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  1. Real Estate

Runner-Up: Sioux Falls, South Dakota

Published: Oct 23, 2014
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Falls Park
Getty Images

Key Stats:

  • Population: 164,700
  • Over 50: 30%
  • Cost-of-living index: 99

Pros: Health care in Sioux Falls is top-notch. People from across the Midwest travel to the city’s Sanford USD Medical Center, which offers general care as well as specialists in children’s medicine, heart disease, cancer, neuroscience, sports medicine, and women’s health. For seniors interested in continuing education, the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute offers courses in a range of subjects starting at just $60.

The city’s dining scene has improved dramatically in recent years and is now home to a number of high-profile chefs, including Chris Hanmer, a former winner of Bravo’s Top Chef Just Desserts and proprietor of Sioux Falls’ bakery CH Patisserie. Residents can also enjoy less urban attractions; the 123-acre Falls Park is a local favorite and a great spot to take in the town’s namesake Big Sioux River falls.

Cons: Residents must endure long winters with heavy snowfall and very low temps. The town is also fairly isolated; the closest major city, Omaha, is about 180 miles away.