Worcester Ranked as One of Worst Cities to Retire in U.S.

Thursday, August 16, 2018
GoLocalWorcester News Team

Worcester is one of the worst cities in the U.S. for retirement

The City of Worcester is one of the worst cities to retire in the country.

According to a recent study completed by WalletHub, Worcester is the 12th worst city to retire in the country, ranked 170th out of 182 cities.

“According to the Employee Benefit Research Institute’s 2018 Retirement Confidence Survey, two in three workers reported feeling at least somewhat confident that they will have enough money to retire comfortably, but only 17 percent said they were “very confident,” said WalletHub.

Worcester’s Rankings:

• 141st Best - Affordability
• 116th Best - Activities
• 162nd Best - Quality of Life
• 87th Best - Healthcare

 

The Rankings

Worcester is ranked directly behind Riverside, California and San Bernardino, California, who rank 168th and 169th respectively.

Worcester is ranked ahead of Wichita, Kansas and New Haven, Connecticut, who rank 171st and 172nd respectively.

Orlando, Florida is ranked as the best city to retire. Newark, New Jersey is the worst city to retire.

See the full rankings in the map below:

The Method

To help Americans find the best cities to spend their golden years, WalletHub compared the retirement-friendliness of 182 cities — including the 150 most populated U.S. cities, plus at least two of the most populated cities in each state — across four key dimensions: 1) Affordability, 2) Activities, 3) Quality of Life and 4) Health Care.

They evaluated those dimensions using 46 relevant metrics. Each metric was graded on a 100-point scale, with a score of 100 representing the most favorable conditions for retirement.

Finally, WalletHub determined each city’s weighted average across all metrics to calculate its overall score and used the resulting scores to rank-order the sample.

Affordability – Total Points: 25

• Adjusted Cost of Living: Triple Weight (~10.00 Points)
• Taxpayer-Friendliness**: Full Weight (~3.33 Points)
• Retired Taxpayer-Friendliness**: Full Weight (~3.33 Points)
• Tax-Friendliness on Estate or Inheritance Tax**: Full Weight (~3.33 Points)
• Annual Cost of In-Home Services: Half Weight (~1.67 Points)
• Annual Cost of Adult Day Health Care: Full Weight (~3.33 Points)

 

Activities – Total Points: 25

• Recreation & Senior Centers per Capita*: Full Weight (~2.38 Points)
• Fishing Facilities per Capita*: Full Weight (~2.38 Points)
• Public Golf Courses per Capita*: Full Weight (~2.38 Points)
• Museums per Capita*: Full Weight (~2.38 Points)
• Theaters per Capita*: Full Weight (~2.38 Points)
• Art Galleries per Capita*: Full Weight (~2.38 Points)
• Book Clubs per Capita*: Half Weight (~1.19 Points)
• Music Venues per Capita*: Full Weight (~2.38 Points)
• Bingo Halls per Capita*: Full Weight (~2.38 Points)
• Availability of Adult Volunteer Activities: Full Weight (~2.38 Points)
• Recreation-Friendliness: Full Weight (~2.38 Points)

 

Quality of Life – Total Points: 25

• Share of Population Aged 65 & Older: Full Weight (~1.67 Points)
• Elderly-Friendly Labor Market: Full Weight (~1.67 Points)
• Age-Friendly Community: Full Weight (~1.67 Points)
• Share of Population Aged 65 & Older Living in Poverty: Full Weight (~1.67 Points)
• Share of Population Aged 65 & Older Living Alone: Full Weight (~1.67 Points)
• Walk Score: Full Weight (~1.67 Points)
• Share of Population Aged 65 to 79 with Poor Transit Access: Full Weight (~1.67 Points)
• Mild Weather: Double Weight (~3.33 Points)
• Caring Community: Full Weight (~1.67 Points)
• Strength of Elder-Abuse Protections**: Full Weight (~1.67 Points)
• Violent-Crime Rate: Full Weight (~1.67 Points)
• Property Crime Rate: Full Weight (~1.67 Points)
• Air Quality: Full Weight (~1.67 Points)
• Water Quality: Full Weight (~1.67 Points)

 

Health Care – Total Points: 25

• Family & General Physicians per 10,000 Residents: Full Weight (~1.72 Points)
• Gerontologists per 10,000 Residents Aged 65 & Older: Full Weight (~1.72 Points)
• Dentists per 10,000 Residents: Half Weight (~0.86 Points)
• Nurses per 1,000 Residents: Full Weight (~1.72 Points)
• Physical Therapists per 10,000 Residents: Full Weight (~1.72 Points)
• Mental Health Counselors per 10,000 Residents: Full Weight (~1.72 Points)
• Suicide Rate for Elders: Full Weight (~1.72 Points)
• Health Care Facilities per Capita: Full Weight (~1.72 Points)
• Quality of Public Hospital System**: Full Weight (~1.72 Points)
• Top-Rated Geriatrics Hospitals: Full Weight (~1.72 Points)
• Emotional Health: Full Weight (~1.72 Points)
• Share of Population Aged 65 & Older with a Disability: Full Weight (~1.72 Points)
• Home-Care Facilities per Capita: Full Weight (~1.72 Points)
• Life Expectancy: Full Weight (~1.72 Points)
• Death Rate of Population Aged 65 & Older: Full Weight (~1.72 Points)