Moving someplace solely to beat taxes is not a good idea, according to most financial planners.

Things like weather, health services, crime and of course access to family and friends are sort of important too. A financial planner said that when people (especially men) get older “a lot of them fixate on taxes. They become obsessed with paying the minimum, sometimes with sad results.”

That said…

When they ponder retirement, many feds consider taxes. So, are you looking to retire to a place where you can escape or at least minimize taxes?

If so, checkout condo/yurts in the Gobi desert. The yurt market is hurting, you know.

Actually I’m not up on the tax status of folks in that part of the world, but if they are linked to services provided by the local government, they can’t be all that high.

Which is a perfect way to deal with the following question from a revenuer in Brookhaven, N.Y. She writes:

I am planning on retiring in 2010. I will be relocating from New York to New Jersey. Is there any light at the end of the tunnel for feds not being taxed on their pensions in the state of New Jersey by then?

Good question. My guess, as I told her, is that most of us reading or writing this column will be compost before any changes are made. But, if avoiding state taxes on your pension are on your list of places to settle, consider this:

States that exempt some or all of the amount of civil service annuities from taxes include Alabama, Hawaii, Illinois, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Michigan, Mississippi, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Tennessee and Wisconsin. But check before you leap:

States like Kentucky base taxes on years in government prior to January 1, 1998 but don’t tax any amount up to around $41,000.

Massachusetts (known to many locals as “Taxachusetts”) and North Carolina also have special pension tax rules that you should familiarize yourself with before you move.

States with no personal income taxes include Alaska, Florida, Nevada, New Hampshire, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Washington State and Wyoming. But again, double check before you move. New Hampshire and Tennessee have fine print rules you should know about.

Nearly Useless Factoid

The first TV dinner was C.A. Swanson & Sons’ roast turkey with stuffing and gravy, sweet potatoes and peas. It sold for 98 cents. According to foodreference.com, they were an immediate success, and turkey dinners are still the most popular Swanson frozen dinner.

To reach me: mcausey@federalnewsradio.com

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