This book gives his thoughts about retiring in Coastal Alabama based on his 34 years of researching retirees and retirement communities. It includes all the details necessary to follow-up on the information in this book. This book provides answers to the questions of would I enjoy retirement in Coastal Alabama and how can I enhance my retirement experience in Coastal Alabama. This book can be used as a resource for current residents who plan to retire in the area, current tourists to the area who want to learn more about the area, possible future tourists, possible future retirees, current seasonal residents, future seasonal residents, second home buyers, people in Mobile County who are looking to relocate to Baldwin County, and for people living in Baldwin County to learn more about regional resources in Mobile. There is a summary of the factors important for retirement destinations. It includes detailed information on such topics as climate, housing healthcare, money matters, safety, outdoor recreation, and cultural attractions. It includes what retirees want in a retirement location. The common issues for Coastal Alabama such as taxes, demographics, and transportation for Mobile and Baldwin Counties are presented. It includes a brief description of each municipality along Coastal Alabama. There is a general discussion about the residential options in Coastal Alabama. It covers homeowners' insurance and provides data on housing stock in Baldwin County and Mobile County. Details are provided about the hospitals in Coastal Alabama. There is a description of the services provided at each hospital. It covers the assisted living and other long-term care facilities in Coastal Alabama. The outdoor activities available in Coastal Alabama are described. There is information about each park and outdoor facility. There is also information about golf courses, boat launches, marinas, and campgrounds. It includes details about the museums, arts, and entertainment in Coastal Alabama. Information is provided on the venues. It covers the annual festivals in Mobile County and Baldwin County. Books, articles, websites, and other literature used during data collection for this book are listed. There is a list of links to the websites of the entities (not listed in the chapters) mentioned in this book. Current residents in Baldwin and Mobile counties can use this book as a resource on healthcare, housing, long-term care, cultural activities, and recreational attractions. The compiled information summarizes the above factors and provides succinct information including directions and photos. Tourists and snowbirds who spend their summer or winter vacations in Coastal Alabama could use this book to help them choose varying activities for their time. There are many organizations that have annual conferences in Coastal Alabama. These visitors could use this book for ideas on how to spend their free time during their attendance at conferences. These people could use this book to plan their visits and guide their activities during their visit. Seasonal residents stay from one to three months each winter in Coastal Alabama. They could use this book as research for assessing Baldwin County and Mobile County as a possible retirement location for them. Many people own second homes in Coastal Alabama and spend free time at these properties. These property owners could use this book to learn more about Coastal Alabama. This book is tailor-made for those interested in retiring to Coastal Alabama. It presents all of the important information for them to consider during the choice of their retirement location.
About the Author: Mark Fagan earned his doctorate in Social Policy, Planning, and Administration at The University of Alabama in 1981. He is Department Head Emeritus for the Department of Sociology and Social Work at Jacksonville State University in Alabama where he taught from 1981-2014. He has researched retiree migration and retirement communities for 32 years. He is the author of Attracting Retirees for Economic Development; Retirement Development: A How-To Guidebook; The Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail: Its History and Economic Impact with a Foreword by David G. Bronner; and Coastal Alabama Retirement Guide. Most of his 111 publications, media articles, and technical writings along with his hundreds of lectures and presentations around the nation since 1981 have focused on the economic impact of retirees and retirement communities. He has lived in Coastal Alabama since 2012. He received an undergraduate minor in economics. He developed an interest in long-term care for active and inactive retirees. He gained knowledge of what economic impact these retirees had on communities. Through the years, he merged these interests and focused them on economic development activity for rural areas needing community development. He began analyzing communities and comparing their assets with the amenities attracting retirees. In 1983, he began researching and developing literature on the economic impact of retirees on communities. His research was designed to assist any community or state that wanted to attract retirees for economic development. His research topics included the economic impact of retirees, organizing for retiree attraction efforts, community assessment, marketing communities to potential retirees, and the mature market. He also began writing about community efforts to develop amenities for retirees as a form of economic development. He followed these activities with lectures, presentations, consulting, and program development around Alabama and the nation. His interest in retirement development in Alabama and his efforts to establish the first statewide program in the nation to attract retirees for economic development led him to Coastal Alabama. Coastal Alabama had a history of attracting tourists and retirees. His efforts also got him involved with the conception and development of the Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail in Alabama. These activities sharpened his interest in economic history, economic impacts and projected economic impacts. He has received publicity on 38 television programs, in 88 magazines and periodicals and 249 newspaper articles around the nation. He has been consulted by CBS News, NBC News, CNN News, ABC News, "Good Morning America," U.S. News and World Report, Governing magazine, Time magazine, The AARP Bulletin, New Choices for Retirement Living magazine, Kiplinger's Personal Finance magazine, Money magazine, Business Week, Mature Outlook magazine, Golf Digest magazine, Smart Money magazine, The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, USA Today, The Christian Science Monitor, and Stars and Stripes and National Public Radio for news stories on retirement. He has been quoted and appeared in the following media concerning retirement and retirees: 34 television programs (including The Golf Channel), 248 newspaper articles, and 86 magazines and periodicals. He has visited and lived in Coastal Alabama for 50 years. He retired to Baldwin County in 2012 and has been writing books and researching Coastal Alabama since then.