Stratham or Exeter? Where would you live with children? (Bedford: home, transfer)

[mjmamma]

My husband & I are considering a move from Massachusetts. We have four young children (8 & under) and live in a great community with great schools but need a larger home. NH, even with higher property taxes, will provide us more with value. We are in a suburban area now and own a second home in Bartlett so we are comfortable with NH in general. We did consider Bedford/Windham but are leaning toward the seacoast area.

** My question is, Is there an obvious choice between the two towns? We are looking for proximity to Rt 95 and good schools. These two areas seem to top the list. I would really appreciate any input or guidance. Exeter's taxes are high but all the NH towns we look at are comparable. We're almost 40 years old, if that helps Thank you, in advance.

[buck naked]

six of one, half dozen of the other


both have easy access to I-95 and both have good schools

the biggest difference is, Exeter has a quaint downtown area

[mjmamma]

Thank you! I'll have to visit both soon but they seemed similar from the data I've read. I've gone through old threads and learned a lot. Beside the higher taxes, Exeter seems like it would be a great place for us. Thanks again.

[TimeMachine]

Parts of Stratham and Exeter's more industrial "downtowns" flow in to each other, it's really like one big town. Exeter has an interesting history and ties to the revolutionary war (what doesn't around here though . Both have parks and playgrounds scattered around. Exeter has a nice walkable mainstreet with shops, etc. along a waterfront, and a fun Holiday parade, but you could enjoy this just as easy living in Stratham. Go for the perfect home in either town I'd say.

[Valerie C]

Exeter and Stratham share quite a few of the same amenities, with some differences that may make a big difference to you.

First & formost, services that you may be used to (and want to retain) are more likely to be found in Exeter: full-time municipal police, fire department & Emergency Medical Sevice in Exeter while Stratham is volunteer fire & EMS. Both Exeter and Stratham have municpal trash pick up, but Exeter charges for bags (I think it's $20 for 10 bags). Or you can bring trash to the transfer station.

In Exeter, there is the possibility of publuc water/publiic sewer, while Stratham is 100% private well & septic. This is not to say that all property in Exeter is public/public, because there are no water/sewer/gas lines in many areas of town.

Both towns are part of SAU 16 "The Exeter District" Taxes in Exeter are somewhat higher, around $25/thousand vs. Stratham, around $20/Thousand.

The towns are just about the same size (15 to 20 square miles +/-) and Exeter's population is about double that of Stratham.

Hope this info is helpful for your decision naking!

[mjmamma]

Great points, thank you. We currently have septic and do miss town water (you can flush so much more!). I think I need to see if the additional taxes are worth it especially since it seems like we'd be part of the Exeter community. We're big fans of community participation and like to utilize any available programs.
I think we could go either way regarding population. We're both from large cities but also enjoy our small town.
I appreciate everyone's input, thanks so much.

[krelithous]

i like em both myself!!