Vallejo--A Great Place to Retire
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4/6/2009
While working in Silicon Valley in 1979, I never thought that I would ever consider Vallejo as a place to retire. It was a Navy town with its Mare Island Naval Shipyard. The place actually lived up to its bad reputation.
Then in 1994, the shipyard was closed and overnight 10,000 people were laid off. Real estate values dropped with everybody leaving town to find jobs.
At around this time, I was working in Connecticut , not knowing that I would be downsized and offered a retirement package in a few months.
After the Navy base closing, Vallejo became attractive to me as a place for retirement. Real estate values were more than affordable--they were actually cheap compared to other places in the Bay Area. The cost of living is probably the lowest in the area. The city is almost perfect for me--I like playing golf (even though I could barely afford it),and the city has 4 public golf courses and one semi-private(almost expensive) which are all within my budget. Adjoining cities have 5 more public courses. Add to that the great climate of the San Francisco Bay Area--we play golf all year round ! Kaiser Hospital has a big facility in town. We also have California Maritime Academy(part of California State University System) and Touro University. Fresh fruits and veggies from the farmers' market and close-by
farms. A one hour ferryboat ride(discounted for seniors) takes you to SF.
Negatives ? The elementary and high school system sucks but who cares ! The petty crime rate is just slightly higher than adjoining towns.By the way, the city is bankrupt because of excessively high salaries/benefits of our policemen and firemen. The city and the policemen union has signed a new contract while the firemen union is still negotiating.
GOOD NEWS !!This recession just made our real estate cheaper.
Dan | Vallejo, CA