4 Drawbacks to Retiring in Alaska

There is no question that Alaska is a dramatically beautiful state from a wild perspective, but it also lives up to its name of the "Last Great Frontier" and retiring here isn't as easy as in say Florida. Not only is Alaska harsh from a weather perspective – winters are cold and dark and summers, while filled with endless daylight, are never exactly warm – but it is also expensive when compared to retiring in the lower 48 states. Before you pick up and move, here are four drawbacks to consider about retiring in Alaska.

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It is Expensive - Alaska is nearly 34 percent more expensive than the national average to live in, according to MarketWatch, which also reported, "utilities are nearly 50 percent above the U.S. average and food is 37 percent higher." Why is Alaska so expensive? A lot of it has to do with how remote the state is and how far your food and goods have to travel to reach you.
It is Remote - Accessing a hospital in an emergency can also be difficult in many parts of Alaska, and this is a factor that should be considered by retirees. "Some communities in Alaska are downright remote (the population density is one person per square mile, compared to 87 per square mile on average in the U.S) and for folks in these towns, getting to a good hospital may mean a three-hour ride in a tiny plane," MarketWatch reports.

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Lack of Other Retirees - Daily Finance listed Anchorage as one of the 13 worst places to retire in America, citing a lack of other people from your generation to relate to. "If you like to be with people your own age, Alaska may be lonely. The state has only about half the percentage of seniors as the rest of the country. Anchorage is at the bottom of rankings for percentage of residents age 65 and older. It ranked 240 out of 245 cities with at least 100,000 people. Only 5.5 percent of Anchoragites are seniors," the website reported.
It is Cold - Alaska is far from a temperate place to retire. Even cities like Seward and Fairbanks that are known for their "balmy" temperatures are not exactly hot – balmy in Alaska means July highs of around 60 degrees Fahrenheit and January highs of around 29 F.