Accredited business accountant – and avid LVA reader – Richard P. Allen says that what Serratta was talking about was probably Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefits: "This is NOT Social Security," he writes, "Instead it is a supplement to Social Security for those with very low income. In my tax practice, I have only seen this being used by retirees and disabled persons with very small pensions and very small Social Security."
On the upside, in most states, "SSI beneficiaries also can get medical assistance (Medicaid) to pay for hospital stays, doctor bills, prescription drugs, and other health costs," according to the official Social Security Administration brochure, which says that many states provide supplemental payment to SSI beneficiaries. They're also eligible for food assistance, unless they have the bad luck to live in California. SSI doesn't kick in until age 65 if you're able-bodied and even then a financially secure retiree wouldn't need to consider it.
The only geographical variable we could find in the SSI rules is the degree to which states provide additional benefits (see below). Instead, the federal government requires that recipients have "limited resources," as defined by cash on hand, bank accounts, stocks, savings bonds, land, vehicles, personal property, life insurance, and anything else that might be converted to cash "and used for food and shelter," with a maximum valuation of $2,000 for an individual and $3,000 for a couple.
Don't worry: Your home, wedding and engagement rings, and burial plot are among the items exempt from consideration, part of a total list of exceptions that's as long as your arm, like home-energy assistance and income-tax refunds. The benefit amount is pegged to the Consumer Price Index and maxes out at $1,100 per year for a couple ($733 for an individual).
If you're living in Arizona, say, you're out of luck because it’s one of four states (and one U.S. territory) that provide no state supplement to SSI. Nevada does – which could act as an incentive to retire here – although it is administered through the federal government rather than directly by the state.
All of the foregoing, of course, presumes some degree of hardship on the part of the SSI applicant. If you've financially secure enough to relocate to Las Vegas in your golden years, then you can probably put SSI out of your mind. Indeed, Nevada has one of the lower rates of SSI participation: approximately 12,000 recipients in 2014, compared to 275,000 in Illinois and 1.3 million in California.
One cost-of-living variable that you will have to contend with is auto insurance. An LVA reader wrote us to say that their brother-in-law moved to Las Vegas from Philadelphia and his insurance costs rose 30 percent – and, given the brazen manner of Sin City drivers, we're surprised that it wasn't worse – although the percentage obviously would vary on a case-by-case basis and might actually improve if you're coming to Las Vegas from a city with a higher incidence of traffic accidents.
On the plus side, the Las Vegas area has communities built with senior living in mind. One reader cites Sun City in Summerlin, which has a community center and is convenient to MountainView Hospital. You have to be at least 55 to live there and a car is said to be a necessity ("The area is remote and spread out enough that there isn't great public transportation"). However, the business district, which includes both a supermarket and a pharmacy "is within a mile or two … Because of the water quality, use a PUR filter on your kitchen faucet," to ameliorate health concerns about Las Vegas' chalky, 'hard' water.
The reader adds that their father moved to Sun City in 1992, aged 75, "and did very well there for almost 13 years before he passed away. Like many 'low'roller' seniors, he patronized the nearby Rampart casino several days per week, and would always get a free buffet for his play in the race/sports book. He always wanted to retire there, and he was glad that he did." (Never underestimate the power of a free buffet.)
Retiring to Las Vegas doesn't necessarily mean being out to pasture, either. South African transplant Roland Rogers is a self-defense instructor kicking butt at 78 and bringing people a fraction of his age to their knees. Then there's our own Jean Scott, who won't mind us revealing that she also is a senior, and who provides regular advice on where to get up and go (and do it affordably) in her Frugal Vegas blog. (Look out particularly for her regular beginning-of-the-month round-up of notable casino promotions, which tends to focus on "locals" and off-Strip properties and will always allude to any cool deal being offered to the 55+ crowd, or any changes implemented regarding existing offers, like the ongoing 20%-off senior dining discount at Tuscany Casino, which moves venue from month to month.) As a caveat, when Jean read the original answer to this question, she also felt compelled to raise the potential specter of problem gambling, which can be an easy trap to fall into if you have any tendency toward compulsive behavior, or simply don't have other interests and social outlets to occupy and entertain you.
Lastly, unless you're moving here from Wyoming, Alaska, or Florida, then Nevada offers you an improved tax climate, having just been named the fourth-most tax-friendly state by Kiplinger. Kiplinger's Persona Finance Senior Associate Editor Sandra Block said, "Where you can live can have a dramatic impact on your wallet and savings." Ergo, living in Nevada would be a net gain. But, she added, "It's worth pointing out, though, that there are trade-offs to living in a state with lower taxes – since there are likely less funds going to roads bridges, schools, and various other public services we may otherwise take for granted."
Kiplinger's rankings were achieved through a computation of income taxes (of which Nevada has none), sales, gas, and "sin" taxes "and other tax rules" and exemptions. While not as high as Wyoming (No. 1), Nevada is way up there on Kiplinger's list of tax havens, one spot ahead of Arizona, another popular retirement state. The states to which you likely do not want to retire are California and Hawaii, the two least tax-friendly states, followed by the cold-weather climates of Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, Minnesota, Maine, Vermont, Illinois, and Rhode Island. Can it be any coincidence that several of these 10 states have turned increasingly to gambling as a source of tax revenue?
