US Towns People Should Never Retire In

5. Bakersfield, CA

Bakersfield, California, is a large city of 383,579 people. They have a mix of blue and white-collar workers, and it has become a popular place for college-educated young professionals to go. There are several museums and parks, so some people have decided to start a family there. Nearly 84% of people own and drive cars. Public transportation is not as common. As with most California, traffic is a massive problem, as is the associated pollution from exhaust. Retirees who cannot drive or don’t enjoy driving would not be served well by much of anywhere in southern California.

The per capita income is $25,044 per person, but there is still a mix of rich and poor people living there. There is nearly a 50% population of Latino or Hispanic people, and almost 19% were born outside of the US. Unfortunately, it has more crime than 95% of the United States. The weather in Bakersfield is delightful, which is expected in California. However, it carries the typical California issues of extremely high costs of living and housing and the ever-growing threat of extreme wildfires, which are especially dangerous for those with lung problems, including the elderly.