Tennessee ranked tenth best state for retirees

Tennessee is in the top ten most affordable states for retirees, according to national data gathered and analyzed by senior living website Seniorly. Tennessee ranked tenth on the list, behind Wyoming, Utah, Montana, Idaho, Virginia, Colorado, New Mexico, Delaware, and West Virginia. Rankings were based on cost of living, average retirement income, the number of seniors who spent 30% or less on housing, average electricity bill, senior poverty rates, average annual Medicare spending per beneficiary, average annual cost for home health aides, and tax-friendliness for retirees. Tennessee’s 80.2% of seniors who spend 30% of less on housing was less than the national average of 74.2% and its elderly poverty rate was, at 10.2%, slightly lower than the national rate of 10.3%. Tennessee also scored points for being one of the most tax-friendly states for retirees and for the fact that it costs an average of $52,912 per year to provide home healthcare, less than the national average of $61,776. However, Tennessee's average electric bill of $131 was higher than the national average of $121, it’s average retirement income of $26,338 lower than the national average of $31,631, and the state spends an average of $11,894 per Medicare beneficiary, below the national average of $12,271.