Money Magazine: Best places to retire 2006: Stratford, CT snapshot

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Stratford, CT Population: 50,023 Population, age 50+: 18,789 Population growth, age 50+: 5.20%
Taxes
	City stats
State income tax rate (highest bracket)	5.00%^*
State income tax rate (lowest bracket)	3.00%^*
Retirement tax break from state?	No
State property taxes	Above average
Sales tax	6.00%
State gas tax (cents per gallon)	25.0
Housing
	City stats
Median home price	$290,000
Home price gain (2004-2005)	14.20%
Financial
	City stats
Median household income (per year)	$59,127
Auto insurance premiums (Average for the state)	$2,505
Quality of life
	City stats
Air quality index (% of days AQI ranked as good)	63.6%
Personal crime risk (100 is nat'l average; lower is better)	37
Property crime risk (100 is nat'l average; lower is better)	81
Personal crime incidents (per 100,000)	228
Property crime incidents (per 100,000)	3,400
Leisure and culture
	City stats
Movie theaters (within 15 miles)	22
Restaurants (within 15 miles)	2,190
Bars (within 15 miles)	34
Public golf courses (within 30 miles)	66
Libraries (within 15 miles)	42
Museums (accredited by AAM within 30 miles)	12
Colleges, universities and professional schools	8
Ski resorts (within 100 miles)	31
Weather
	City stats
Annual precipitation (inches)	44.15
Clear days	99
High temp in July ° F	81.9°
Low temp in Jan ° F	22.9°
Health***
	City stats
Hospitals (within 30 miles)	120
Doctors' offices	1,305
Body mass index (avg. for residents)	26
Cancer mortality (per 100,000, age-adjusted)	206.4
Cardiac mortality (per 100,000)	263.8
Meet the neighbors
	City stats
Median age	41.1
Completed at least some college (% of residents)	45.3%
Married	52.8%
Divorced	10.0%

*Income tax notes:
For joint returns, the taxes are twice the tax imposed on half the income.
Combined personal exemptions and standard deduction. An additional tax credit is allowed ranging from 75% to 0% based on state adjusted gross income. Exemption amounts are phased out for higher income taxpayers until they are eliminated for households earning over $56,500.
***County data

Data: OnBoard, FORTUNE. Details

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Additional data and consulting services provided by Bert Sperling's bestplaces.net.

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