grandchildren. Now they find themselves in a rural area, 30 minutes from a store, with not much in the way of a social life. Meanwhile the grandkids are starting to have a life of their own. I sense some misgivings, but a reluctance to move once again. Look before you leap!
RichPB says:
Absolutely excellent advice! Due to all the above (including comments), I would begin with a "no" position and see if you can be persuaded. #1 Living there for a summer month is critical -- should not be an option. #2 Walking away from your life is HARD!
We moved from our custom-built retirement home of 30 years to a townhouse in the same area/county (same friends, medical, comfortable familiarity). Then circumstances led us to move to a familiar neighboring county. No real surprise for the first year, but then we were blind-sided by a change in HOA membership which caused the extreme stress of a threat to remove a major factor for our decision to move there to begin with. The cost of fighting it could have destroyed our savings (per the attorneys we consulted). Back to point #2. Totally uprooted again after only 18 months, there are no major issues, but moving is HARD! We went from "home" to still very familiar, and it is still hard. A year later, we are happy with our new home (though my wife particularly has struggled with our friends being not too far, but still a significant car trip away). It cost us heavily. We've accommodated and developed new relationships -- but it's been hard. You would need a lot of mutual support! And maybe you just can't adjust... Without living/exploring in a new place for a significant period, you risk one of the worst retirement situations.