SMART ASSET News:
Relying heavily on Social Security as your main source of income in retirement can make budgeting difficult – especially when it comes for housing, which may be the largest category in your spending.
There are, however, places where Social Security goes further than others and in a new study, SmartAsset has delved into the data to find out where. In its fifth annual study, SmartAsset analyzed Social Security income, cost of living data, and taxes across all counties to determine where people are getting the most mileage out of Social Security, and Los Alamos County ranked among the top spots in New Mexico.
For a look at how the leaders in New Mexico compared, check out the table below:
Rank
|
County
|
Cost of Living
|
Annual Social Security
|
Social Security Taxed?
|
Social Security Goes Furthest Index
|
1
|
Lincoln, NM
|
$18,750
|
$19,651
|
Yes
|
76.34
|
2
|
Los Alamos, NM
|
$19,722
|
$20,424
|
Yes
|
75.35
|
3
|
Hidalgo, NM
|
$18,153
|
$18,026
|
Yes
|
72.38
|
4
|
Rio Arriba, NM
|
$18,697
|
$18,357
|
Yes
|
71.41
|
5
|
Catron, NM
|
$19,548
|
$18,974
|
Yes
|
70.31
|
6
|
Grant, NM
|
$18,833
|
$18,152
|
Yes
|
70.03
|
7
|
Sandoval, NM
|
$19,836
|
$19,149
|
Yes
|
69.80
|
8
|
Bernalillo, NM
|
$19,097
|
$18,047
|
Yes
|
68.50
|
9
|
Sierra, NM
|
$17,747
|
$16,570
|
Yes
|
68.28
|
10
|
Harding, NM
|
$18,148
|
$16,950
|
Yes
|
68.11
|
The full study results, methodology, and interactive map can be found here: https://smartasset.com/retirement/social-security-calculator#newmexico