Top 20 LGBT-Friendly Cities for Retirement
February 27, 2018 by Michael Fischer
Retirement affords many seniors the opportunity to choose where they want to spend their post-work years, with factors such as weather, location, cost of living, health care options, senior living facilities, activities and culture influencing their decision.
Older people who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender have to be even more selective about choosing where to retire, as not all cities in the U.S. welcome those living “nontraditional” lifestyles, according to a new report from SeniorAdvice.com, a senior housing referral service.
Click HERE to view the original article via ThinkAdvisor.
This week, SeniorAdvice.com released its second annual list of the best cities for LGBT seniors that takes into consideration percentage of this population in the area, presence of gay-friendly senior communities, and local and state legislation protecting the LGBT community, among other factors.
It also includes each city’s SeniorScore, a proprietary ranking calculated by compiling and factoring some 100 variables, including access to health care and number of senior residents, to help determine how well a specific location accommodates the comfort and needs of senior citizens. The final score is curved based on a linear curving method.
This year’s list of top cities has been expanded to include both large and medium-sized ones. SeniorAdvice.com defined medium-sized cities as those with a population of 50,000 to 500,000 residents, and large cities as having more than 500,000 residents.
Following are the top gay-friendly cities in the U.S., according to SeniorAdvice.com, including its comments about a key feature of each city:
- Pittsburgh
(Received a perfect score from the Human Rights Campaign for the city’s laws, policies and services inclusive of LGBT people)
- SeniorScore: 79
- Health and safety: 76
- Recreation and leisure: 78
- Finances: 65
- General quality of life: 61
- Baltimore
(35+ years of LGBT community support and advocacy)
- SeniorScore: 68
- Health and safety: 66
- Recreation and leisure: 63
- Finances: 54
- General quality of life: 60
- Albuquerque
(Lower property taxes and great weather)
- SeniorScore: 73
- Health and safety: 62
- Recreation and leisure: 67
- Finances: 59
- General quality of life: 72
- San Francisco
(LGBT capital of the U.S.)
- SeniorScore: 72
- Health and safety: 69
- Recreation and leisure: 66
- Finances: 51
- General quality of life: 70
- Cleveland
(43+ years of LGBT community support and advocacy)
- SeniorScore: 69
- Health and safety: 67
- Recreation and leisure: 73
- Finances: 53
- General quality of life: 51
- San Diego
(Lower crime rates; good weather)
- SeniorScore: 71
- Health and safety: 69
- Recreation and leisure: 60
- Finances: 52
- General quality of life: 74
- Salt Lake City
(A top city for health care; lesbian mayor: Jackie Biskupski)
- SeniorScore: 71
- Health and safety: 68
- Recreation and leisure: 63
- Finances: 58
- General quality of life: 6
- Boston
(An abundance of great hospitals, home health and Medicare providers in the city)
- SeniorScore: 68
- Health and safety: 73
- Recreation and leisure: 63
- Finances: 50
- General quality of life: 58
- Tampa
(Affordable living, lower crime, world-class beaches and beautiful weather)
- SeniorScore: 74
- Health and safety: 69
- Recreation and leisure: 61
- Finances: 64
- General quality of life: 69
- New Orleans
(Many area support and advocacy groups for LGBT seniors and a high LGBT population)
- SeniorScore: 76
- Health and safety: 68
- Recreation and leisure: 68
- Finances: 65
- General quality of life: 67
- Los Angeles
(Huge number of senior living facilities in and around the city)
- SeniorScore: 67
- Health and safety: 69
- Recreation and leisure: 57
- Finances: 44
- General quality of life: 69
- Columbus, Ohio
(Affordable living and lower income taxes)
- SeniorScore: 72
- Health and safety: 72
- Recreation and leisure: 69
- Finances: 57
- General quality of life: 58
- Seattle
(Large number of senior living facilities in and around the city)
- SeniorScore: 71
- Health and safety: 68
- Recreation and leisure: 67
- Finances: 56
- General quality of life: 62
- Providence, Rhode Island
(Scenic East Coast city with lots of golf and miles of beautiful coastlines)
- SeniorScore: 65
- Health and safety: 72
- Recreation and leisure: 63
- Finances: 45
- General quality of life: 50
- Santa Fe, New Mexico
(High senior population)
- SeniorScore: 75
- Health and safety: 62
- Recreation and leisure: 75
- Finances: 63
- General quality of life: 64
- Palm Springs, California
(High number of same-sex households)
- SeniorScore: 76
- Health and safety: 61
- Recreation and leisure: 76
- Finances: 52
- General quality of life: 78
- Portland, Oregon
(High LGBT population)
- SeniorScore: 73
- Health and safety: 70
- Recreation and leisure: 70
- Finances: 55
- General quality of life: 62
- Atlanta
(Affordable living and lower-cost senior living facilities)
- SeniorScore: 75
- Health and safety: 69
- Recreation and leisure: 67
- Finances: 66
- General quality of life: 64
- Austin
(High LGBT population)
- SeniorScore: 79
- Health and safety: 71
- Recreation and leisure: 65
- Finances: 60
- General quality of life: 84
- Fort Lauderdale, Florida
(High senior population)
- SeniorScore: 76
- Health and safety: 70
- Recreation and leisure: 66
- Finances: 67
General quality of life: 67