We moved to Montgomery in October 2016 after my husband retired from the Drug Enforcement Administration. We have lived in many different places, but our last home was in West Virginia. We started researching the place that would have the best bang for our buck which ended up being Alabama.
We initially were looking into Birmingham but weren’t thrilled with the housing options, the traffic, or the difficulty in getting around. We visited Montgomery and fell in love with the place. We were drawn in by all the things Montgomery has to offer:
- All the amenities of a larger city but has the small town atmosphere. • Very favorable retirement tax benefits (for Alabama as a whole).
- Easy to get around with the way Montgomery is laid out.
- Lots of shopping, restaurants, and a great base from which to travel.
- Airports in Montgomery, Atlanta, and Birmingham which give us great travel options.
Our favorite aspects of retiring in Montgomery have been the people, the manners, the pace of life, and the museums. It’s lovely having free museums such as the Alabama Department of Archives and History, the White House of the Confederacy, and the Montgomery Museum of Fine Arts. We’ve also enjoyed the concerts and the theater. The River Region is a great retirement option and we have thoroughly enjoyed our past few years here.
Bob and Michelle Negro are originally from New Jersey and Maryland. After five years in the military, living overseas in Germany and various bases stateside, Bob eventually joined the DEA. Upon retirement in WV, they relocated to Alabama. Michelle currently serves as Program Vice-President of the Newcomer’s Club of Montgomery and Bob is the current president of CAB (Central Alabama Brewers Society), a craft brew club here in Montgomery.