Author: Karen Harrell

Walton County’s bountiful natural attractions, world famous fishing and upscale shopping sites draw a diverse crowd of residents from across the world – especially retirees.
“Nobody is really from here. Everyone moved here from somewhere else,” said Michelle Tommey, vice president of the Walton County Chamber of Commerce. “We have a lot of retired people here – the community is definitely an older crowd.”

North Santa Rosa County is the wild woods of the Blackwater River State Forest.
South Santa Rosa is the snow-white dunes and glittering Gulf waters of Navarre Beach.
Between them you’ll find the history, art, festivals and music that make Santa Rosa County a top spot for retirees.
“We get six to a dozen couples in every week saying they were thinking about moving here,” said Donna Tucker, executive director of the Santa Rosa County Chamber of Commerce.

Joe and Anne Hann traveled across the continent before settling on their favorite place to spend their retirement – the Mississippi Gulf Coast.
“We went everywhere from Corpus Christi to Tampa and all along the Gulf and checked the various locations, the cost of living, the people, the climate,” said Joe Hann, a retired operations manager from Wisconsin via Alabama. “We like it best here.”

If your idea of retirement is days of relaxing with nothing but fishing on the schedule, welcome to the Forgotten Coast.
“It’s beautiful and laid back, like old Florida,” said Sandra Chasin, executive director of the Gulf County Chamber of Commerce.
Chasin is more than a spokesperson for retiring on the Forgotten Coast; she is living the dream.