Relocating to New Hampshire

Hello J.,

I am originally from MA but have lived in NH now for over 25 years and have never looked back. We absolutely LOVE living in NH. I live in Londonderry just south of Manchester. You couldn't ask for a more perfect location.

Less than an hour to Boston, an hour to the coast and beaches, 1-1/2 hour to the mountains, 1 hour to the lakes region. It is a magnificent state with so much beauty right in your backyard.

We moved to Londonderry when my children were 4 and 6, now they are 22 and 20. My son has special needs so I was very particular about the schools. We have not been disappointed.

I would highly recommend NH as a place to raise your family. AS mentioned by other readers- we have no income tax or sales tax- our property taxes are higher but are tax deductible.

I am a Realtor with Prudential Verani Realty and have almost 25 years experience so if you need help finding a place when you come up here please let me know. I would be happy to share my love and knowledge of the great state of NH.

S.

Hello!
I live in Derry NH. This is a great town. Parts of it are country, there are a lot horse farms near me, and parts are woodsy, and other parts are in the middle of shopping areas. Derry is close to I 93, Manchester, Salem and other such bigger cities. It is not far from the major NH airport. It is also only about 30 or 40 minutes to Boston. I really enjoy living in NH. I grew up here and moved away for college. I spent 10 yrs away and am glad that I moved back. I have a 6 yr old daughter and the daycare that she is in is great. The schools in Derry I believe are good too. I haven't heard anything bad about them. I hope that this helps with your decision even if it is a little bit. Good Luck! PS. No sales tax and no income tax is great! LIVE FREE OR DIE!

You can't go wrong with any part of New Hampshire. If you want to visit a metropolis there is Boston, Massachusetts or Portland, Maine just within an hour drive of the southern section of the state. If you want the mountains you are within an hour or so of the White Mountains of New Hampshire, a couple of hours from the Green Mountains of Vermont, or the wilderness of Maine. If you want the ocean you have the New Hampshire coast within an hour drive of the main city, Manchester. There is also the Maine coast. New Hampshire is just small enough to reach whatever you want and just large enough to have cutting edge technology within reach. It is the type of state that if you want family values and good living conditions you will find what you are looking for. Best Wishes in your search.

Hello I live in Manchester N.H. the city is like any other typical city. If you decide you want to come up here and you are going to live in an apartment you will most likely end up here. If you decide to move out of the city rent prices nearby are very high. If you go up north the prices fall , but your commute to work my increase dramatically.
other wise New Hampshire is a beautiful state I was born and raised in New Hampshire , this state has so much to offer from history, nightlife, mountains and ocean !! and NO Sales TAX

Hi J.,

I live in Windham, NH which is a small town just over the border from MA. So we're only about 30-40 minutes from Boston and Manchester, NH is about 20 minutes North. So although our town isn't huge, we're really close to civilization with malls, shopping, museums, etc. Windham has an excellent school system too which we're very happy with. That all being said, however, don't let the "tax free" thing fool you. Nothing is free. It's true that if you live and work in NH you don't have to pay state income tax but the property taxes will shock you. So if you're planning to buy a house you'll need to take that into account. For example, 2 1/2 years ago we bought a split level home that was built in the 1970's. It has 3 bedrooms - about 1900 square feet. It's on 1 acre of land. Decent house but nothing spectacular. We paid about $350,000 (that's when the housing market was better). Our property taxes are currently about $6400.00 per year. When we bought the house they were about $4800. So in 2 years they've gone up almost $2000. There are other towns where the taxes aren't quite as high and there are towns where the taxes are higher. One way or another the states get their money.

It's true that NH is really a beautiful state with outdoor activities galore. We have mountains, lakes and the ocean all in 1 little state and fall foliage is gorgeous. The winters are hard though. It's nice when you go skiing or something, but the day to day grind of going to school and work in the snow and ice isn't easy. Last year at this time we had a major ice storm that left us "homeless" for 9 days. We had to move in with my brother-in-law until we could move back home. My husband is so sick and tired of the cold, gray drudgery that he wants to move down south.

If I were you I'd plan a trip up here in the dead of winter when it's 0 degrees with a wind chill of -15 before making a major decision to see how you all do with it. Plus, will you be able to get work? There's a lot of people unemployed right now.

I'm not saying not to come (we'd love to have you) but just weigh it all out. Let me know if you have any more specific questions.

Jen

Good Morning,
I am a mother of a 9 year old boy and a 5 year old girl and have lived in NH for almost 12 years. I like it here! I have also traveled to Florida and although loved Florida for the purpose I went, I am not sure if I could ever live there. NH, has a much slower pace. Believe me I am busy, but I don't have 4+ lanes roads everywhere and the pace in the streets that you have. I love the four seasons, but they come with work. When it gets cold...it gets really cold! We also need to snow blow and shovel. Your children are at an age where playing in the snow isn't so fun yet! They get cold quick and it is hard for little ones to move around in their snow suits and snow. We have the dreaded muddy time of year, but this only bugs me because I have two dogs. There are some great school systems in the state. I live in Londonderry, but there is also Bow, Hampton, Bedford, Amherst. I taught for 8 years before I became a mom and although I am a tough judge, the schools systems I mentioned...all good! It is not cheap to live here, but I don't think it is cheap to live anywhere! My husband commutes to Boston, but MA is a lot more expensive! I think the quality of life is great. When we travel I often think it would be nice to live somewhere else, but I can't imagine moving. Before we had children we lived outside of Washington D.C in VA. We loved it there, but I couldn't imagine taking my children to that area now. We also both have family local, so that is always a plus. Are you originally from Florida? Although some of the above may seem negative, I wanted you to know some of the reality of living here. The state is BEAUTIFUL, we have the mountains, lakes and the ocean. We border Maine and that is where I grew up and still love to go to the Maine coast. We actually are going there tomorrow. We also are only 40 minutes to Boston, so we can offer our children some of the benefits the big city has to offer. Good luck with your move and I hope this helps! Liz

Hi J.,
As another poster, I live in the town of Windham. My husband and I love living in NH. My husband is from Mass and we lived there for awhile. When it came time to start a family, I wanted to move back to my home state. My family is there and it would just make it easier all around. Well, my husband fought me tough and nail. he was adamant about not going to NH. But, needless to say, we did end up buying a house there and now, we are extrememly happy. My husband is constantly saying how he would never move back to Mass. And we have talked about moving to Florida as my parents and his have condos there. We travel there 2 to 3 times per year and absolutley love it. We are not winter people at all, do not ski, hate the snow; definitely like the warm weather and still with all that, we wouldn't leave NH.

Yes we do not have taxes which is wonderful. As for the property tax, you have that no matter which state you move to. I am paying a little more in property taxes than I did in MA. There is no employment tax, tax on purchases nor excise tax. I remember when I bought a used car in MA, I had to pay $700 in tax when I registered it. I don't miss that!
NH has a lot to offer. Depending on where you choose, you can be near Boston ,which Windham is. IT is about 30 min.

Also, the school system in Windham is excellent. I do not have any children in there as of now, I have a 3 yr old and am currently expecting my 2nd but my best friend does and she is president of the PTA so I know all about it. We also have a brand new top of the line high school.

Anyway, good luck with you decision. If you have any other questions, please feel free to ask!