Can you recommend a place in NH for a 30 year old single man? (Manchester: apartments, rental market)
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I feel like I have concluded my search for a place I'd finally like to settle down in. After surveying all the options in the US, I've decided that New Hampshire is probably where I'd be happiest. The reasons are: geography, 4 seasons, low crime, libertarian type of living, low taxes and good wages.
In no other state have I found this combination.
Currently I live in Upstate NY. I have been ready to get out for years now. I have gotten my affairs in order and am ready to move.
I realize there are several threads on this topic, but every one is based on that individual's situation and preferences. My situation is pretty simple. I am 30, male, single, healthcare professional, and would like to live in a conservative and clean city with access to mountains, beaches, and a big city like Boston perhaps.
What can you recommend?
I applied to a job in Portsmouth and am about to apply to a job in Concord. Any suggestions are appreciated.
Portsmouth and Concord are both nice areas. Lebanon has Dartmouth, but is a bit more rural. Manchester and Nashua would have some more job opportunities, and there are plenty of nearby areas you could live in if you wanted to stay out of the cities.
You'll get more conservative the further north you go. But also more rural, and less populated. Tilton and Laconia might be decent options as well.
Doe-vah (Dover) - 15-20 mins upriver from Portsmouth, not as upscale, but still a nice town with a walkable downtown, and actually its own hospital, and it's about 1/3 cheaper for a house there than in Portsmouth.
It will really depend on where you actually get a job. No point in recommending Dover, for example, if you get a job in Concord.
True. But i'm willing to hold out a little bit longer for a job to open up in a better city if it is that much better to live in one city over another.
Unless you guys would just recommend I take the first job I am offered just to get into the state because it is pretty good anywhere in New Hampshire?
Doe-vah (Dover) - 15-20 mins upriver from Portsmouth, not as upscale, but still a nice town with a walkable downtown, and actually its own hospital, and it's about 1/3 cheaper for a house there than in Portsmouth.
Yeah. I noticed the prices of homes in Portsmouth are very very high. However, I have found apartments on craigslist renting for 750-1000 month which is very reasonable. I would just have to hold off on buying a home for a few years. Portsmouth would be my ideal as of now, but unfortunately I have not heard back about the job since applying 3 weeks ago.
Would concord be "worse"? I see that Portsmouth is a seaport which is very appealing to me.
Get the job first, then find an apartment. Portsmouth is a much more lively city and you would have easy access to Maine. With Concord, it's a more subdued city, however it would be easier to head up north up I-93 and enjoy the mountains on your weekends.
OP, when you say "conservative" city, do you mean politically conservative? Neither Concord nor Portsmouth are particularly conservative. Generally they both lean left. Or do you just mean generally a kind of "clean" city, nothing weird going on, live and let live?
I think almost everyone on here agrees Portsmouth is the "nicest" city in NH. Although it is small, it is actually in many ways the most "city-like" city in terms of what it has to offer for young professionals. Lots of nice pubs and restaurants, and it has very nice architecture and a great location with nice proximity to Boston and Portland, Maine. It is, as noted, very expensive. Beware the apartments you find on Craigslist! See the recent thread by the guy complaining about the "Craigslist rental market." Based on prices I saw several years ago when we contemplated moving to Portsmouth, I question what kind of place you'll find in Portsmouth in the price range you mentioned.
Concord is a nice city. They revamped the downtown a few years ago, and it's made a huge difference - lots of "hip" businesses have moved in, and it's really very different from how it was when I first moved here - there is much more going on now. Within NH, it has a more central location, at the crossroads of the two interstate highways, and better access to mountains. It's really the best location in the state for easy access to everything, but of course other locations have easier access to one thing or another (Portsmouth, closer to beaches.)
But, certainly if I were able to choose between Concord or Portsmouth, as a single younger person, I would choose Portsmouth. I ended up really loving Concord, but I think that was because I had "settled down."
Again, there is nothing wrong with Concord. I think Portsmouth is just nicer for a young professional.
Edit - Have you visited any of these locations yet?
OP, when you say "conservative" city, do you mean politically conservative? Neither Concord nor Portsmouth are particularly conservative. Generally they both lean left. Or do you just mean generally a kind of "clean" city, nothing weird going on, live and let live?
I think almost everyone on here agrees Portsmouth is the "nicest" city in NH. Although it is small, it is actually in many ways the most "city-like" city in terms of what it has to offer for young professionals. Lots of nice pubs and restaurants, and it has very nice architecture and a great location with nice proximity to Boston and Portland, Maine. It is, as noted, very expensive. Beware the apartments you find on Craigslist! See the recent thread by the guy complaining about the "Craigslist rental market." Based on prices I saw several years ago when we contemplated moving to Portsmouth, I question what kind of place you'll find in Portsmouth in the price range you mentioned.
Concord is a nice city. They revamped the downtown a few years ago, and it's made a huge difference - lots of "hip" businesses have moved in, and it's really very different from how it was when I first moved here - there is much more going on now. Within NH, it has a more central location, at the crossroads of the two interstate highways, and better access to mountains. It's really the best location in the state for easy access to everything, but of course other locations have easier access to one thing or another (Portsmouth, closer to beaches.)
But, certainly if I were able to choose between Concord or Portsmouth, as a single younger person, I would choose Portsmouth. I ended up really loving Concord, but I think that was because I had "settled down."
Again, there is nothing wrong with Concord. I think Portsmouth is just nicer for a young professional.
Edit - Have you visited any of these locations yet?
I have not visiting New Hampshire at all. I had a feeling Portsmouth was the "better" of the two. The job I applied for was probably filled quickly for this reason.
In regards to a conservative city, as I said in my OP I would just like to live somewhere nice, clean, low crime, and libertarian attitude. My thought is that "left leaning" people in New Hampshire are probably far more conservative than they realize, comparatively speaking to the "left leaning" lunatics found elsewhere in the country.
I supposed I will follow up with the job application in Portsmouth just because I might as well. If it doesn't pan out, I could certainly move to Concord with an open mind and a good attitude. And like you said in regards to the apartment, I likely would have a questionable living situation for that price range. So perhaps starting off in Concord and moving to Portsmouth when I can afford a house isn't a bad strategy...should I even desire to do that at a later point in life.
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Based on prices I saw several years ago when we contemplated moving to Portsmouth, I question what kind of place you'll find in Portsmouth in the price range you mentioned.
