re: Best Louisiana City or Town to retire in if you had to live in Louisiana.

The question depends on circumstances.

I would avoid anything south of I-10. Not that it’s bad. I think Cajun country especially is the tits with the best people in the world. But frick dealing with hurricane force winds and the potential for storm surge. When I’m 60-70 years old, I want to be in an area that is close to the water (driving distance) but far enough away to be vulnerable to extreme wind damage or flooding.

Why would you choose Louisiana if you have a pension or taxable 401k? Louisiana is trying to phase out retirement income tax but they haven’t yet. Mississippi has phased these items out of their tax code already. That doesn’t matter for some folks though who might not have taxable income during retirement.

Why would you need to be near amenities you rarely use? You are retired. You have time drive a little longer to your favorite restaurant every week in the cities during off hours to avoid traffic. But you might value being closer to a golf course or a quiet lake so you can enjoy them more often. So move to a quiet suburb or small town.

You are retired and presumably over 60. You will need to be near a hospital that can at least handle basic emergencies, draw and test blood, conduct screens, and hosts a primary care community of doctors and nurses with the bandwidth to handle aging patients. That rules out extremely rural areas in lieu of communities in or near parish seats or a towns with a hospital. Major health issues happen as you age so probably no more than a couple of hours from specialized medical facilities in Baton Rouge, Shreveport, etc.

And no fricking way I would retire in New Orleans or Baton Rouge proper. CoL, traffic, vulnerability to flooding, crime, etc. You trade a lot for access to great healthcare. And those areas generally have higher property taxes. Even St Tammany Parish, Lafayette Parish, or Ascension Parish has fairly high property taxes. Property taxes will go up everywhere but don’t voluntarily move to a place where they charge you more rent for your own property.