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I’m looking for some advice as to where to live in NH. I am originally from MA, but didn’t like the fast-paced, high-pressure environment growing up in the suburbs of Boston. Four years ago, my husband and I moved to Maine, where he is from. We’ve moved around quite a bit from Auburn (which was far too remote for us!) to Portland, which we love. Unfortunately, we (in addition to other things) are tired of losing 1/3rd of our paychecks to taxes, and I am finding that there really aren’t many job opportunities for me (I'm in Human Resources… I’ve worked in call center management since coming to Maine, but would really like a more professional environment!).
While I wanted to move to Burlington, my husband lived in VT for a short time and doesn't want to move back, so we decided to compromise and move to NH. It seems combine the aspects that we like about Maine and Massachusetts, but without a lot of the aspects that we don’t like. We’re not sure where the best place to live is, however. We’re really concentrating our search on more southern regions, but away from the coast: we love hiking and climbing mountains on weekends.
At the moment, we are renting a house in Portland and would like to do the same where ever we move. We both live close enough to work that we can come home for lunch to let the dog out, which is very important to us. We don’t have kids, so the school system isn’t as much of an issue, but we like the freedoms that come with renting a house (as opposed to apartment living). I also like having amenities close-by, so I don’t have to drive 10 miles just to get to the grocery store! At the same time, Portland is about as big of a city as I’m comfortable with.
Also…. Is the snow a lot worse in NH than elsewhere in New England?? I know that snow and cold winters are a given in this region, but I definitely don’t want to move somewhere worse! Auburn was in a snow belt and we regularly got 8”+ each night, almost all winter, which really drove me crazy. I can deal with Maine, Mass, or even Vermont winters, but I’ve heard stories about NH being in a snow belt....
Any advice would be greatly appreciated! We have to decide whether or not moving is viable by mid-July and are looking to move by late August. Conversely, if there are any areas that we should avoid, that info would be appreciated as well!
If you like Portland and Burlington, I would check out Portsmouth. It's literally across the water from Maine, maybe a 15 minute drive from Kittery. It's a beautiful, historic city with lots of cultural offerings, restaurants, etc. It's right on the ocean and not far from the mountains, and only an hour's drive from Portland and Boston.
Further south and west, you could consider Peterborough, which has a very artsy vibe and a great downtown area with shops and restaurants. It's home to the MacDowell Art Colony so it's much more sophisticated than most small towns, but it is a small town and less convenient to city amenities. The flip side of that is that it's a lot less expensive, too. You'd be right in the mountains.
Easy - move to Portsmouth or one of it's surrounding towns.
Portsmouth is over the bridge from Maine, 1 hour from Portland, no income tax (if you work in NH) or sales tax, a waterfront vibe similar to Portland, right on 95 giving you easy access to Maine and Mass.
ok, you want away from the coast (so Portsmouth is out) but southern NH, and you like hiking on weekends. sounds like the Monadnock area! Ok, Burlington VT is pretty darn liberal (ok, most of VT is, and a lot more liberal than NH), the most liberal town I can think of would likely be Peterborough. Though if you want more conservative, pretty much any town. The Wapack Trail goes through the area, there's Mt Monadnock in Jaffrey and smaller Pack Monadnock in Peterborough, and assorted other small mountains scattered around.
You might want to take a weekend and come over and drive around. It's the side of southern NH over towards Brattleboro VT (not quite as far).
If, after driving around and researching the towns, you'd like to talk with a realtor who knows the area, PM me and I'll pass on ours. She's fabulous - and could look for a rental house for you.
Oh I forgot: Elan asked about snow. I've noticed ove rthe years that a lot of the weather patterns go through NE on a diagonal (well, the coastline is a diagonal too!). So in general, VT, ME and most of NH get about the same snow patterns, but one section of southern NH often gets missed: south-central/east! Unfortunately the Monadnock area is just on the edge and heading into the snow that VT gets. New Ipswich is just about on the cusp: not as much as Keene might get, and a little more than Hollis gets. Of course, some years are aberrations
But I wouldn't say that NH gets more snow than VT or ME! I'd say on par.
Thanks for the input! And I love the pictures. We definitely tend to be more conservative (another reason we're not quite satisfied with living in ME!). We're hoping to take some road trips over the next few weekends.
ok, then you probably would not be happy in VT (esp Burlington)! New Ipswich is nice, Wilton would be a little closer to amenities in Milford and Nashua. Milford might have more rentals though. Mont Vernon is very nice. You'll definitely have to come out and drive around the area! Mason is a town of all back roads who thinks they're going to elevate themselves to the 'snob' level of Amherst (Amherst isn't necessarily 'snobby', but it's always had just a touch of 'higher' something) by driving out families with kids - go figure. Temple has Temple Mt which can be a bit of an issue getting around in the winter (road closures). Check out Milford and Wilton, though. Easy access to lots of places.
You should probably find jobs first, then decide on a place to live.
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