I’ve been griping about the weather in Minnesota a lot lately. It’s supposed to be spring — mid-April normals are in the upper 50s — but a blizzard is blowing through like the calendar doesn’t exist. That pushed me into doing some geoarbitrage: a data-driven look at which cities match our lifestyle and financial goals.
I have a thing for Colorado’s front range. I grew up without mountains, so when we hiked around Rocky Mountain National Park a few years back, I was ecstatic. The views are great, and the air smells like evergreen instead of city exhaust. That alone felt like a luxury.
Add more sunshine and winters that sometimes hit the 60s or 70s, and Colorado starts to look like a jackpot. For me it comes down to geography and climate — places that are fun to see, smell, and explore. I want a real chance to sit outside with a beer in March, maybe even February.
Sure, I could do that here if I bundled up, but I’m way too worried about white walkers sneaking up on me.
Winter bugs me more the older I get. I’m not the only one — plenty of folks around here joke about being Nordic-averse or suffering from Minnesota-Affective Disorder. A little whining feels okay; even Mr. Money Mustache would howl at the thought of moving back to Canada.
I remember the first winter after the kids were born. I’d curl up on the floor in front of the fireplace with my iPad and research far-off places like San Luis Obispo.
A couple of things stood out from that research: 1) Two Colorado front-range towns show up among America’s happiest cities — mountains and beer go a long way. 2) The list I like most for happiness science is the Blue Zones study.
Fun fact: Dan Buettner, the Blue Zones author, is from Minneapolis. No wonder he made this his mission — get out of Dodge, young man!
If you’ve achieved financial independence but feel stuck where you are, you’ve only solved half the problem. Location independence matters. Moving can make sense for health and longevity, too.
Being a spreadsheet nerd, I mashed together a bunch of stats and weighted different factors until I was satisfied. Here’s what I found.
A few takeaways: the front range shows up a lot — Fort Collins and Boulder are great towns I’ve visited, with outdoor options, walkable streets, and fine weather. And, holy California — you can’t argue with near-perfect weather and beaches, though the taxes and cost of living sting.
There’s a clear link between geographic perks and the Blue Zones “happiest” locations. Charlottesville is a weird outlier — it ranks high overall despite middling geographic factors. Cost of living doesn’t line up much with happiness, but state retirement taxes show a small relationship with the happiest places.
Most states have relatively high retirement taxes, with Florida and Texas standing out as outliers. Put those two aside and you could argue that higher state taxes slightly correlate with the happiest places.
While putting this quick analysis together, I leaned on some great maps. I’m a “maps guy” — combining locations with data tells a strong story.
One interactive map I loved lets you hover over counties to see a geographic score. If you live in Red Lake County, MN, I feel for you — but not too much, since we’re in the same state. The USDA map blends features like mountains and water with climate measures like sunshine and precipitation, which is why the California coast, Florida, and Colorado Rockies show up so green.
On the bright side for the Airbnb experiment, the tip of Michigan’s mitten looks good thanks to Lake Michigan and long sandy beaches — hard to beat for June through September.
You’ll see Anchorage and Honolulu on some Blue Zones lists, but I left Alaska and Hawaii out of this exercise to keep things practical. They’re lovely, but they’re far away — and the USDA geographic data I used excludes them too.
I also had to weigh family and community. Most of us have relatives, friends, and neighbors nearby, plus jobs or businesses we care about. Those roots make moving a heavy decision.
We’re not ready to give up on Minnesota. The state and the Twin Cities have a lot going for them. This analysis doesn’t rate schools, but Minnesota scores well there. We’ve got great restaurants, taprooms, and culture. It’s just the winter that grinds my gears.
At least Minneapolis ranks in the top 25 on the Blue Zones happiest list, which helps me talk myself into staying stoic. Still, there’s an inner tug-of-war: be practical and stay put, or be adventurous and move before the kids form deep ties.
Then there’s the rental question. Part of early retirement for me is managing houses — repairs, upgrades, and all that. If we moved, we’d either sell our rentals (unlikely) or hire a property manager for 6–10% of the rent. That hurts.
Mrs. Cubert also runs a busy chiropractic practice. It’s been built up over years, so pulling up stakes would mean selling and starting over somewhere new. New patients don’t just appear overnight.
Maybe the right move is to stay for now and enjoy early retirement as the kids go through grade school. When they’re off to college, empty-nester mom and dad could try the snowbird life.
Vicki at Make Smarter Decisions writes so well about Siesta Key that I want to visit Florida soon. My parents winter near Naples, so we’re overdue for a trip. The next big question: mountains or coastline?
I weighted my data toward happiness because the Blue Zones idea appeals to me. Where many older people live independently, you usually find sunshine, tight communities, more walking, and better diets.
I’ll keep using the Blue Zones as my North Star when thinking about where to live. If you can’t move, there’s still a lot you can do to adopt a Blue Zones lifestyle without paying California coastal prices.
I’ll write more on this as retirement nears and I plan trips to scout warmer, happier places. And shout-out to Darrow Kirkpatrick at “Can I Retire Yet?” — he does a great job writing about where to live and is worth bookmarking.