Money Magazine: Best places to retire 2006: Gastonia, NC snapshot

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Winners

Gastonia, NC Population: 67,209 Population, age 50+: 21,070 Population growth, age 50+: 9.01%
Taxes
	City stats
State income tax rate (highest bracket)	8.25%^*
State income tax rate (lowest bracket)	6.00%^*
Retirement tax break from state?	No
State property taxes	Below average
Sales tax	7.00%
State gas tax (cents per gallon)	29.9***
Housing
	City stats
Median home price	$127,250
Home price gain (2004-2005)	6.00%
Financial
	City stats
Median household income (per year)	$40,865
Auto insurance premiums (Average for the state)	$2,203
Quality of life
	City stats
Air quality index (% of days AQI ranked as good)	60.8%
Personal crime risk (100 is nat'l average; lower is better)	204
Property crime risk (100 is nat'l average; lower is better)	212
Personal crime incidents (per 100,000)	1,085
Property crime incidents (per 100,000)	9,304
Leisure and culture
	City stats
Movie theaters (within 15 miles)	3
Restaurants (within 15 miles)	548
Bars (within 15 miles)	28
Public golf courses (within 30 miles)	54
Libraries (within 15 miles)	15
Museums (accredited by AAM within 30 miles)	4
Colleges, universities and professional schools	1
Ski resorts (within 100 miles)	6
Weather
	City stats
Annual precipitation (inches)	44.80
Clear days	104
High temp in July ° F	89.3°
Low temp in Jan ° F	28.6°
Health***
	City stats
Hospitals (within 30 miles)	55
Doctors' offices	118
Body mass index (avg. for residents)	28
Cancer mortality (per 100,000, age-adjusted)	220.3
Cardiac mortality (per 100,000)	277.0
Meet the neighbors
	City stats
Median age	35.9
Completed at least some college (% of residents)	50.0%
Married	49.3%
Divorced	10.0%

*Income tax notes:
These states allow personal exemption or standard deductions as provided in the IRC. Utah allows a personal exemption equal to three-fourths the federal exemptions.
The tax brackets reported are for single individuals. For married taxpayers, the same rates apply to income brackets ranging from $21,250 to $200,000. Lower exemption amounts allowed for high income taxpayers. Tax rate scheduled to decrease after tax year 2007.
**Gas tax notes:
The gas tax is indexed for inflation in Nebraska, North Carolina, and Wisconsin. North Carolina's indexed rate is revised every six months. ***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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