Top 10 Offbeat, Cheap Cities for Retirement

State Sales Tax: 6%

Greenville sits nestled in the foothills of the Appalachians. Mild winters and plenty of outdoor activities abound. Myrtle Beach and Hilton Head are an easy drive to the east; to the north is Asheville, a hipster retreat in North Carolina; and to the west is Atlanta and all of its big city amenities. AARP included on its 2013 list of five affordable places to retire.

5. South Bend, Ind.

Cost of Living Index: 93

Median Home Price: $103,400 (up 21.8%)

State Sales Tax: 7%

South Bend’s is most known as the home of Notre Dame. On football Saturdays in the fall, the city of a little more than 100,00 comes alive. But don’t think that the Fighting Irish are the only game in town. There’s an arts museum, a performing arts center and the world’s largest chamber music competition, sponsored by the Fischoff National Chamber Music Association. Lake Michigan is just 20 miles away and the City of Big Shoulders, Chicago, is about an hour and a half away.

4. Columbia, Mo.

Cost of Living Index: 91

Median Home Price: $155,600  (down 2.5%)

State Sales Tax: 4.225%

Home to the first public university west of the Mississippi, Columbia is a college town through and through. There’s SEC football and basketball played on the University of Missouri campus, a fine theater program at Stephens College and plenty of places to indulge a range of outdoor activities. And if you need to hit a big city, Kansas City and St. Louis are each just a two-hour drive across Interstate 70.

3. Tulsa, Okla.

Cost of Living Index: 90

Median Home Price: $146,900 (up 7.6%)

State Sales Tax: 4.5%

Tulsa is bigger than the other cities on our list with a population of nearly 400,000. Still, we chose it for being off the beaten path for retirees and for its low cost of living. It boasts a fine art museum considered one of the 50 best in the U.S., a Museum of Jewish Art, the state Jazz Hall of Fame and holds the archives of Woody Guthrie in a center named for the folk singer. A strong public arts program and more than 6,000 acres of parks add to the beauty of the city.

2. Knoxville, Tenn.

Cost of Living Index: 89

Median Home Price: $152,600 (up 5.7%)

State Sales Tax: 7%

Another college town, Knoxville is home to the University of Tennessee. The city has 178,000 people and is a gateway to Great Smoky Mountains National Park. A symphony, a rich bluegrass tradition and opera company are part of the city’s cultural scene. And Blender named it one of the nation’s “20 Most Rock ’n’ Roll Towns” in 2003. Arts festivals and the largest Labor Day fireworks display in the country are on Knoxville’s regular menu of offerings.

1. Omaha, Neb.

Cost of Living Index: 88

Median Home Price: $151,300 (up 5.8%)

State Sales Tax: 5.5%

If it’s good enough for Warren Buffett, who are we to argue. A low cost of living is just one of things attractive about the place the “Oracle of Omaha” calls home (and he still lives in the home he paid $31,500 for in 1958). Beautiful scenery along the bluffs of the Missouri River make Omaha stand out. The largest community theater in the country, a symphony and an opera are just some of the cultural amenities of the city. A Black Music Hall of Fame, a zoo and a historic district downtown add to the charm.

– Check out these stories on ThinkAdvisor:

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• Want to Retire on Less Than $1,200 a Month? Try Living Abroad