It’s good to know that despite the problems faced by LGBT seniors, there are LGBT retirement-friendly cities in the US, according to a report by SeniorAdvice.com.
Among those that LGBT retirees take into account are the weather, health care options, cost of living, and of course, an LGBT-friendly community.
In their recent report, SeniorAdvice.com noted that Florida, Austin, and Atlanta as the cities most on the radar of LGBT seniors in a list of top 20 cities.
Finding LGBT retirement-friendly cities
According to Services and Advocacy for Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual & Transgender Elders (SAGE), there are an estimated three million LGBT people age 55 and over living in the US, and this is expected to increase.
In view of this, SeniorAdvice.com came up with its own rating system that assesses health and safety,recreation and leisure, and general quality of life for LGBT seniors.
They also note the LGBT population, the presence of a LGBTQ commerce chamber, being gay-friendly, having senior communities, among others.
For SeniorAdvice.com, this is their second annual list with multiple cities in California and Florida topping their list.
Moreover, this list now includes medium-sized cities, unlike before when the first list only focused on large cities in the US.
Top 3 LGBT retirement-friendly cities
So what cities are listed as the most friendly for LGBT retirees?
At number 1 is Fort Lauderdale, Florida. With a senior population of nearly 20 percent for the state of Florida, Fort Lauderdale is the 10th largest city of Florida and 15 percent of seniors make up the city’s population.
It has warm weather, a number of city parks, 130 area golf courses, gay-specific beaches, and it has the 25-year old Pride Center Florida to address the needs of the LGBTQ community and its allies.
At number 2 is Austin, Texas with a LGBT population of just over five percent, which means it has progressive policies and advocacy for the LGBT community.
There is also the Austin LGBT Chamber of Commerce formed in 1997 to help strengthen LGBT businesses.
At number 3 is Atlanta, Georgia, with a senior population of under 10 percent and a general LGBT population that is just over 4 percent in the metro area.
Atlanta also has an annual LGBT pride festival that draws 200,000 people, with Atlanta neighborhood businesses marketing heavily to the LGBT community with support of their Atlanta Gay and Lesbian Chamber of Commerce.
Following these three are: Portland, OR; Palm Springs, CA; Santa Fe, NM; Providence, RI; Seattle, WA; Columbus, OH; Los Angeles, CA; New Orleans, LA; Tampa, FL; and Boston, MA.
Rounding up the top 20 are: Salt Lake City, UT; San Diego, CA; Cleveland, OH; San Francisco, CA; Albuquerque, NM; Baltimore, MD; and Pittsburgh, PA.