Retiring in East Texas: Why Retirees Love It Here

Texas does not impose a state personal income tax, according to the Texas Legislative Council's 2019 analysis of the constitutional amendment on that subject. That matters if you're living on Social Security, a pension or retirement-account withdrawals.

Property taxes are where the state's breaks for older homeowners show up. Per the Texas Comptroller, school districts must give a $140,000 residence homestead exemption, plus another $60,000 for homeowners 65 or older or disabled. Cities, counties and other taxing units may add their own 65-and-older exemption of at least $3,000. Check with your county appraisal district on what applies to a specific address.

If you like bargain hunting, Canton's First Monday Trade Days runs Thursday through Sunday before the first Monday of every month, a tradition the organizers trace to 1850.

Tyler is the region's hospital hub. On the Texas Department of State Health Services list of designated trauma facilities, UT Health East Texas Tyler Regional Hospital is Level I and CHRISTUS Mother Frances Hospital – Tyler is Level II. Those are the two highest trauma levels in the state system.

Smaller towns have closer hospitals too. DSHS lists UT Health East Texas hospitals in Athens, Jacksonville and Quitman as Level IV (basic) trauma facilities.

Drive times to Tyler, using the OSRM public router: about 45 minutes from Athens, about 1 hour 10 minutes from Gun Barrel City, about 30 minutes from Mineola, and about 25 minutes from Hideaway. Mineola is also about an hour from Longview.

Gun Barrel City sits on the eastern shore of Cedar Creek Reservoir, according to the Handbook of Texas. TPWD lists Cedar Creek at 32,623 acres, about 15 miles west of Athens. Lake Palestine is a separate lake about 15 miles southwest of Tyler on TX 155.

Hideaway is a gated community in northwestern Smith County, north of I-20 and about 13 miles northwest of Tyler, according to the City of Hideaway. Security staff run the gates. The city's website lists a 27-hole golf course and a new clubhouse, and says the community has more than 3,000 residents. It began in 1967 as a weekend retreat for Dallas and Shreveport residents and incorporated in 2001.

In Athens, TPWD's Texas Freshwater Fisheries Center opened in November 1996 and is home to the Toyota ShareLunker program. It covers 106 acres and has a 23,000-square-foot visitor center, three acres of public fishing ponds and a 1.2-mile wetland trail. TPWD says it draws more than 40,000 visitors a year. Texas Co-op Power reports that Athens was billed as the Black-Eyed Pea Capital of the World for several decades, after J.B. Henry began oven-drying peas there around 1909.

Mineola's Main Street Farmers Market runs Saturdays, May through October, from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m., according to the City of Mineola.

National Weather Service normals for Tyler put the January average high at 57.8°F and the low at 37.4°F. The July average high is 94.5°F. NWS Shreveport says the region's tornado season peaks from March through May, so it's worth having a weather-alert plan.

The best way to decide is to visit. Spend a long weekend driving through Tyler, Hideaway, Mineola, Athens and Gun Barrel City, and see which pace fits you.