As workers get closer to retirement, the decision on where to spend the post-work years takes on more urgency. It usually comes down to a mix of practicality and personal taste.
"Deciding where to live in the golden years is still a very personal decision," said Bankrate.com research and statistics analyst Chris Kahn in a statement accompanying the website's latest retirement ranking of states.
Bankrate.com noted that 60% of Americans say they want to move to another city or state when they retire but the percentage drops as retirement gets closer. About one-quarter cite being near family as important.
Last year, we looked at Bankrate.com's ranking of states for retirement, focusing on the top 10 best and worst. This year, we've done the same, splitting the list into two.
Several factors were considered for the rankings: cost of living, crime rate, community well-being, health care quality, tax rate and weather. Cost of living was based on data from the Council for Community and Economic Research (the higher the score the more expensive the state); crime rate was determined using FBI stats complied from local police departments; health care quality via data from the Agency for Healthcare Research; community well-being comes from Healthways, a research group that works with Gallup; and weather information is courtesy the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
One major change to this year's ranking was the introduction of public surveys to reflect popular opinion. Factors that were more popular were given greater weight in the rankings.
Check out the 10 Best States for Retirement: 2015.
Keep reading for the 10 worst states for retirement, with their rankings for each of the categories:
10. Arkansas
Cost of Living: 8
Crime Rate: 45
Community Well-Being: 47
Health Care Quality: 44
Tax Rate: 39
Weather: 30
9. New York
Cost of Living: 47
Crime Rate: 17
Community Well-Being: 42
Health Care Quality: 26
Tax Rate: 50
Weather: 25
8. Alaska
Cost of Living: 49
Crime Rate: 46
Community Well-Being: 25
Health Care Quality: 28
Tax Rate: 2
Weather: 50
7. West Virginia
Cost of Living: 23
Crime Rate: 14
Community Well-Being: 50
Health Care Quality: 50
Tax Rate: 32
Weather: 47
6. Louisiana
Cost of Living: 20
Crime Rate: 49
Community Well-Being: 48
