Description of the recent WalletHub ranking of 252 cities on the Best Places to Retire in California list. Where does Sacramento rank?
WalletHub recently ranked Sacramento #45 (of #252 cities) on a list of Best Places to Retire in California.
According to WalletHub, while California boasts a great quality of life it is also one of the most expensive places to live in the U.S., with the third highest cost of living and the tenth highest tax burden in the nation. In WalletHub’s 2017 analysis of the Best & Worst States to Retire, California ranked #43 on the list. No surprise there!
However, if you already live in California or plan to move to California, WalletHub’s analysis of cities within the state to determine the Best Places to Retire in California may be of interest. It was to me!
SacramentoRevealed.com – All Things Sacramento (from a personal perspective)
Select Study Results
WalletHub’s analysts compared cities in California across 28 key measures ranking “Quality of Life”, “Health Care”, and “Activities”.
Torrance ranked #1 – the Best Overall with a total score of 61.9.
- Quality of Life Rank – 89
- Health Care Rank – 5
- Activities Rank – 29
Sacramento ranked #45 with a total overall score of 53.75.
- Quality of Life Rank – 11
- Health Care Rank – 172
- Activities Rank – 7
Note: I personally find the Health Care Rank surprising – but clearly that is the factor that kept Sacramento from ranking much higher on the Best Places to Retire in California List.
Sacramento did rank higher than San Francisco, however, which ranked #91 with a total overall score of 51.37.
- Quality of Life Rank – 239
- Health Care Rank – 57
- Activities Rank – 3
Other cities in the near vicinity of Sacramento ranked as follows:
- #47 – Roseville
- #114 – Lincoln
- #136 – West Sacramento
- #138 – Rocklin
- #159 – Citrus Heights
- #162 – Folsom
- #174 – Woodland
- #178 – Rancho Cordova
- #180 – Davis
- #226 – El Dorado Hills
- #227 – Carmichael
- #245 – Orangevale
Bringing up the rear at #252 was Stockton with a total overall score of 34.47.
- Quality of Life Rank – 228
- Health Care Rank – 248
- Activities Rank – 198
Methodology
To develop its ranking, WalletHub gave a specified “weight” to each of the 28 metrics considered relevant.
Quality of Life – Total Points: 50.00
- Adjusted Cost of Living
- Share of Population Aged 65 and Older
- Share of Households with Severe Housing Problems
- Discount Stores per Capita
- Elderly-Friendliness of Labor Market
- Share of Commuters Who Use Public Transit
- Violent-Crime Rate
- Property-Crime Rate
- Air Quality
- Drinking Water Violations
Health Care – Total Points: 40.00
- Health-Care Facilities per Capita
- Home-Care Facilities per Capita
- Family & General Physicians per 10,000 Residents
- Dentists per 10,000 Residents
- Nurses per 1,000 Residents
- Life Expectancy
- Death Rate of Population Aged 65 and Older
Activities – Total Points: 10.00
- Number of Attractions
- Senior Centers per Capita
- Fitness & Recreational Sports Centers per Capita
- Golf Courses & Country Clubs per Capita
- Fishing Facilities per Capita
- Museums per Capita
- Theaters per Capita
- Art Galleries per Capita
- Music Venues per Capita
- Availability of Adult Volunteer Activities
- Ideal Weather
Each metric was graded on a 100-point scale, with a score of 100 representing the most favorable conditions for retirement. Each city’s weighted average across all metrics was then used to calculate is total score.
Note: For certain metrics the square root of the population was used to calculate the population size in order to avoid overcompensating for minor differences across cities.
As always, it is wise to take “rankings” such as this with a grain of salt – but I do find them interesting.
See related blog post: Where Does Sacramento Rank?
Comments on the WalletHub’s Best Places to Retire in California List?
Do you have any insights as to what metrics in the Health Care ranking would land Sacramento the #172 spot?
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