Drew Dixon
Sarasota is one of the best cities for former military veterans to reside in across the country, according to a new study.
Navy Federal Credit Union looked into the best cities for veterans after they completed their service and found Sarasota to be not only the top town for veterans to live in after military service, but the study also ranked Sarasota as the best city for retired military veterans.
Navy Federal partnered with Sperling’s BestPlaces to evaluate 400 cities nationwide, which helped service members adjust to civilian life.
“We considered many factors, such as Veterans’ average income, proximity to Veteran’s Administration hospitals and military bases, and arts and recreation. Then, we coupled this with a suite of quality-of-life measures from the Bureau of Labor Statistics,” the Navy Federal study said.
In the study’s best overall cities after service category, Sarasota topped the list in first place. But Sarasota wasn’t the only Florida town in the top 10. On Florida’s Treasure Coast, Sebastian was ranked seventh on the list of the best places for veterans after service.
Florida was the only state with two cities on the rankings of best overall cities recommended for veterans after service. Most of those cities were from eastern states such as Norwich, Connecticut and Derry, New Hampshire which came in second and third respectively.
Some midwestern cities, such as Omaha, Nebraska, came in fourth. However, no cities in Western American states reached the top 10.
Meanwhile, Sarasota was ranked top in the nation in the category of best cities for retired veterans.
“We looked at cities ideal for retirement and military families looking for a permanent home — compiling a brand-new set of locations that breaks down family compatibility, the cost of living, low crime rates and more,” researchers said.
Derry was ranked second, but another Florida city was also highly ranked for veteran retirement. Tampa came in third on that list.
No Florida cities were ranked among the top categories, including the best cities for veterans to buy a house or the best cities for veterans to start a business.
2 comments
Idk
January 5, 2025 at 3:18 pm
I would think downtown 5th Ave Naples or vence
Danny E White
January 6, 2025 at 1:58 pm
I’m a retired veteran living in St. Petersburg. I 100% disagree with this survey. The cost of living in Sarasota is stated to be 6% higher than the state average, and 4% higher than the national. Food, housing, and education are all higher, too. And what military base is in proximity? MacDill AFB is about 74 miles away! Sarasota has a VA Clinic operated under the Bay Pines VA Healthcare System (includes a massive full service hospital with head-to-toe clinical facilities) plus a separate regional benefits administration outfit) located in Bay Pines/St Petersburg, which is some 53 miles away. And let’s not even factor in median housing costs between St. Petersburg and Sarasota! Perhaps selfishly, something seems very off here!