Sarasota Ranked As No. 1 Best Place To Retire: U.S. News & World Report

SARASOTA, FL — Looking to get the most out of your retirement, take note: Sarasota is the best place to live as a retiree, according to U.S. News & World Report. Sarasota outranked all other cities when it came to the overall happiness of its residents, outpacing Lancaster, Pennsylvania, and San Antonio. These cities were chosen based on criteria including housing affordability, the happiness index, quality of healthcare, retiree taxes, job market and desirability.

Wondering what other cities made the list of top retirement spots? See all 100 of them here. U.S. News & World Report’s 2017-18 Best Places to Retire list was unveiled Monday. Rounding out the top five spots on the list were Grand Rapids, Michigan; and El Paso, Texas.

U.S. News said this about Sarasota: “Warm temperatures year-round, award-winning beaches and a thriving arts and cultural scene have made Sarasota a go-to place for retirees and families, not to mention a handful of celebrities (including Stephen King and Rosie O'Donnell). This southwest Florida region, which is about an hour from Tampa and two hours from Orlando, continues to attract new residents with great restaurants and plenty of shopping options.” (For more local news from Florida, click here to sign up for real-time news alerts and newsletters from Sarasota Patch, and click here to find your local Florida Patch. If you have an iPhone, click here to get the free Patch iPhone app.)

• See also: Siesta Beach Named America's Best

The U.S. News Report noted that traffic congestion is becoming more common as the region deals with an influx of residents and a record number of tourists. However, the economy continues to grow with a sizeable job market for careers in health care, small business and tourism.

At the state level, Florida had two cities in the top 10, with Daytona Beach joining Sarasota at No. 7. Texas had four cities in the top 10, including San Antonio and El Paso, McAllen came in at No. 6, and Austin came in at No. 9.

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