How NV ranks with other states in . . .

[DonTom]

See here.

"U.S. News' 2025 best states rankings are out — here’s where Nevada landed this year"​

-Don- Reno, NV

 

[old RV guy]

See here.

"U.S. News' 2025 best states rankings are out — here’s where Nevada landed this year"​

-Don- Reno, NV

I notice one large family of the Afrikaaners that were recently flown here immediately headed for Alabama. There's no place like home.

 

[Oldgator73]

See here.

"U.S. News' 2025 best states rankings are out — here’s where Nevada landed this year"​

-Don- Reno, NV

We’ve lived in seven states on the list (currently live in Delaware): I only enjoyed living in two; Oregon and Alaska. We live in Delaware only because our grandkids reside here.
Idaho-3
Florida-6
Delaware-18
Georgia-21
Texas-29
Oregon-35
Alaska-49
Louisiana-50

 

[DonTom]

I only enjoyed living in two; Oregon and Alaska.

Both down the list.

I don't think I would care to live in AK. What does one do there all winter long? How often do you get out during the winter months?

AK and Montana have the highest suicide rates in the USA. Could it be weather related?

-Don- Reno, NV

 

[Kirk]

Here's a list of the states with the highest suicide rates, per 100,000 people in 2022, according to USAFacts:

1. Montana: 28.7.
2. Alaska: 27.6.
3. Wyoming: 26.3.
4. New Mexico: 24.7.
5. North Dakota: 22.5.

 

[Oldgator73]

Both down the list.

I don't think I would care to live in AK. What does one do there all winter long? How often do you get out during the winter months?

AK and Montana have the highest suicide rates in the USA. Could it be weather related?

-Don- Reno, NV

Oregon was beautiful. I lived at the top of the Aleutian Chain on the Bristol Bay. I worked at my regular AF job during the day and at night I had a p/t job as a contractor in the dining facility and I also worked for Mark Air as a baggage handler. In my spare time I fished and drank.

 

[John Stephens]

I enjoyed living in Las Vegas for thirteen years. What I disliked the most was the winters being cold, after living in SW Florida for eleven years before moving to Vegas. And now, I'm back where I want to be in SW Florida. I swore I would never retire in Vegas after seeing how many seniors spend all their time and money on the cheap blackjack tables or slot machines because they have nothing else to do.

 

[Lou Schneider]

I enjoyed living in Las Vegas for thirteen years. What I disliked the most was the winters being cold, after living in SW Florida for eleven years before moving to Vegas. And now, I'm back where I want to be in SW Florida. I swore I would never retire in Vegas after seeing how many seniors spend all their time and money on the cheap blackjack tables or slot machines because they have nothing else to do.

Rick Harrison of Pawn Stars once said people think of Las Vegas as a tourist town but it's really a retirement community with a tourist hub. Lots of California residents retire there to take advantage of lower taxes and real estate costs and he gets a lot of stuff from their relatives and estate sales.

 

[DutchmenSport]

It's interesting that the article puts Louisiana at #50. I've been in Louisiana as a "camp host" at a state historic site for a total of 14 months out of the last 18 months. I absolutely love Louisiana. Granted, we head to North Carolina for the months of July and August, and then back to Indiana for September (the hottest months in Louisiana), so not sure how terrible the weather conditions get here during that time. They say, the humidity is awful.

I think the success or failure of living in any state depends upon one's own personal preferences and how they handle unusual or different situations they've never encountered before. Plus, it makes a huge difference if you are living off the local economy (have a job and pay taxes) or if you are a retired old fart (like me), living on social security ... on the cheap ... as a camp host.

Location has a LOT to do with it too. There is no way I'd want to live in down town Baton Rouge or on Bourbon Street in New Orleans (It's too crazy there). But, get out of the mega-metropolitan areas and get out in the smaller towns (and especially in Louisiana) .... plantation country ... and life is 180 degrees different.

Every state has it good, bad, and ugly locations. As a tourist or a visitor, every location is interesting. It's just .... some locations are a lot scarier than others, but still ... if you live to tell the story ... even that was interesting!

In the end, it really is very, very subjective what is bad and what is good, what is desirable and what is not. In the end, it really all boils down to individual expectations and how flexible or adaptable one is to change from their past life.

I'm from Indiana. Born and raised there. It's about as boring there as watching snow melt, or watching corn grow. The most exciting thing happening in Indiana is when a tornado comes ripping through. Then, life gets real exciting!

In Louisiana, every day is something new.... but again ... I have to apply myself. Living on a historic plantation has permitted me to learn a LOT about US history, Louisiana history, enslavement, plantation life, 1800 blacksmithing and carpentry, working with authentic tools and learning how things were done (and why) in the 1800's.

Again ... some may find that extremely boring. Myself, I find it exhilarating and very rewarding to actual become a part of "living history." I cannot get that in Indiana.

 

[DonTom]

I enjoyed living in Las Vegas for thirteen years. What I disliked the most w

You were okay with the 115F summer heat?

-Don-( In 70F Portola, CA)

 

[DonTom]

because they have nothing else to do.

I never have that problem. I have enough hobbies and interests to keep me busy.

Like go for a motorcycle ride. . .

-Don- Portola, CA

 

[DonTom]

Oregon was beautiful.

Mostly on the west side. I have been all `over Oregon, including the desert on the eastern side of the state. IIRC, Oregon is more desert than anything else. But the west side is all trees.

IMO, WA has more to see for beauty. My Y2K RV has been over the bridge below, & then Tom & I walked across it.

(Deception Pass, WA):

-Don- Portola, CA

 

[dave541]

I have never paid attention to those 'Best Places' lists.
They usually use weighting factors that do not apply to you.
For example, this one uses employment and education as the highest criteria. If you are retired with a steady income and do not have kids, those factors are very low importance to you. Health care may be more important to you, and on this list that is further down.
They also use statewide averages. There is a huge difference between Vegas and Reno services versus Austin and Tonopah.

 

[old RV guy]

I enjoyed living in Las Vegas for thirteen years. What I disliked the most was the winters being cold, after living in SW Florida for eleven years before moving to Vegas. And now, I'm back where I want to be in SW Florida. I swore I would never retire in Vegas after seeing how many seniors spend all their time and money on the cheap blackjack tables or slot machines because they have nothing else to do.

In the German Casinos local residents are not permitted to enter except for work. Not sure how they police it, but it’s a smart policy.

 

[old RV guy]

Louisiana’s primary problem is a cascading revenue issue. When State Farm’s Operation left Monroe in early 2000’s they gave as their motive for leaving “a lack of intellectual capital”. When Toyota came to town scouting for a place to build, the local paper reported that one of the dignitaries commented “you need to clean this place up”. Louisiana is the poster child for the “broken windows theory”. Generational poverty and lack of opportunity are cancerous tumors for much of the Bible Belt.

 

[Oldgator73]

We were stationed at Nellis AFB in Las Vegas. I was warned not to stand in one spot too long on the runways in the summer; your boot soles will melt. The only good thing about Vegas was the cheap meals at the casinos. But I heard they aren’t so cheap anymore.
We left Mountain Home Idaho to go to Vegas. We thought we were going from the proverbial pan to the fire. Mountain Home is a desert plateau. The base is about ten miles from the town. When were there in the mid 80’s there was next to nothing in the town. When my in-laws visited they told the kids they would take them to McDonalds for breakfast. I said you better get up early because you have to drive to Boise since that’s the nearest McDonalds. Man it got cold at Mt Home and over a hundred in the summer.
I took a remote assignment to Alaska so we could get out of Vegas. We were supposed to go to Hawaii when I returned but that assignment was canceled due the Graham Rudman bill. That bill changed Hawaii from an overseas assignment to a stateside assignment so the guy I was replacing could stay. They diverted us to Barksdale in Bossier City, LA. Somebody in the assignments section must have had the list ranking states and didn’t like me. But we only had to stay at Barksdale for 18 months before they shipped us off to Japan. So we were at Ft Walton Beach in Florida for about two years then to Idaho for maybe 18 months then Vegas for a couple of years, Alaska for a year then Bossier City for 18 months then to Japan. We got to stay in Japan for four years. But then they sent us to San Antonio Texas and we stayed for six years before I retired. The only two places we really enjoyed was Ft Walton Beach and Japan. I liked Alaska but since it was a remote assignment the family couldn’t go.

 

[DonTom]

In the German Casinos local residents are not permitted to enter except for work. Not sure how they police it, but it’s a smart policy.

Same in Macau, the local Portuguese were only allowed in to work, but most of the casino workers were from the China mainland, allowed in (and searched) every day for work only. Long lines of Chinese at the border every day.

Most of the gamblers were from Hong Kong where such gambling if not legal.

I think here in Reno, these days, it is mostly locals in the casinos. Things were very different before CA had casinos on the way to get here.

There was a time when Reno was famous for the locals not gambling. That has changed. Used to be mostly CA license plates in the Reno casino parking lots. Now it is mostly NV plates.

-Don- Reno, NV

 

[old RV guy]

Same in Macau, the local Portuguese were only allowed in to work, but most of the casino workers were from the China mainland, allowed in (and searched) every day for work only. Long lines of Chinese at the border every day.

Most of the gamblers were from Hong Kong where such gambling if not legal.

I think here in Reno, these days, it is mostly locals in the casinos. Things were very different before CA had casinos on the way to get here.

There was a time when Reno was famous for the locals not gambling. That has changed. Used to be mostly CA license plates in the Reno casino parking lots. Now it is mostly NV plates.

-Don- Reno, NV

The purpose of the practice in Germany is to keep the locals from squandering their paycheck.

 

[JudyJB]

I find these polls pretty silly, as "best" depends on a lot of things that may not be important to you. For example, I like parts of Nevada, but hate Las Vegas because i get tired of being hassled for money at gas stations. LV is also the only place where I have been harassed while traveling alone. It was at a Walmart while putting my groceries away in my rig. A homeless person living in the parking lot in a beat-up old rig started calling me Honey and talking nonsense to me. When he got out of his motorhome, I jumped in my rig and left.

Because of my age, I could care less about schools and educational opportunities. Ditto for jobs and some other things the polls value.

 

[DonTom]

The purpose of the practice in Germany is to keep the locals from squandering their paycheck.

AFAIK, same with Macau. Macau was then owned and ran by the Portuguese.

-Don- Reno, NV