Go to THIS site and take the "quiz."

Believe me, this guy has done a LOT of extensive research about the so-called "best places."

http://www.bestplaces.net/fybp/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corvallis,_Oregon

meant to post this earlier

That is a great quiz, but after taking the quiz it said my match was Fairbanks, Alaska. That is one of the last places I'd want to live!

That paints a really rosy picture of Corvallis. I love it there as I lived there for 4 years during college and then our kids just did that as well. The summers are glorious, but the winters can definitely be anything but mild. They have often times had more snow than we have had (we are in a sw suburb of Portland).

The cost of housing etc is rising rapidly here in the Portland area. The state has not been addressing addressing important issues very well, IMO, and so OR is nowhere near as nice as it used to be, IMO. I am an OR native, so have seen the changes over many years.

nanabee--LOL that quiz said my match was Fairbanks as well. I could definitely live there!

The quiz is fun but doesn't address weather at all, which is odd, isn't it?

<Chief problem the OP has is she wants both mild winters and mild summers. And no humidity.>

I agree, but she does say that she'd rather have cold than hot. I also agree that there are areas of California that fit the bill.

Maybe the OP will come back to tell us what's negotiable, and why the entire state of California is off limits.

Agree that weather is important! I live in one of the top retirement (and work) areas, but hate the summers. When I said anywhere in the US would do, it sent me to some place I never heard of in Utah! (Not a state I would consider.) When I picked the far west I got Spokane WA, which is too close to Montana.

I'm betting this isn't what you want to hear, but I would reconsider your absolute of no apartment. You have already suggested mobility issues. As time goes on, if you have one of the cute HGTV homes on a lot, who is going to maintain the lot and clear the snow off the drive and car? Good luck finding your dream retirement destination.

Lol. I WISH that was an accurate description of Corvallis.

That quiz might be fishy. I got Fairbanks as well, and weather ain't the only reason I decided to not move there..

Really, out of the entire "far west", how did it come up with that?

The quiz also told me to move to Fairbanks. Very odd.

Nanabee, mms, Kathie, I just took Dukey's quiz too and it also put me in Fairbanks, Alaska. Fat chance. So much for quizzes. Maybe it's sponsored by the Fairbanks C of C.

I got Ogden, Utah. I didn't specify a region.

Look at western Washington state.
Visit small towns such as Yakima, Ellensburg, Richland, Walla Walla.

I took the quiz and it came up with Ithaca,NY. Which would probably suit me. I could see living there.

The OP hasn't returned so I guess the perfect place isn't a priority.

I took the quiz a couple of times and put in different areas I should live in Fairbanks, or Lewiston, ME. Been to both and they're so far from any place I would want to live I think they must have paid the quiz developer to suggest them.

Ileen- you realize you suggested Western wa but none of those are western wa? Not to mention- Yakima, Richland, and Walla Walla are boiling hot during the summer.

Also Yakima sucks in general.

And ellensburg is freezing in the winter and the very definition of a college town. Quite nice otherwise though.

I went to school in Ithaca, and it would be the perfect place for me if it weren't for the winters.

For me, it came up with places in Texas, Mississippi and Utah, none of which I would even consider.