RI Ranked Among Worst States to Retire in U.S. — #48 in U.S.

RI Ranked Among Worst States to Retire in U.S. — #48 in U.S.

Looking to retire? Rhode Island might not be the place.

According to a recent study completed by WalletHub, Rhode Island is ranked as the third-worst state in the U.S. to retire.

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The rankings might not come as a surprise -- in September, WalletHub broke down the worst cities to retire, and of 182 cities tracked, placed Providence at #173 and Warwick at #180.  

For the latest statewide rankings, only Kentucky and New Mexico ranked lower than the Ocean State. 

 

“Finding the best states to retire can be difficult without doing lots of research. Even in the most affordable areas of the U.S., most retirees cannot rely on Social Security or pension checks alone to cover all of their living expenses. Social Security benefits increase with local inflation, but they replace only about 39 percent of the average worker’s earnings,” writes WalletHub.

RI’s Rankings

See more about how categories are determined below map. 

4th Worst - Affordability

13th Worst - Quality of Life

25th Best - Healthcare

 

The Rankings

Rhode Island is ranked directly behind West Virginia and New Jersey, which rank 46th and 47th respectively.

Florida is ranked as the best state to retire.

See the Full Rankings in the Map Below

 

The Method

In order to identify the most retirement-friendly states, WalletHub compared the 50 states across three key dimensions: 1) Affordability, 2) Quality of Life and 3) Health Care.

They evaluated those dimensions using 47 relevant metrics. Each metric was graded on a 100-point scale, with a score of 100 representing the most favorable conditions for retirement.

WalletHub then calculated each state’s weighted average across all metrics to determine its overall score and used the resulting scores to rank-order our sample.

Affordability – Total Points: 40

• Adjusted Cost of Living: Double Weight (~10.00 Points)
• General Tax-Friendliness: Full Weight (~5.00 Points)
• Tax-Friendliness on Pensions & Social Security Income: Full Weight (~5.00 Points)
• Tax-Friendliness on Estate or Inheritance Tax: Full Weight (~5.00 Points)
• Annual Cost of In-Home Services: Full Weight (~5.00 Points)
• Annual Cost of Adult Day Health Care: Full Weight (~5.00 Points)
• Share of Population Aged 65 Years and Older Who Could Not Afford a Doctor Visit: Full Weight (~5.00 Points)

 

Quality of Life – Total Points: 30

• Share of Population Aged 65 Years and Older: Double Weight (~2.50 Points)
• Risk of Social Isolation: Full Weight (~1.25 Points)
• Elderly-Friendly Labor Market: Full Weight (~1.25 Points)
• Share of Population Aged 65 Years and Older in Poverty: Full Weight (~1.25 Points)
• Elderly Food Insecurity Rate: Full Weight (~1.25 Points)
• Expenditures Captured by the Administration on Aging per Population Aged 60 Years and Older: Full Weight (~1.25 Points)
• Access to Public Transportation: Full Weight (~1.25 Points)
• Mildness of Weather: Double Weight (~2.50 Points)
• Access to Scenic Byways: Full Weight (~1.25 Points)
• Shoreline Mileage: Full Weight (~1.25 Points)
• Museums per Capita*: Full Weight (~1.25 Points)
• Theaters per Capita*: Full Weight (~1.25 Points)
• Golf Courses per Capita*: Full Weight (~1.25 Points)
• Bingo Halls per Capita*: Full Weight (~1.25 Points)
• Access to Adult Volunteer Activities: Full Weight (~1.25 Points)
• Elderly Volunteer Rate: Full Weight (~1.25 Points)
• Share of Residents Who Do Favors to Their Neighbors (proxy for Neighborhood Friendliness): Full Weight (~1.25 Points)
• Violent-Crime Rate: Full Weight (~1.25 Points)
• Property-Crime Rate: Full Weight (~1.25 Points)
• Quality of Elder-Abuse Protections: Full Weight (~1.25 Points)
• Air Quality: Full Weight (~1.25 Points)
• Drinking-Water Quality: Full Weight (~1.25 Points)

 

Healthcare – Total Points: 30

• Family & General Physicians per Capita: Double Weight (~3.00 Points)
• Dentists per Capita: Full Weight (~1.50 Points)
• Nurses per Capita: Full Weight (~1.50 Points)
• Home Health Aides per Capita: Full Weight (~1.50 Points)
• Share of Geriatricians Required to Meet Estimated Need (Geriatrician Shortfall): Double Weight (~3.00 Points)
• Top-Rated Geriatrics Hospitals: Double Weight (~3.00 Points)
• Health-Care Facilities per Capita: Full Weight (~1.50 Points)
• Quality of Public Hospitals: Full Weight (~1.50 Points)
• Well-Being Index for Population Aged 55 Years and Older: Full Weight (~1.50 Points)
• Share of Population Aged 65 Years and Older with Good or Better Health: Full Weight (~1.50 Points)
• Share of Population Aged 65 Years and Older with Poor Mental Health: Full Weight (~1.50 Points)
• Share of Population Aged 65 Years and Older with a Disability: Full Weight (~1.50 Points)
• Share of Population Aged 65 Years and Older Who Are Physically Active: Half Weight (~0.75 Points)
• Share of Population Aged 65 Years and Older Who Are Obese: Half Weight (~0.75 Points)
• Share of Population Aged 65 Years and Older with Inadequate Sleep: Full Weight (~1.50 Points)
• Share of Medicare Enrollees Aged 65 Years and Older Who Have a Creditable Prescription Drug Plan: Full Weight (~1.50 Points)
• Life Expectancy: Full Weight (~1.50 Points)
• Death Rate for Population Aged 65 Years & Older: Full Weight (~1.50 Points)

 

PHOTO: Yomo13/Flickr Commons