11 Wallet-Friendly Small Towns To Retire In Texas
Skip the hype and the Hill Country headliners. Retirement in Texas is about everyday ease: a square you can cross in five minutes, groceries you can grab without a freeway, and a mortgage that won’t bully your savings.
This list spotlights 11 small towns with affordable housing and fantastic services. They’re steady, serviceable places, courthouse squares that still anchor the week, trails that start near the post office, lakes and pines without resort markups. From pecan country to prairie edges, these towns trade flash for function and give you what matters most: room, financial and literal, to live on your terms.
Stephenville
In Stephenville, rodeo isn’t just a pastime, it’s a cornerstone. Known as the “Cowboy Capital of the World,” this Erath County seat has produced more professional rodeo cowboys per capita than any other place in the U.S. It’s a working town with a strong agricultural backbone, home to Tarleton State University, whose influence adds an academic presence without turning the town into a student hub. With a median home price of $288,450, it remains firmly below the Texas average, making it an accessible place to settle for retirees seeking value without sacrificing quality of life.
Downtown centers around the Courthouse Square, where shops and cafés like King Coffee serve steady streams of locals. The Stephenville Historical House Museum preserves pioneer architecture and artifacts on landscaped grounds a few blocks away. The Bosque River Trail offers a surprisingly scenic greenbelt winding from the center of town toward the outskirts, perfect for daily walks. For casual dining, Newton's Saddlerack serves brisket and grilled catfish in a no-frills setting, while Greer’s Ranch Café brings a more polished Southern menu.
Huntsville
Huntsville is defined by contradictions, forests and prisons, history and industry. It’s home to the Texas Department of Criminal Justice and houses the state’s execution chamber, but it’s also the birthplace and final resting place of Sam Houston. A 67-foot-tall statue of Houston towers just south of town along I-45, visible from the highway and flanked by a visitor center with archival displays. Huntsville’s identity is inseparable from Houston’s legacy, preserved in the Sam Houston Memorial Museum Complex on the Sam Houston State University campus, which includes his law office, Woodland Home, and walking trails.
With a median home price of $241,300, Huntsville remains affordable while sitting within reach of both Houston and the Sam Houston National Forest. Huntsville State Park offers access to Lake Raven, with rentals for kayaking and maintained hiking trails through dense loblolly pines. For meals, Farmhouse Café on University Avenue serves chicken-fried steak and squash casserole in a setting that draws locals daily. Wynne Home Arts & Visitor Center or H.E.A.R.T.S. Veterans Museum and murals across downtown add a layer of local character, particularly near the Gibbs-Powell Home Museum.
Denison
Denison is one of the few towns in Texas that can claim both a presidential birthplace and an art colony. Dwight D. Eisenhower was born here in 1890, and the modest frame house where it happened is preserved at the Eisenhower Birthplace State Historic Site, complete with museum and gardens. A few blocks south, the revitalized Main Street district includes the Katy Depot, once a major Missouri-Kansas-Texas Railroad hub, now housing exhibits and offices for Denison's heritage organizations. Galleries like 416 West and the Denison Arts Council maintain an active calendar of local shows and workshops.
The median home price in Denison is $246,250, well below the Texas average. Lake Texoma lies just 10 minutes north, with Eisenhower State Park offering shaded picnic spots, boat ramps, and fishing docks. In town, Munson Park features tennis courts, disc golf, and elevated views of the Red River valley. C.J.’s Coffee Café serves breakfast and coffee in a repurposed historic building, often hosting live acoustic sets on weekends. Watson’s Drive-In on West Main serves classic burgers, hand-cut fries, and onion rings, an old-school carhop spot that’s been running since 1956.
Gainesville
Gainesville is one of the few towns in Texas where a zoo sits in the middle of a city park, and admission costs less than a fast-food meal. The Frank Buck Zoo, named for the 1930s animal collector and showman, features giraffes, capybaras, and a raised boardwalk that loops through its compact grounds. Just outside the zoo, Leonard Park includes war memorials, ballfields, and shaded picnic tables used daily by locals. The Morton Museum, housed in the former Santa Fe depot downtown, offers exhibits on everything from circus parades to Cooke County’s military history.
The median home price in Gainesville is $242,500. This makes it a viable option for retirees looking to stay within reach of the DFW metro without paying suburban prices. Krootz Brewing Company on W Elm Street pours its own beers with burgers and pizzas, while The County Seat Kitchen & Cocktails on W California Street serves elevated bar food and craft cocktails a block off the courthouse square. Civic pride shows up in the Gainesville Medal of Honor Park and the annual Medal of Honor Host City Program, which brings living recipients to town every April.
Sulphur Springs
Sulphur Springs is the only town in Texas where you can sit in a public restroom made entirely of one-way mirrored glass, in the middle of the downtown square. The pair of mirrored toilets in Celebration Plaza aren’t a gimmick; they’re a permanent art installation that has become one of the town’s best-known landmarks. The square is anchored by the restored Hopkins County Courthouse and surrounded by cafés, law offices, and ice cream shops. On Thursday evenings, the plaza hosts live music with lawn chairs and food trucks filling the open space.
The median home price in Sulphur Springs is $255,000. That leaves room for retirees to enjoy the slower pace of a walkable downtown without the costs of larger markets. The Southwest Dairy Museum, just north of the square, documents the region’s long ties to milk production, with working cream separators and butter churns on display. Coleman Park, built around a manmade lake, includes walking paths, fishing piers, and covered picnic spots. For breakfast or lunch, Plain & Fancy Sandwich Shoppe serves pimento cheese and Reuben sandwiches from a small house just off Church Street.
Paris
Paris is best known for its 65-foot replica of the Eiffel Tower topped with a red cowboy hat, a landmark that sits beside the Red River Valley Veterans Memorial, not far from the town’s civic center. This version of Paris burned almost entirely in 1916, and much of the downtown was rebuilt with fireproof brick in a coordinated Beaux-Arts style. Today, the result is one of the most intact early 20th-century downtowns in Texas, with narrow storefronts housing law offices, antique stores, and restaurants.
The median home price in Paris is $170,000. At that price point, a house near the historic district or Trail de Paris, an eight-mile greenway for walking and biking, remains realistic. The Lamar County Historical Museum includes a full-size pioneer cabin and military exhibits arranged inside an old warehouse. Culbertson Fountain anchors the square and is lit in color each evening, surrounded by benches and foot traffic from shops like Paris Bakery and restaurants like Jaxx Burgers. South Main Iron, a motorcycle-themed bar and grill with live music and a rooftop patio, brings in crowds from across the region.
Marshall
Marshall was once the seat of Confederate government west of the Mississippi and later became an early center of African American higher education through Wiley College, founded in 1873. That dual legacy, Southern power and Black intellectual history, still shapes the town’s institutions and landmarks. The Harrison County Courthouse, completed in 1901, dominates the center of downtown and serves as the focal point for the Wonderland of Lights festival every December. The festival transforms the square into a grid of bulbs and lighted displays, drawing visitors from across East Texas.
The median home price in Marshall is $192,000. That allows access to homes near the downtown district or even closer to cultural sites like the Michelson Museum of Art, which holds a permanent collection of Russian-American painter Leo Michelson’s works. The Texas & Pacific Railway Depot has been restored as a museum with train cars and historical displays tied to the region’s rail legacy. For lunch, Blue Frog Grill serves sandwiches and soups inside a 1920s hardware store space with original tile and brick. Telegraph Park offers shaded space and a public piano just off the square.
Port Lavaca
Port Lavaca faces Lavaca Bay with a seawall built not for tourism but to protect the working port. Shrimp boats still anchor just off Broadway, and fishing piers extend into the water where locals cast lines daily. Lighthouse Beach sits at the edge of town, bordered by a birding boardwalk and observation tower maintained by the Calhoun County Navigation District. The beach itself is compact, with a shallow lagoon often filled with egrets and spoonbills.
The median home price in Port Lavaca is $234,500. The price allows access to homes within minutes of the bayfront, often on quiet streets lined with postwar houses. The Calhoun County Museum, located inside a former department store, documents hurricanes, shipwrecks, and early ranching history with preserved photos and tools. Nearby, Bauer Community Center hosts regular events and local markets. The Port Lavaca Main Street Theater, operating since the 1930s, still stages productions with local casts.
Mineral Wells
Mineral Wells built its name on water. In the early 1900s, the town attracted thousands seeking the supposed healing properties of its mineral springs. That boom led to the construction of the Baker Hotel in 1929, a 14-story resort that once drew celebrities and political figures. Though it sat vacant for decades, restoration work is now active, and its presence continues to dominate the skyline. Across the street, Crazy Water Plaza offers mineral water tastings, gift shops, and events tied to the town’s wellness history.
The median home price in Mineral Wells is $220,000. Houses sit along quiet streets within walking distance of downtown, where murals and antique stores fill repurposed brick buildings. Lake Mineral Wells State Park, five miles east, has campsites, trails, and a rock-climbing area at Penitentiary Hollow. The Mineral Wells Fossil Park on the town’s north edge allows visitors to collect 300-million-year-old marine fossils left behind in an exposed limestone shelf. For food, Rickhouse Brewing on North Oak Avenue pours its own beers and serves pizzas and hot sandwiches inside the Crazy Water Hotel.
Nacogdoches
Nacogdoches claims to be the oldest town in Texas, with continuous settlement dating back to 1716 and evidence of a Caddo community centuries earlier. The downtown brick streets follow the original El Camino Real route, and preserved buildings now house bookstores, frame shops, and coffeehouses. The Sterne-Hoya House, built in 1830, holds original furnishings and a rare wine cellar carved into the East Texas clay. Just a few blocks away, Millard’s Crossing Historic Village gathers relocated 19th-century homes, a one-room schoolhouse, and a country church into a walkable loop of regional history.
The median home price in Nacogdoches is $233,100. The cost opens access to neighborhoods near Stephen F. Austin State University, where the Ruby M. Mize Azalea Garden and SFA Mast Arboretum fill several wooded acres with labeled plantings and quiet trails. The Fredonia Brewery on South Street offers small-batch beers brewed on site with live music on weekends. For lunch, Dolli’s Diner serves club sandwiches and chicken-fried steak under tin ceilings in a former drugstore. East of town, the Lanana Creek Trail cuts through pine and hardwood forests past a historic spring.
Seguin
Seguin is built on concrete. In the 1890s, local inventors and masons used experimental limecrete to construct dozens of buildings, homes, schools, cisterns, long before the material gained popularity elsewhere. Some still stand, including Sebastopol House, now a historic site operated by the Texas Historical Commission. The town also claims the “World’s Largest Pecan,” a ten-foot-long replica that sits near the Guadalupe County Courthouse, itself surrounded by bronze pecan sculptures donated by local families. Seguin’s identity has long been tied to pecan farming, cement, and riverfront industry.
The median home price in Seguin is $277,334. This includes options near Max Starcke Park, a 227-acre public space designed in part by the Works Progress Administration. It includes an 18-hole golf course, trails, and a dammed stretch of the Guadalupe River popular for fishing and paddling. Amy’s and Cathy’s, a lunch café off Court Street, serves chicken salad and coconut pie to a daily crowd. Seguin’s size, under 30,000 residents, means traffic is limited, but infrastructure remains strong.
Taken together, these 111 towns pass the Tuesday-at-2 Test and the Rule of 1-1-1: ordinary errands, steady services, and prices that keep savings intact. The map favors squares over skylines, porches over parking garages, and lake walks over long commutes. Hospitals sit close, libraries keep hours, and markets anchor weekends. Retirement here isn’t retreat; it’s a recalibration of pace and cost, an everyday life built to fit both budget and time.
