Atlanta tops ‘recession-proof' cities for retirees

By Kristi E. Swartz

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Apparently it's not so bad living in metro Atlanta if you are a retiree.

Forbes magazine says the city is "recession-proof" for the ones who fall into the "golden years" demographic.

Though the weeks of rain and high foreclosure rates say otherwise, the Forbes stats indicate that the city's number of sunny days and affordable housing are two of the reasons why Atlanta tops the magazine's list of "America's recession-proof places to retire."

The city ranks 17th in the number of sunny days, 11th in cost of living and 7th in median home price, which Forbes lists as $118,000.

And, should retirees have to go back to work, finding a job may not be as hard as they think. Moody's says the job market is expected to grow by 13.5 percent over the next five years.

Such growth seems almost impossible when held up against last week's unemployment figures from the Georgia Department of Labor. The state had a 10.1 percent jobless rate for September. It's the 23rd consecutive month that Georgia's unemployment rate has been higher than the national average, according to state DOL numbers.

Metro Atlanta home prices in the last year were down 11.8 percent, according to a recent report on Georgia's economy from Wells Fargo. That's good if you're moving to the city and are likely on a fixed income. It's bad news for nearly everyone else.

On top of that, the foreclosure rate is the sixth highest in the nation, Wells Fargo's report says.

In compiling the list, Forbes looked at 40 metro areas to see how they stacked up in seven areas. The magazine gives few details beyond that, however.

Atlanta beats out sunny South Florida, where the warm temperatures aren't enough to offset the pricey cost of living. Miami, Fort Lauderdale and surrounding areas rank 29th on the list.

Metro areas of New York, New Jersey and Long Island round out the list of 40.