Avoid Oklahoma if retiring

[Jim S.]

I moved here from Michigan and have been amazed to find every tax and fee to be higher in Oklahoma. For example, 6% state income tax,8.3-9.5% sales tax on everything including groceries, boat registration is 3 times more than i was paying, car registration is twice as much, death tax, high property taxes, and the list goes on and on. They even fine retirees who don't pay quarterly tax payments out of their pensions. I pass this info on so others won't make the same mistake i did.

[Jim S.]

I moved here from Michigan and have been amazed to find every tax and fee to be higher in Oklahoma. For example, 6% state income tax,8.3-9.5% sales tax on everything including groceries, boat registration is 3 times more than i was paying, car registration is twice as much, death tax, high property taxes, and the list goes on and on. They even fine retirees who don't pay quarterly tax payments out of their pensions. I pass this info on so others won't make the same mistake i did.

[TXiceman]

I can not believe you feel the property taxes are high in Oklahoma. Try living in the Houston, Texas area. Our property taxes are over 4 times what they were in Oklahoma for the a smaller home and less acreage.

We don't have a state income tax, but we do have sales tax. Our insurance is comparable to the Oklahoma rates.

No matter where you live, you will have to pay your share of the taxes. One way or the other, you will pay.

Ken

[george henry]

Great info to remember.

[Ken Roberts]

Jim S, this is way to late for you; however, others may want to try www.taxadmin.org where you can compare income tax, ssales tax/, excise tax, etc. by state.

Another fun exercise is realtor. com where you can look at a salary calculator for comparison. Type in $100,000 as an origin salary and then it will come back with a number at destination. By using the $100,000 number the result is a percentage, i.e. anything less than 100 reflects that the destination is less than origin and the inverse is also true.

In retirement there was no way we were going to relocate to any place that had an index of over 100. For us moving out of the Boston area to central TN we were looking at an index of around 87 or 88 which meant we could expect to see a reduction of 12-13% in our overall cost of living. After living in TN over 4 years I would say this indexing is somewhat conservative as our true C.O.L. is a little better than we had hoped, Ken,'04 DSDP....

[Jim S.]

Those tax websites don't tell the whole story. For instance Oklahoma state sales tax is 4.5% HOWEVER every city in the state can add to that. The actual out of pocket rate varies between 8.3% and at least 9.5% on everything and is on the way up to try to attract a basketball team and infrastructure improvements totaling around $500 million.

[Chuck Linn]

Jim you are right moved back here from CA and saw every single item go up except housing cost and gasoline . The other thing you forgot to mention is the state is one of the most corruptt in the nation with the FEDs working overtime to get white collar criminals put in jail(mostly elected ones)

[Jim S.]

property taxes are ridiculous in Oklohama. In Michigan, then governor John Engler, worked out a deal that sales tax would go from 4% to 6% and everyone would have a 50% reduction in property tax. Oklahoma cannot do this since sales tax is already stupid. OK is the home of the highest taxes in the mid-south and trying to make them even higher.

[MyLife]

That why when I retired from the Military I didn't stay in OKla. Didn't like the weather. Move to Florida and behold look what happening now with the home insurance, etc.

[Travis101]

Hi Jim
Got a question for you.
If you don't like okla., then why stay, especially if you are retired and have a mobil unit (RV)? Not trying to mean about this, just curious.

Travis

[Jim S.]

Hey Travis - i am staying here because my oldest son and the grandkids live here, i would have moved 2 years ago otherwise.

[Snowfitter]

Alabama is the place to go. Very low taxs and cost of living is low.

[PDI]

NJ is just as bad, Property taxes unreal, 7% sales tax, Car Ins. Income tax, and the state is 30 billion in the hole.

[Whaler]

Good stuff.Tenn still has snow though,Alabam sounds good,no snow!!!