Retirees finding more reasons to move here

Scoot over.

Here comes the next wave of retirees looking for a great place to live without going broke.

Coeur d’Alene has been named the eighth most affordable small town to retire in 2019 by 55places.com, a resource for people searching for information about active adult communities.

After identifying 215 locations based on population size, local crime rates and other statistics, 55places determined the top 20 locations using data points such as median income and cost of living, average home sale price, tax friendliness to retirees, active adult communities, local health care options and more.

“From an economic standpoint, the main thing driving the decision to retire here is the price of housing,” Idaho Department of Labor regional economist Sam Wolkenhauer said in an email to The Press.

“What we are increasingly seeing is retirees from very expensive housing markets, like Seattle, Portland and California’s coastal markets, who sell their homes and then are able to pay cash for beautiful homes here in Kootenai County.”

The majority of new residents in Kootenai County move from the three West Coast states, he said, where home prices are “astronomically high.”

Wolkenhauer pointed to King County, Washington, as an example. In King County, he said, the median home value is $620,500. Meanwhile, in Kootenai County, the median home value is $326,600 — almost 50 percent cheaper.

The Coeur d’Alene area appears to be an attractive location for retirees in particular. The number of Kootenai County residents ages 65 and older grew by 98 percent between 2000 and 2015. In 2017, the 65 and older population reached just over 30,000, Wolkenhauer said. The Idaho Department of Labor predicts that population to increase to 50,000 by 2027.

That’s a 68 percent increase in just 10 years. The retiree population is expected to grow 5.5 percent annually — which Wolkenhauer called “phenomenal,” considering that Idaho’s total population is growing at a rate of 1.1 percent per year.

“Moving to Kootenai County is a great way for retirees to capitalize on the price disparity, and they get access to the favorable pace of life and natural amenities that Kootenai County offers,” Wolkenhauer said.

For more information, see: 55places.com