With its sprawling golf courses, general lack of snow, casinos and warm weather, Arizona has often been a place for snowbirds to flock for the winter — or end up moving to enjoy their retirement.
And while Arizona used to be an affordable paradise, increasing home prices, cost of living and dipping retirement savings have made it harder for retirees to settle in the Grand Canyon State.
Arizona’s 15 counties have been impacted differently, according to a study from the financial advice website SmartAsset. SmartAsset analyzed how housing prices have changed over the last 10 years to “determine how affordable it is to own a home in each county.” The company used 2024 data to determine changes in the cost of living, tracked changes to Social Security income over the last decade and also analyzed “average individual retirement account contributions at the county level.”…