6 States Pitching Themselves Hard to Florida Retirees in 2026

Somewhere in Mississippi, a committee exists for one purpose: Convincing retirees like you to move there.

Tennessee has one too. So do Texas and Louisiana.

Florida built the retirement dream, and other states want a piece of it.

Note: This is general information, not financial or tax advice. Confirm the details with a professional before acting.

1. West Virginia

West Virginia’s pitch arrives on your tax return.

The state phased out its income tax on Social Security in three steps: 35% in 2024, 65% in 2025, and 100% in 2026, covering every retiree at any income level.

Lawmakers sold the phase-out as a way to keep retirees and pull in new ones.

Pair the tax change with some of the country’s lowest home prices, and a paid-off Florida house trades for a mountain home with money left over.

The recruiting runs statewide, too, since the same state pays remote workers to relocate through its Ascend WV program.

The catch: You’ll need a snow shovel again.

2. Tennessee

Tennessee runs an official recruiting operation called Retire Tennessee, and its counties market themselves to retirees the way other places chase factories.

Participating communities form relocation committees, pass a state assessment, and send representatives to retiree trade shows.

The state tourism office runs the program, which tells you how Tennessee sees retirees: As permanent visitors.

The tax side helps.

Tennessee charges no state income tax, so pensions, 401(k) withdrawals, and Social Security all arrive untouched.

About 20 communities participate, from Sullivan County in the northeast corner to Hardin County on the Tennessee River.

Lake and mountain counties like Loudon and Cumberland fill their welcome packets with golf maps, and plenty of the mail goes south to Florida.

3. Mississippi

Mississippi runs the most established program of the bunch, Hometown Mississippi Retirement, with 13 certified retirement cities waiting on new arrivals.

Each city passed a screening covering cost of living, crime, medical care, and how warmly neighbors treat newcomers.

The tax pitch runs deeper than most Floridians expect.

Mississippi charges no state tax on qualified retirement income, and homeowners 65 and older skip property taxes on the first $75,000 of their home’s value.

Towns like Madison, Clinton, and Hattiesburg lead the certified list.

Add one of the lowest costs of living in the country, and a Florida sale price stretches further in Mississippi than almost anywhere.

4. Louisiana

Louisiana created a state commission to do the courting: The Encore Louisiana Commission, born in 1999 as the Louisiana Retirement Development Commission.

It has certified thirteen communities, from Natchitoches to Lake Charles, judged on climate, taxes, safety, healthcare, and festivals.

Yes, festivals count in Louisiana.

Certified towns get state marketing help and a shot at grant money, so the recruiting keeps its budget.

For a Floridian weighing the move, Louisiana also exempts Social Security and most public pensions from state tax.

Private retirement income gets a smaller break, a $6,000 annual exclusion once you turn 65.

5. North Carolina

North Carolina wrote its retiree recruiting into law.

A 2008 statute created the state's Certified Retirement Community program, run today as RetireNC.

Every certified town sits within 50 miles of a major medical facility and passes checks on crime, housing, healthcare, and recreation.

Laurinburg and Reidsville joined a roster that already included New Bern, Mount Airy, and a dozen others.

The 50-mile hospital rule matters more at 75 than it does at 65, and the program built it in on purpose.

The pitch to Floridians is simple: Four seasons and a mountain option Florida can't match.

6. Texas

Texas pitches retirees under the same brand it uses for beef and bluebonnets: GO TEXAN.

The state agriculture department runs a Certified Retirement Community program that scores towns on living costs, safety, healthcare, and entertainment.

No state income tax sweetens the offer, same as Florida, so that line of the budget never changes.

The program leans rural because small Texas towns want the steady spending retirees bring.

Certified towns like Pittsburg in East Texas advertise the designation on their city websites, courthouse-square living with pine trees instead of palms.

Why Everyone Is Courting Floridians

The pitches aim at Florida for a reason.

Florida homeowners pay the country's highest home insurance costs, projected to average about $8,458 this year, per Insurify.

Condo owners took a separate hit as post-Surfside safety laws pushed fees and special assessments up across the coast.

The exits show in the data: Florida's net domestic migration fell to about 22,500 people in 2025.

What Leaving Florida Costs

Before answering a welcome packet, count what stays behind.

Florida's homestead exemption and its Save Our Homes cap, which limits assessment growth to 3% a year, both end the day you sell.

Florida's zero income tax goes too, and only Tennessee and Texas on this list can match it.

Check property taxes as well because Texas in particular runs some of the country's highest rates, which can erase the income-tax savings on a pricier home.