4 California cities ranked among the best places for retirees in this income bracket
Four California cities have been ranked among the best places for upper-middle-class retirees, with Lincoln, Palm Desert, Fair Oaks, and La Quinta making the list. These cities offer a mix of golf courses, desert landscapes, and suburban charm, but come with a premium price tag. The cost of living in these cities ranges from $65,000 to $76,000 per year, highlighting California's high cost of living even for affluent retirees.
- ▪The study used the Pew Research Center's middle-class range to examine retirement destinations for upper-middle-class households earning around $125,000 to $160,000 annually.
- ▪The four California cities that made the list are Lincoln, Palm Desert, Fair Oaks, and La Quinta, with Lincoln ranking the highest at No. 9.
- ▪The cost of living in these cities was determined by averaging each destination's mortgage and expenditure costs to determine if they fit comfortably within upper-middle-class means.
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Lifestyle 4 California cities ranked among the best places for retirees in this income bracket By Nikki Dobrin Published July 6, 2026, 2:45 p.m. ET (function() { var overlay = document.getElementById("nyp-player-lcp-overlay"); if (!overlay) { return; } function hideOverlay() { overlay.remove(); } function afterDCL() { requestAnimationFrame(hideOverlay); } if (document.readyState === "loading") { document.addEventListener("DOMContentLoaded", afterDCL, { once: true }); } else { afterDCL(); } })(); See more of our coverage in your search results. Add The California Post on Google Dreaming of the Golden State as the golden years creep up behind you? Well, if you want to retire in California, you may be in luck.
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