Like real estate, retirement is often about "location, location, location." If a retiree prefers small town living or a thriving metro, choices abound—and even if that retiree hasn't accrued the $1 million nest egg that a Lending Tree study says is necessary to retire comfortably in most of the country, there are still under-$1M options to consider.

To add fuel for thought and a long-term perspective, a new "study of studies" from precious metals investment site Metal Resource reveals the states that show the most significant improvements as potential retirement locations. The survey examined five years of data from 2019 to the present, examining fluctuating retirement rankings from HuffPost, Moneywise, Bankrate, and Wallethub.

5 least improved states

The survey isn't all good news: Kentucky ranked the least improved of all 50 states for an ideal retirement, dropping from sixth to 44th over five years. Three categories in particular did the Bluegrass State in: Availability of dentists, sleep quality among seniors, and the well-being index for people aged 55 and above. Only 66.9% of seniors in the state reported being in good or better health, while over 10% of seniors reported having poor mental health. Arkansas, Mississippi, Kansas, and Oklahoma make up the rest of the "bottom five" states whose retirement location rankings have dropped precipitously over the last five years.