Columbia SC Retirement

Columbia South Carolina is the retirement community to consider! If your criteria includes a warm, sunny coastal community with a myriad of recreational opportunities, then Greater Columbia, South Carolina deserves your attention. If size of a city is important, consider Columbia's size - it is large enough to support a diversity of lifestyle amenities like outstanding cultural programs, fine arts museums, spectator sports, world class shopping, etc. and yet it retains lots of small town advantages such as minimal traffic, friendly neighbors and a little bit slower pace of life. Does your ideal place need to be an area that the children and grandchildren can enjoy with you? You can rest assured that everyone in your family will love visiting you in beautiful Columbia. Columbia is within two hours of some of the most popular tourist destinations in the Southeast-Myrtle Beach, Charleston, Hilton Head and the Carolina mountains. Your grandchildren will love building castles in the sand and frolicking in the surf at any of the great white sand beaches that line the coast. Everyone you know will be happy you've relocated-just so they have a reason to visit! Even though you're no longer working, your ideal place has to provide you with plenty of choices to keep you active and busy. Opportunities for mature adult involvement in Greater Columbia's volunteer programs are many. Groups like the Historic Columbia Foundation, which is dedicated to the preservation of cultural and architectural heritage, depend on the

active support of hundreds of committed volunteers. Theater is alive and well in Greater Columbia, and theatrical groups are always ready to welcome people willing to donate time to activities like acting, finding props, designing play-bills and ushering. Hospice of the Midlands, providing service to the terminally ill and their families, offers rewarding volunteer opportunities, as do the area's ten hospitals. Retiring fromt the military service? Then you will be looking for special facilities and services available to you. Fort Jackson's Moncrief Hospital provides top-notch health care to retired military personnel and their families. The Fort also provides recreational facilities that go unmatched in the military community. Looking forward to retiring to a golfer's paradise? South Carolina is the site of America's very first golf course and today, players in Greater Columbia are challenged by the area's 21 courses. And once you've played on all of those, head 1 1/2 hours north to Myrtle Beach, golf capital of the world. Seventy-three golf courses there will keep you entertained for years to come! Does your ideal place have to accommodate your desire to expand your horizons through higher education? Whether you are interested in learning the culinary arts or arc welding, political science or dramatic arts, Greater Columbia's 9 institutions of higher learning will happily accommodate you. In fact, at some colleges, courses are offered free of charge to mature adults over the age of 60, on a space available basis. No matter what your concerns, take a serious look at Columbia. Friendly people, beautiful environment, a reasonable cost of living, and countless opportunities to make the most of your prime years are here in Greater Columbia, South Carolina. You're going to love it!

Gardener Publications PO Box 210186 Columbia, SC 29221
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Selected Metro Area--All Items Index
Atlanta, GA----------------95.3
Montgomery, AL---------- 94.1
Columbia, SC------------91.3
Wilmington, NC--------------99.9
Jacksonville, FL----------98.0
Charlottesville, VA-------------114.3
Washington, DC-------------136.9

The composite index is based on six components. The component index figures for the Columbia area are as follows:
Components Index
Grocery Items---------97.9
Housing---------------82.8
Utilities----------------95.8
Transportation------- 87.4
Health Care-----------103.0
Misc. Goods & Services---94.0
All Items--------------91.3

Apartment Rental
The average monthly rental cost for a 2 bedroom, 2 bathroom, unfurnished apartment, excluding all utilities except water is $670.00.

Home Prices
The following is the estimated purchase price for a comparable home in selected metropolitan cities:
Selected Metro Area Avg Home Price
Atlanta, GA   $283,243
Montgomery, AL   $308,461
Columbia, SC   $222,050
Charlotte, NC   $233,600
Jacksonville, FL   $288,544
Manhattan, NY $1,205,000
Richmond, VA   $343,420
Washington, DC   $647,135

Source: ACCRA Cost of Living Index
1st Quarter, 2007.