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When it comes to property taxes, residents pay
roughly $6.52 per $100 assessed value, and property is assessed at 19% of
fair market value. The taxes on a $172,000 house would
be approximately $2,130 per year. The
Homestead Preservation Credit gives qualified senior citizens a
credit on their real estate property tax if those taxes increase
2.5% in a non-reassessment year or 5% in a reassessment year.
Regarding retirement income taxes, residents age 62+ with Social
Security benefits and private retirement benefits receive
deductions for those benefits on their state income tax
return. The sales tax in Columbia is 7.35%,
and overall, Missouri has the 9th lowest tax burden of all 50
states.
This is an
interactive map. Click on the arrows in the upper left hand
corner to move the map to the East, West, North or South, and click
(more than once if necessary) on the +/- signs to zoom in
and out.
The slightly bohemian
downtown area is known as The District and is ringed by three
colleges. It has an eclectic mix of restaurants, shops, art
galleries, boutiques, sidewalk cafes, jazz clubs,
movie houses and coffee shops. The Twilight Festivals in June and September
attract thousands of people for food, fun and
entertainment. Columbia is a youthful, left-leaning place, and the
University gives it a
definite energy. It has a lovely 1,350 acre campus, and with
more than 5,000 trees and 650 varieties of plant life, it is a
great choice for an afternoon picnic or stroll.
The University of Missouri Tigers give sports fans plenty of
events and competitions to attend, particularly in the
fall when football season arrives. Columbians also enjoy
three private golf courses and three public courses, as
well as 47 parks and greenbelts; outdoor-minded retirees
particularly take to the MKT Nature Trail, a 5 mile urban
walking trail through dense woods. Finger
Lakes State Park, Rock Bridge State Park and Grindstone
Nature Area are all close by and provide quiet spots
for hiking, camping and fishing. There are a number of shopping malls, including Columbia Mall which
has a Dillards, a Penny's, a Sears, a Barnes and Noble and
140 other stores. The Daniel Boone
Regional Library receives great reviews for its beautiful
building, helpful staff, expansive book collection and cozy cafe. It also
has public computers and free wifi Internet access. Columbia
has 90 houses of
worship, and the crime rate meets the national average.
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Columbia may have a small town feeling, but it has a taste for culture.
The Missouri Art Gallery is home to limited-edition prints and
sculpture from internationally known artists. The University
of Missouri Museum of Art and Archeology houses 13,000 works of
art and artifacts. The Walters-Boone County Historical
Museum features fine art and a genealogical research library.
Art in the Park is an annual (June) art fair that draws more than
90 painters, sculptors and potters. The yearly Columbia
Festival of the Arts (each September) is a celebration of
literary, visual and performing arts. The True False Film
Festival each February is a celebration of film with
screenings, parties and workshops by filmmakers and
critics. The Blind Boone Ragtime and Early Jazz
Festival, and the Heritage
Festival, featuring exhibits honoring Lewis and Clark’s legacy,
are also fun. More music
festivals, fairs and holiday celebrations
throughout the year make Columbia a lively spot. It is a friendly place, gaining
in sophistication, and it is an easy
place to live. Town leaders also know that managing growth
is essential to maintaining the quality of life and they have
instituted a growth management plan.
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City traffic is not bad, and bicycling is easy,
but Columbia has a good bus system and a "curb to
curb" service for disabled residents. Bus fares are $1 for adults
(up to age 64) and
$.50 for seniors. For those who want to
leave town, but not by bus, Columbia Regional Airport has daily
flights to Kansas City and St. Louis.
The first Columbia hospital opened in Dr. William
Jewel's home in 1822. Nearly two hundred years
later, Columbia has six major hospitals and is second only to
Rochester, Minnesota, in patient capacity per capita.
One in six residents works in a health-related profession, and the
physician density is three times the national average. Of
the six hospitals, University of Missouri Health Care operates
four of them (Columbia Regional Hospital, University of Missouri Hospital,
Ellis Fischel Cancer Center and University of Missouri
Children’s Hospital). Boone Hospital, not associated with
the University, is an award-winning facility (Distinguished
Hospital Award - Clinical Excellence for 2010) and beats or exceed
national averages in nearly all specialty areas. There are ten residential care
facilities and nine skilled nursing care homes, as well as the
Harry S. Truman Memorial Veteran's Hospital.
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The Columbia Senior Center provides
many community services and activities, including dances, card
games, movies, health screenings and reasonably-priced meals.
The Boone County Council on Aging is a referral agency and helps
retirees find local services and programs. Opportunities to volunteer are in abundance and include working
with kids through the Parks and Recreation Department, assisting
with various Neighborhood Watch programs or working with the
Columbia Hospitality Corps. The University of
Missouri also has a program called Easy Access which lets people,
including seniors, study part-time in a number of University
departments if they are not interested in actively
pursuing a degree.
This region of the country has four seasons and receives 3 to 4 inches of
precipitation per month, including several inches of snow each
month from December to March. Summer temperatures reach the
low-90s, and it can get sticky. Winter temperatures dip
into the 20s and 30s. The sun shines 192 days of
the year. Air quality meets the national average and water
quality beats the national average.
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Columbia has its drawbacks. The number of students and
the fact that many businesses cater to them is not everyone's cup
of tea. The city is
somewhat isolated - it is a two hour drive in either direction to
reach a large metropolitan center, and air service is rather
limited. The humidity is high.
Apartments are generally not available because most are
continually rented by students. Urban sprawl is
evident despite city plans to control it. The city has
a 60% greater than average chance of being hit by a tornado.
Despite an economy being tied to higher education and health care,
the unemployment rate is above the national average.
Even with these negatives, Columbia has a lot to offer and at a reasonable
price. For retirees seeking a friendly small Midwestern city with
a good selection of affordable housing and a lively
cultural scene, Columbia is worth a look.
Great Retirement Spots Newsletter is
published by Webwerxx, Inc. 2770 S. Elmira St.,
#152, Denver, CO 80231. (303) 358-0512. Copyright ©
2006-2010.
All rights reserved. No part of this electronic publication may be
reproduced without the express written consent of Webwerxx, Inc. Various
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Columbia Missouri Retirement Active Adult
Developments in Columbia Missouri Retirement Communities
Missouri Real Estate
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