12 Best States for Retirement Readiness

Related: 12 Best States for Retirement in 2021

Saving for retirement is one of the main underlying reasons for many personal finance decisions, but doing so — and saving enough for retirement — is often easier said than done. Some may offer a better environment for adults 65 and older to save and stay financially healthy, whether through affordable housing or something else. Overall, an average of 8.9% of these older adults across the 50 states and the District of Columbia live below the poverty line, according to a MagnifyMoney analysis of U.S. Census Bureau data. Researchers created an index score to rank the states by older Americans' ability to retire, using the following metrics focused solely on U.S. residents 65 and older:

• Poverty rate.
• Housing cost burdened rate, the percentage of older adults who spend 30% or more of their income on housing.
• Homeownership rate.
• Rate of adults with retirement income.
• Rate of homeowners without a mortgage.

All data came from the U.S. Census Bureau's 2019 1-year American Community Survey. Analysts ranked every state and D.C. in each metric, and created a final score for each one based on the average rank. See the gallery for the 12 states where older residents are best positioned for retirement. — Related on ThinkAdvisor:

• 10 Best & Worst States for Retirement Plan Access
• 12 Best States for Military Retirees: 2021