These 10 states give retirees the best value for their savings

As people live longer and spend more time in retirement, it’s more important now than ever to plan for life after your job.

To make matters even more complicated, the ongoing trade war has created a tricky economic backdrop for older Americans to retire in, causing people to delay their retirements, wait to collect Social Security, or “unretire” and go back to work.

That’s why being smart about where you live in your golden years can have far-reaching consequences, as housing costs — whether it be a mortgage, property taxes, or rent expenses — are typically the largest part of your monthly expenses.

Financial technology company Remitly compiled data on Americans’ retirement savings across the country. How much you need in retirement varies, but the rule of thumb is that by the time you retire, you should aim to have around 10 times your salary saved. Remitly found that Americans between the ages of 55 and 64 have typically saved an average of $537,650 and a median of $185,000 — meaning there’s high variability in the amounts that people have saved.

When calculating how much money you need for a comfortable retirement, take into consideration annual expenditures such as housing, utilities, transportation, and healthcare — and also factor in an additional 20% buffer for unexpected costs.

Depending on the state you retire in, the cost of living could fluctuate wildly. Remitly looked at the average retirement savings and expected annual expenditures for a comfortable retirement for each state to calculate how long a retirement nest egg lasts in different parts of the country.

While the annual expenditure to retire comfortably in many states hovered in the $60,000 to $80,000 range, a few states took the cake for sky-high costs of living. In Hawaii, Remitly found the average annual expenditure to be $129,296. California was the second-most expensive state, with annual retirement expenditures coming out to $100,687. In those states, retirement savings will only last 2.8 and 4.5 years, respectively.

On the other hand, Kansas takes first place for sustainable living costs in retirement — retirement savings last 7.5 years on average there.

Listed below are the top ten states where retirees can get the most bang for their buck. The average amount of savings at the time of retirement, the annual retirement expenditures, and number of years the retirement savings will last are also included.

Kansas

Average retirement savings: $452,703Annual expenditures: $60,620Years of comfortable retirement: 7.5 years

Iowa

Average retirement savings: $465,127Annual expenditures: $62,565Years of comfortable retirement: 7.4 years

Minnesota

Average retirement savings: $470,549Annual expenditures: $65,828Years of comfortable retirement: 7.1 years

Virginia

Average retirement savings: $492,965Annual expenditures: $70,342Years of comfortable retirement: 7 years

Pennsylvania

Average retirement savings: $462,075Annual expenditures: $66,384Years of comfortable retirement: 7 years

Illinois

Average retirement savings: $449,983Annual expenditures: $64,787Years of comfortable retirement: 6.9 years

Connecticut

Average retirement savings: $545,754Annual expenditures: $78,605Years of comfortable retirement: 6.9 years

South Dakota

Average retirement savings: $449,628Annual expenditures: $64,856Years of comfortable retirement: 6.9 years

Michigan

Average retirement savings: $439,568Annual expenditures: $63,745Years of comfortable retirement: 6.9 years

Kentucky

Average retirement savings: $441,757Annual expenditures: $64,301Years of comfortable retirement: 6.9 years

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