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If you&rsquo;re trying to get by in retirement on social security alone and live in Luzerne County, consider moving a bit to the west.
				A new study that attempts to calculate &ldquo;places social security goes furthest&rdquo; found Sullivan County to be substantially better in that regard than here.
				The study was posted by <a href="https://smartasset.com/retirement/social-security-calculator#pennsylvania" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">smartasset.com</a>, a website that bills itself as &ldquo;committed to bringing you the most accurate and actionable advice so you can confidently make the decisions that impact your finances and your life.&rdquo;
				Luzerne County rated 51st among Pennsylvania&rsquo;s 67 counties, while Sullivan County rated 3rd. If you really want to move, Juniata County near the center of the state was ranked first.
				To make devise the ratings, the website took the average Social Security income for each county and subtracted the taxes a typical retiree in each state would pay on that income to get a net Social Security income. That amount was comp0ared to a calculation of a county&rsquo;s cost of living &ldquo;to cover basic necessities.&rdquo;
				Basically, the more costs outstrip net social security income, the lower the ranking. In top ranked counties, the Social Security money covered expenses with some left over.
				Luzerne County&rsquo;s average net Social Security income was $18,407, while the annual cost of living was $19,253, meaning the income was $846 less than the costs.
				By comparison, rural Sullivan County had an average income $1,338 higher than costs, $19,394 compared to $18,056.
				Costs higher than income was the norm. Statewide, the average cost was $19,815 while the average income was $19,587.
				Among Luzerne and seven neighboring counties, Luzerne had the second poorest rating. Only Monroe County did worse, coming in 60th in the state with average cost of $21,476 higher than income of $20,423 by $1,053. Of the nine local counties, Wyoming ranked 29 in the state with income just $9 higher than costs.
				The site warns that &ldquo;you shouldn&rsquo;t plan on living exclusively off your Social Security benefits,&rdquo; but concedes &ldquo;still, many people do find themselves in the position of having to live off their Social Security checks.&rdquo;

Getting by on Social Security? Move a little farther west