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Question: We’re New Yorkers retiring with $3.8 million and considering a move to South Carolina for better weather and lower taxes. We can sell our $1.3 million home and buy a similar one for $600K. My wife worries about rebuilding a social life and making friends. I think we will be fine. Am I being unrealistic?
Answer: New York can be a great place to raise a family and launch a successful career. But it can also be an expensive place for retirees.
With a top tax rate of 10.9% and just a small pension exclusion, it can be difficult to maintain a comfortable lifestyle in New York without the promise of a large salary. (For more on New York taxes, read our NY Tax Guide.) And so, unsurprisingly, New York is one of the top states people moved out of in 2025, according to a United Van Lines study.
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South Carolina, meanwhile, was one of the top states people moved to in that same report. So if you’re a pair of New Yorkers with a $3.8 million nest egg, you may be contemplating a retirement move to South Carolina. Even though you have a lot of money to work with, your savings could easily get eaten up by high income taxes, property taxes, and, depending on your ZIP code, local taxes.
Plus, if you have a home worth $1.3 million, you might easily find a similar one for much less in South Carolina, where real estate remains more affordable. That change could allow you to pocket your equity and further pad your savings.
It’s also pretty easy to make the case that winters in South Carolina are much milder than those in New York. That alone could be a draw.
If you’re eager to make a move but your wife is hesitant because you don’t have much of a social network down there, that’s understandable. And while it’s good to be positive and assume you’ll make friends, it’s a valid concern on her part. Here’s how to navigate it.
“There is no real replacement for cuddling the grandkids on the couch.” — Gil Baumgarten
Don’t overlook the social aspect
During your working years, your job can serve as a social outlet. In retirement, you lose that. And if you’re relocating to an area where you don’t know many or any people, it can be daunting at a time of life when you might crave social interaction more than ever.
Gil Baumgarten, founder and president of Segment Wealth Management, says that in this situation, “The math likely works, but the social implications loom large.”
On the one hand, Baumgarten points out, people don’t always see their closest friends all that often. And, he says, “Calling or FaceTiming can surely close the gap of geographic separation.”
Family, however, gets more complex.
“There is no real replacement for cuddling the grandkids on the couch or the glee they express when Grandma or Grandpa walks in the room,” Baumgarten says. And while many families navigate this well when the kids move away, and the situation is reversed, he says, you may not realize how difficult it is to be away from loved ones until you try it. This may hold true even if you manage to build a nice circle of friends in your new neighborhood.
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If you put yourself out there, you may make friends quickly
If moving means being far from family, that’s something you’ll need to reconcile. But you may not have to be as concerned about building a new social circle.
As Chuck Czajka, founder of Macro Money Concepts, insists, “Having established friendships where you’re moving to in retirement is not a necessity.”
As Czajka explains, “In retirement, it’s likely you’ll participate in several social activities, so finding friends shouldn’t be an issue.”
He also says that if you’re deliberately chasing better weather, that itself could lend to more activities, whether it’s boating, tennis, pickleball, golf, or something else.
“My advice is not to worry. Friends will come as long as you’re active in the retirement community,” Czajka says.
It pays to test the waters first
If social concerns are stopping your wife from embracing a move to South Carolina, you may want to do a trial run before diving in, says Elias Friedman, founder and senior wealth advisor at Kadima Wealth
“I have had many clients in this situation,” he explains. “Clients become tired of long winters, high taxes…and like the idea of ‘cashing in their chips’ to find a less expensive and warm place to live.”
At the same time, Friedman says it’s a good idea to try one or two seasons in a new location before committing to a move. Not only that, but he thinks it’s a good idea to experience different locations for a point of comparison.
“Try not only South Carolina or Florida but Tennessee, Arizona, and maybe even Nevada,” he suggests. “These places offer warm weather, lower taxes than New York, and most importantly, have many people like these New York clients relocating there.” While you’re considering these locations, find out if your “tribe” of friends is retiring to one state or city, and check that out too.
Friedman also says you may want to approach your move like you would a series of college visits.
“Find a number of towns in a few states,” he says. “Do the research ahead of time to narrow down the list to ones that offer you the things that interest you the most, like weather, recreational activities, houses of worship, and health care providers.” From there, you can do a series of long-term stays, rank your visits, and make a decision.
If spending an entire season, or several seasons, in a new neighborhood as a trial run isn’t feasible, Baumgarten says, “Get an Airbnb for a month in your desired location and test out the situation.”
Not only might living in a new neighborhood on a short-term basis allow you to start building local relationships, but you can most likely get a sense of the vibe. If people seem friendly and there’s no shortage of activities and resources for people in your situation, then you may feel more comfortable making a move — especially if you go in with the attitude that you’re going to put yourselves out there to build a social network and make your new location work.
