Monthly weather in golf retirement areas - comparison

[Schley]

OK I wanted to compare side by side the following areas in alphabetical order. I couldn't pick all of them, but the below 6 give us a good idea I think.

 

 

Austin, TX

Hilton Head Island, SC

Jupiter, FL

Palm Springs, CA

Phoenix, AZ

Pinehurst, NC

 

Taken from the Weather Channel website.

 

Humidity taken from weatherspark.com which was a very comprehensive site. I have tried to find a visual or table that gives the whole story of temp, humidity, heat index essentially but couldn't find one. If you can give anything please do.

[bradski]

Great comparison. I wouldn't have e thought Florida would be the warmest in Jan. Good to know.

[Schley]

What stands out to you? Will it impact your decision?

[Schley]

Austin actually holds up pretty well in the winter, which I didn't expect.

[RSinSG]

St. George, UT.

 

Summers are not as hot as PS or AZ and winters aren’t too harsh.

[OutBackHack]

In Winter, the further south you go the warmer it is.

Mind blowing stuff.

[theboypinoy]

You'd have to take into account humidity.

 

Give me a dry heat over a humid one, even if the temperature is higher

[az2au]

Having spent appreciable time in all of those places other than Pinehurst I'd say that this is not the real factor. Jupiter is freaking miserable >95% of the time. Hilton Head is terrible 100% of the time (weather plus the rest) and Austin is basically PHX with less overall nice weather. If you hate humidity (and I do) then there's no real need to discuss temperature. Reality is whether you like/tolerate it or not and whether you want mountain views or whatever you want to call the south. I'd call it ugly but that's a personal opinion :)

[az2au]

And, really, if you avoid cold (again, let's say you don't hate humidity) then it all comes down to places you'd want to live. I have several derogatory things to say about most of your list but that is personal opinion and not truly relevant to anyone but me. I'd rather live somewhere with winter than Jupiter or Hilton Head but I realize that isn't the most popular opinion and I don't expect anyone else to feel that way.

[tjblue]

Jupiter wins----has the most months between 65-85 (7).

 

The other 5 months those who can't handle the humidity should hang by the pool and play twilight.

 

Florida like the desert is nice to visit but I'M not interested in living there.

[Matt J]

Golf was born in cool climate. No golf carts, no irrigation, and plenty of humidity.

 

No doubt Pinehurst or Sea Island would win for me, but why isn't Carmel on the list? Too expensive?

[Schley]

I had been looking for one graphic which would capture humidity with temp, heat index etc. Can't find one, but did edit my original post to include humidity from www.weatherspark.com which was very comprehensive and even gave verbal descriptions which for those not familiar with humidity tells you if you are miserable or not. :swoon:

[HackerD]

Santa Barbara CA average high between 65 and 75 all 12 months. For year-round golf in the continental US, hard to beat.

[briggek8717]

Cost of living in that city would be a good thing to include as well.

[TexasTurf]

The problem with Austin is the traffic. Years of "if we don't build it, they won't come" didn't pan out.

[duffer987]

Having spent appreciable time in all of those places other than Pinehurst I'd say that this is not the real factor. Jupiter is freaking miserable >95% of the time. Hilton Head is terrible 100% of the time (weather plus the rest) and Austin is basically PHX with less overall nice weather. If you hate humidity (and I do) then there's no real need to discuss temperature. Reality is whether you like/tolerate it or not and whether you want mountain views or whatever you want to call the south. I'd call it ugly but that's a personal opinion :)

Agree wholeheartedly.

I'm decades off retiring so not really a thing, but one of my best mates (equally well away from it) brings it up often enough about where "we" (me and him, forget wives and family, lol) are going to retire so we can golf and drink.

I told him if it's anything East of Albuquerque, then he's going to have to build me a granny flat or an apartment above the garage for winter visits, cause no way would I live full time in any of those traditional easterly spots.

Thank fook I am going back to the coast after a two-year stint in Austin, as that was enough to show me I'd take 115F out west than 95-100F where there's humidty.

[RainShadow]

Santa Barbara CA average high between 65 and 75 all 12 months. For year-round golf in the continental US, hard to beat.

900 K for a 50's-60's 1200sqft tract home needing work...if you're lucky. Not many want to retire to that price point. Downtown is overrun with homeless.

I grew up in Santa Barbara and Goleta. It has changed a lot and not for the better....still beautiful. Golf in the area ain't cheap, even for locals.

Most of the courses are private ( La Cumbre CC, Birnham Wood GC, Monticito CC, Valley Club) or pricey and a drive from town.

Hey, but the weather is nice......

[cardoustie]

Florida Panhandle ?

[az2au]

Florida Panhandle ?

That or Hades. Usually similarly rated ;)

[Matt J]

Santa Barbara CA average high between 65 and 75 all 12 months. For year-round golf in the continental US, hard to beat.

900 K for a 50's-60's 1200sqft tract home needing work...if you're lucky. Not many want to retire to that price point. Downtown is overrun with homeless.

I grew up in Santa Barbara and Goleta. It has changed a lot and not for the better....still beautiful. Golf in the area ain't cheap, even for locals.

Most of the courses are private ( La Cumbre CC, Birnham Wood GC, Monticito CC, Valley Club) or pricey and a drive from town.

Hey, but the weather is nice......

 

Yeah, no one wants in at that price point. That's why no one is retiring to Santa Barbara... well, oops. Folks from LA think it seems cheap.

 

No one retires to Monterey either.... other than everyone who lives there.

[DandyDon]

And, really, if you avoid cold (again, let's say you don't hate humidity) then it all comes down to places you'd want to live. I have several derogatory things to say about most of your list but that is personal opinion and not truly relevant to anyone but me. I'd rather live somewhere with winter than Jupiter or Hilton Head but I realize that isn't the most popular opinion and I don't expect anyone else to feel that way.

 

Hey this is a forum, let's hear your negative thoughts about the places, I would love more information

[caniac6]

And, really, if you avoid cold (again, let's say you don't hate humidity) then it all comes down to places you'd want to live. I have several derogatory things to say about most of your list but that is personal opinion and not truly relevant to anyone but me. I'd rather live somewhere with winter than Jupiter or Hilton Head but I realize that isn't the most popular opinion and I don't expect anyone else to feel that way.

 

Hey this is a forum, let's hear your negative thoughts about the places, I would love more information

Never been to Jupiter, but HHI is very crowded and humid in the summer. I like HHI in the off season, but I won't go back in the summer.

[YMark]

Santa Barbara CA average high between 65 and 75 all 12 months. For year-round golf in the continental US, hard to beat.

 

There's so many negatives about California that the weather doesn't matter. A whacko state with whacko people (except Monte) and a whacko cost of living. Who cares about the weather.

[Matt J]

The biggest negative about California is that it's expensive. The rest is spilt milk fake news.

[BNGL]

Jupiter blows. Miserable and oppressive are correct in the summer time, and the markets are expensive!!! For what you get you can get something bigger and better (my opinion) for the same price 30 mins up the road in PSL Tradition area it just won’t have the cache of the same zip code. Plus the golf isn’t great, not a lot of public access golf courses, lest you can swing a private then it’s probably the best anywhere as far as quality and quantity.

 

I do go to Jupiter Palm Beach Gardens area for a weekend or to do something but I wouldn’t buy a home there.

[Matt J]

With all the pros in Jupiter can you get a deal in Orlando?

 

Seems the resort courses would offer a lot of good public golf. It's a real city so you could drive to whichever market you choose. It was good enough for Mr. Palmer.

[LeoLeo99]

Santa Barbara CA average high between 65 and 75 all 12 months. For year-round golf in the continental US, hard to beat.

900 K for a 50's-60's 1200sqft tract home needing work...if you're lucky. Not many want to retire to that price point. Downtown is overrun with homeless.

I grew up in Santa Barbara and Goleta. It has changed a lot and not for the better....still beautiful. Golf in the area ain't cheap, even for locals.

Most of the courses are private ( La Cumbre CC, Birnham Wood GC, Monticito CC, Valley Club) or pricey and a drive from town.

Hey, but the weather is nice......

 

Hey, if I was homeless, I'd be homeless in someplace with nice weather.

[RSinSG]

The biggest negative about California is that it's expensive. The rest is spilt milk fake news.

 

I’m going to respectfully disagree with you on this. I lived in SoCal since I was 4 years old until retiring at 58 years old. It was a wonderful place to grow up in, and for most of my adult life I was a proud Californian. Sadly, elected officials have turned the once great Golden State to a laughingstock. While it wasn’t ideal, I was OK with the higher cost of living as I owned an affordable house and had a comfortable income. Economics was not the reason I fled the state. Intrusive laws and regulations, restrictive and overbearing government mandates drove me (and millions of others) away. Nothing fake about it.

 

[duffer987]

The biggest negative about California is that it's expensive. The rest is spilt milk fake news.

 

I’m going to respectfully disagree with you on this. I lived in SoCal since I was 4 years old until retiring at 58 years old. It was a wonderful place to grow up in, and for most of my adult life I was a proud Californian. Sadly, elected officials have turned the once great Golden State to a laughingstock. While it wasn’t ideal, I was OK with the higher cost of living as I owned an affordable house and had a comfortable income. Economics was not the reason I fled the state. Intrusive laws and regulations, restrictive and overbearing government mandates drove me (and millions of others) away. Nothing fake about it.

Pick a state where someone isn't complaining about rules and regulations and... um... erm... well there aren't any.

I cannot wait to get back to California next month after my Texas sojourn ends, I can put up with some minor rules about child car seats and dealing with pets.

If you want laws, regulations, and a tax regime that can truly negatively impact people's lives, Texas is the place.

[Matt J]

The biggest negative about California is that it's expensive. The rest is spilt milk fake news.

 

I’m going to respectfully disagree with you on this. I lived in SoCal since I was 4 years old until retiring at 58 years old. It was a wonderful place to grow up in, and for most of my adult life I was a proud Californian. Sadly, elected officials have turned the once great Golden State to a laughingstock. While it wasn’t ideal, I was OK with the higher cost of living as I owned an affordable house and had a comfortable income. Economics was not the reason I fled the state. Intrusive laws and regulations, restrictive and overbearing government mandates drove me (and millions of others) away. Nothing fake about it.

 

I'd genuinely be curious to know of specific examples and how they impacted your life.

 

The community where I live attracts many of California's retirees. They often complain, but rarely do any have any concrete examples and I always read between the lines that it is economics. Maybe I'm wrong? More often than not it seems to be the siren song of the Boomer that they wish to turn the clock back to the 50's when they were children, life was simple, and tax rates were lower. Halcyon days.