Finding the Best Places to Retire Since 2006!
Wickenburg, Arizona
Outside of Phoenix in Southern Arizona, Wickenburg is an "Old West" Town and is Popular with Retirees
Sixty-five miles northwest of Phoenix in southern Arizona, Wickenburg sits next to the Wickenburg Mountains and started out as a gold mining town in the early-1860s. It is on the edge of the Sonoran Desert and named after an early prospector, Henry Wickenburg, who first found gold here.
Today, Wickenburg is a relaxed, remote place that celebrates its Southwestern heritage with the Desert Caballeros Western Museum, historic mine tours and ghost walking tours. Tourists come to play cowboy at a handful of dude ranches, including the beautiful Rancho de Los Caballeros. The lovely Del E. Webb Center for the Performing Arts, which is nice surprise in a small town, brings in internationally recognized music and dance productions, art exhibits and much more. Buildings that look like they belong on a Western movie set house cute shops and galleries. Dining establishments are primarily cafes and diners that serve up biscuits and gravy, chicken fried steak and chili rellenos.
Three golf courses have a Wickenburg address, and the Hassayampa River Preserve, five miles outside of town, has hiking trails. Neighborhoods range from very modest with simple ranch ramblers to upscale with Southwestern, adobe and Territorial home styles.
Population: 8,000 (city proper)
Age 45 or Better: 55%
Cost of Living: 18% above the national average
Median Home Price: $510,000
Climate: Even with an elevation of 2,050 feet above sea level, summer temperatures are still in the 90s and low-100s. Winter temperatures are in the 40s, 50s and 60s, but nights can get cold. On average, the area receives 11 inches of rain per year.
At Least One Hospital Accepts Medicare Patients? Yes
At Least One Hospital Accredited by Joint Commission? No, and the nearest one is 30 miles away.
Public Transit: A bus travels to and from Phoenix.
Crime Rate: Below the national average
Public Library: The Wickenburg Public Library is open five days a week.
Political Leanings: Conservative
College Educated: 23%
Is Arizona Considered Tax Friendly for Retirement? Yes
Cons: None
Notes: Wickenburg has grown 12% within the last 10 years. Home prices have decreased 2% since a year ago. The towns sits along the Hassayampa River, a mostly underground river that occasionally, meagerly rises up through the riverbed in Wickenburg. The Upper Hassayampa Basin Aquifer supplies Wickenburg's water. Town leaders are confident the water supply will last well into the future.
Recommended as a Retirement Spot? Yes, although the lack of an accredited hospital is a concern. Still, a lot of retirees live here and seem to enjoy it.
Arizona:
The Grand Canyon State was originally part of New Mexico. After the land was ceded to the U.S. in 1848, it became a separate territory. It did not enter the union until February 14, 1912. Copper was discovered in the area in 1848, and metals mining continues to be an important part of the economy. Cattle and tourism are two of the states other vital industries.
Although Arizona can be one of the hottest states in the union, air conditioning continues to bring more and more people to the urban areas. The Colorado Plateau spreads through Arizona from the north and is interspersed with remnants of the Rocky Mountains. The land flattens into desert near Phoenix. The Colorado River forms the state's western borders and snakes through the Grand Canyon.
Arizona is home to places with names like Nothing, a ghost town in western Arizona, and the Horspitality Resort.
The state is stubborn when it comes to time. It observes Mountain Standard Time on a year round basis.
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