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Study says Chautauqua among most affordable retirement counties

Chautauqua County is the second-most affordable county in New York for retirement, according to a new study by a firm that reviews financial advisors.

SmartAsset’s study uses five factors for the ranking: Property tax, cost of living, Social Security income, 401 (k) statistics and pension plan data. Each county is assigned a score which is built using those factors.

To get a cost of living number, the study “analyzed data on the median annual property taxes paid in each county and their respective cost of living, which includes items like food, medical care and transportation,” according to a website explaining the methodology.

Also, “the metrics included for 401(k) performance were employer contributions, fees and fund performance. For pensions we looked at government contribution, fund returns and funding percentage,” the website states.

Chautauqua County’s property tax score helped get it to No. 2. It has an estimated property tax of $2,460, one of the lowest in the state. The average state property tax is $4,012.

The county’s cost of living score of $30,056 also helped. Statewide, the average yearly cost of living for a retiree is $33,294, according to the study.

Tompkins County, the top-ranked county in the state, likely won the No. 1 spot on the strength of its 401 (k) index. It scored more than twice as high as any other county in the state. Its cost of living and estimated property tax are both above the state average. Tompkins County, home to Ithaca and Cornell University, has many summer homes on and near Cayuga Lake, the largest of the Finger Lakes.

Ranking No. 3 for retirement affordability was Delaware County. Onondaga County, which includes Syracuse, ranked No. 4.

The lowest-ranked county in the state for retiree affordability was Columbia County, across the Hudson River from Albany on the Massachusetts border.

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